Written By Hanna McCarthy
You made the sweet baby announcement, you’re starting to get your nursery all set, you’re getting ready for baby – but what about your weekly Workouts? Discovering that you’re pregnant comes with so much joy and partnered with so many questions, sometimes it feels impossible to navigate all of it.
Unfortunately, for all you active women out there, when it comes to staying strong, knowing how to keep your body safe in Workouts during your pregnancy can be hard to sort through! While pregnancy isn’t the time to push your limits, just as your body is changing, it’s totally OKAY to change your fitness goals! At barre. studio, we have lots of prenatal women come through our studio with the question: “how can I maintain my strength and stay active while I’m pregnant?” Our answer? Meet us at the barre! Our goal for all our active mamas and moms-to-be is to maintain and gradually build up strength, flexibility, mobility through consistently showing up and exercising with purpose. We know that barre attracts women of all shapes and sizes and stages in life. Including moms-to-be! That’s why since 2014, our instructors have been training as barre experts and pre/postnatal barre enthusiasts! Our goal is to show up in every class and encourage strength, safety, balance, stability and endurance at every stage of fitness. We know the importance of consistency in our Workouts, that doesn’t have to stop during pregnancy. So, what do you need to know? Keep reading!
Barre Benefits
Let’s just say when it comes to naming the benefits of barre, the limit does not exist! Don’t take our word for it, check out what some of our barre babes from our studio have said: “Barre didn’t ease the pain of labor, but I had more endurance and strength during labor!” “I struggled with so much back pain and soreness but barre. studio’s classes helped ease the pain! I wish I could have just stayed in class for 9 months!” “I didn’t exercise much during my first pregnancy but for my second, I was at the studio 3 times a week! I felt so much stronger, full of energy, and I definitely had an easier time recovering during postpartum than the first time around. I wish I had barre a few years ago! Thank you barre. studio!” Barre has so many other amazing benefits throughout the stages of pregnancy as it is low impact and comes with a low risk of injury. And the best part? All those amazing barre benefits don’t stop once the baby arrives! Barre helps new moms rebuild and recover safely while improving energy levels and mood. This means with your doctor’s green light, you can practice barre multiple times per a week throughout your pregnancy without the high risk of injury!
Barre Tips & Prenatal Modifications
Check in with your doctor before beginning any new workout, especially during pregnancy. One of the many unique things about barre is that it’s a no-to-low impact workout and, the Workouts are completely scalable. This means that if you’re a beginner, barre is a great workout to start building strength, stability, and flexibility. If you’re advanced, you can turbo charge your barre class to make the moves more challenging! When it comes to prenatal fitness, there are a few modifications to make in order to keep the workout pregnancy-safe. Why? The body changes through pregnancy which means your Workouts are going to change with it! Each trimester requires some tweaks to movements to keep them safe and achievable which is why you should work with you instructor and learn what modifications you need for a successful class.
“I’ve trained hundreds of barre instructors on the importance of modifications for our pre/postnatal population. Most of the questions and modifications are around the core section of our classes. The abdominal wall already has a lot of new pressure on it from the growing little one which means the core muscles are unable to successfully support more traditional core-focused exercises such as crunches or sit-ups, etc. Because unsupported abdominal work and unsupported forward flexion from the hips is a NO-GO during pregnancy, we teach our clients options to keep the muscles active and maintaining the core by focusing on breath and using props such as a core ball to add stability!” -Hanna McCarthy, founder of barre. studio
While there are several amazing online programs that are pre/postnatal specific, if you’re going to tuck and shake in a studio, grab the instructor and let them know what’s going on in your body! At barre. studio, we’ll be ready to show you modifications that will make your workout safe and effective. The goal is never to push the body, but rather meeting the body where it is and challenge with purpose. Your instructor will be able to assist you throughout your pregnancy and ensure you feel safe during your Workouts! Discover the many ways barre can be a perfect workout throughout your pregnancy by checking out a studio near you or joining us online! Our studio offers online LIVE, pre/postnatal workshops, and on-demand classes.
Discover us at barredstudio.com From all of us at barre. studio, we wish you a wonderful and healthy pregnancy journey!
Hanna is a barre studio owner, graduate of Center for
Women’s Fitness pre/postnatal pilates, and RYT-200. Her
passion is helping women of all shapes and sizes find
Workouts that inspire, that are consistent, that are
sustainable. She created barredstudio.com, a now virtual
barre company that offers accredited barre instructor
training, workshops, and online barre classes. Hanna lives in West Chester,
Pennsylvania with her husband, Nick, and 2 chorkies, Jelly and Waffle. Follow
barre. studio on Instagram @barredstudio and Facebook
