We just moved to OR and I joined Barre 3 because a friend recommended that I go try it out- there is childcare and you can exercise, she said! What?! Coming from CA, there is no such thing as "your kid plays while you exercise in a safe and fun manner". I was shocked. Plus, what the heck was Barre 3? What was the 3? (Yoga, Pilates and Barre, I was soon to find out!).
I walked by the Lake Oswego site and met Anna S. (one of the managers) and her Mom, who were so wonderful and open about the whole thing. Check it out they said! You'll feel so strong!
I was excited it was so close to home, but this other location was the one that offered a child care package, so off I drove to Kruse Way for the first time. Finding the studio was easy, parking was a breeze (right in front! yes!). And then I showed up with my own yoga mat, my awesome kid and head to toe spandex, ready to get my butt kicked. Whoops! I didn't sign up online, and the class may have been full, there may not have been a spot for my little one- but did Kate even blink? Nope! "You're a friend of **?" SURE! Come on in." I think that my open mouthed, "Really?" must have made her laugh, because I was then off getting a tour of the facility, which is beautiful.
Gray high vaulted exposed beam ceilings, speakers all over, beautiful spotless wooden floors, bars lining the wall awaiting your ballerina dance moves. Natalie Portman, watch OUT. I would download their Spotify playlist and make our kitchen a studio on the daily.
Well, It was as awesome as it was that first day, and now, 1.5 months later, I think that those ladies there are the best thing since sliced bread. I love their teachers, each one more fierce and hardcore than the next, some with bad-ass lip gloss and others that come off 4 feet tall, tiny and unassuming and then 15 minutes into class you look at them and go, "girl, you are SO strong" because they are making you drop buckets of sweat while "lowering an inch and lifting an inch." An inch turns into this micro burn of every muscle in your body and as you learn the terminology, soon enough you're "embracing the shakes and quakes." I can honestly say I had no idea where the location of my "Side seat" would be, but I do know now. And these ladies work it.
I suppose this is more about how awesome barre3 is, because their website and now newsletter has got me making chia seed parfaits and apple almond flour donuts, but I think it's a reflection of that first day. Kindness, compassion, and genuine excitement for their customers, along with a beautiful attitude towards mothers and life- I'm in. Sign me up.
This place is the best. It doesn't matter how fit you are, it doesn't matter how many kids you have or don't have, or if you have a yoga mat, because you don't need anything. You just get to show up, have a great 60 minute workout and be surrounded by supportive kind people. Thanks Kruse Way Barre3, you guys rock.
Oh yes, if you're hungry and gonna pass out after, there is a fruit stand in the center of the shopping center (along with every other business/food type: sandwiches, pizza, banh mi, etc) and a coffee place if you go early and want to make a workout date out of the whole thing (Ava). read more