ANGELEANS PASS THE BARRE
By Eva Leume
There’s a reason why ballet spawned a thousand international workouts, from Pilates to Core Fusion. Traditional ballet barre training is at the core of sinewy dancer’s legs, willowy, upright prima-donna posture and graceful gazelle-like movement. When in Los Angeles, look no further than the egalitarian community atmosphere of the Hollywood YMCA for your basic ballet 101 classes to transform your office body and limited desk-to-phone movements.
Every Saturday morning, Monday and Wednesday evenings, Ballet Barre instructor Michelle awaits students with an hour-long class of intense leg movements to inspire students. The full-body workout is taught through extensions on the barre and across the floor. The class is a mix of all levels - Hollywood starlets à la Ginger Rogers, elderly ladies with a touch of eccentric and beginners simply looking to improve their posture.
Beginning with 45 minutes of leg barre work where each exercise is meant to strengthen specific parts of the body, Michelle leads you in a lesson of pliés, tendus, battements and rond de jambs. No worries if you don’t know French, she is quick to translate.
Leg exercises and traditional ballet positions warm up the thighs and tendons of the leg and also aid in developing the instep and arch of the foot. Positions continue to develop the tendons and muscles of thighs, calves, ankles and feet, increasing our flexibility and strength. The intense workout, though seemingly as innocuous as the basic, will prove to be surprisingly quite painful the next day.
The ballet barre work is followed by an invigorating 15 minutes of floor work, including pirouettes and jetés that are aerobic enough to get your heart rate up to at least 150 beats per minute. At first glance intimidating, the floorwork is joyful and reminiscent of lunchtime at the playground with friends, replete with giggles and laughter - and all the while Michelle is leading with instruction.
So, if you are looking for a way to look great in that mini, improve your posture or just get your body in motion, go back to the basics with Ballet Barre 101 at the Hollywood YMCA. And, if just re-shaping your body isn’t enough to get you going, you can give back by volunteering as a tutor to young fledgling students, or peer counselor for job placement and training.
Because, isn’t that just like you to pay it forward.