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Yesterday was my 50th class at Pure Barre Boulder, if I'm counting correctly. One time, when I was around 15 classes, someone asked me why I was counting. It's because you get to have a little celebration when you reach 100, 300, and 500 classes. (That celebration includes signing the designated bar and getting socks for your new "club".) That means I'm halfway to the 100 Club. Halfway to those special black and red socks.
Also yesterday, I read this post about comparison on Pure Barre's blog {here} and it really hit home for me, especially Michelle's picture at the end. Wide calves is like the bane of my existence and I'm constantly comparing myself to those skinny minnies whose boots fit perfectly and loosely and who have toothpick legs. That's just not me.
Honestly, I thought 10 classes into my journey with Pure Barre I would have a whole new body and I didn't think it would take much work. Apparently in my mind, stepping into the studio would instantly change my body into this long, lean figure. That hasn't really happened. At all.
But that's not to say that my body hasn't changed. Lately, when I'm lying in bed on my side, I've been admiring my outer thighs (and ignoring my "flabby stomach" that's hanging there...because of GRAVITY). They're strong and toned. There's nothing to pinch on my outer thighs; it's just muscle. And that's thanks to 50 hard classes at Pure Barre. (Well, 49 classes. One time I got no sleep the night before and was literally just going through the motions, faking my way through class. I can tell I didn't work hard because there wasn't a drop of sweat on me by the end of class. But that was just one day.)
Still, despite my small victories, I still find myself comparing myself to other girls in class. There are certainly many more ways to improve my Pure Barre experience, but I've come along way in my 50 classes and I don't give myself enough credit sometimes. Like the quote above, I'm still in the beginning stages of my Pure Barre journey, but so many women there have been going for years. I can't compare my beginning to their middle! So instead of thinking about the girl next to me who has no problem with the near 40 pushups we do at the beginning of class or the girl whose hips never come untucked during seat work, I'm going to compare myself to me for once (I'm going to talk in third person for a second):
1st class Hannah could barely make it through weight work during the warm up.
50th class Hannah can do the entire routine without dropping the weights, and keep her shoulders down and away from her ears.
1st class Hannah could barely do one of the three thigh exercises without coming out of the pose.
50th class Hannah can do all three thigh exercises without coming out of it. She just embraces the shake and breathes through it, rewarding herself with deep stretching after.
1st class Hannah felt more work in her standing leg than her working leg during seat work.
50th class Hannah still feels work in that standing leg, but she crunches her Pure Barre ledge and her outer seat and thighs even come to a shaking point sometimes.
1st class Hannah never felt her abs work during the under-the-barre ab portion of the class.
50th class Hannah realizes that the deeper you tuck, the harder you work.
1st class Hannah faked her way through the rest of the ab work, thinking all those years of crunches were a joke.
50th class Hannah knows her abs need to shake if they're going to change, and she needs to stay in it if they're going to shake.
Since I'm being totally honest here, 1st class Hannah couldn't even hang during the "final 2 and a half minutes of class" where we just tuck our hips and squeeze our thighs in a bridge position. But that was the first thing I conquered at Pure Barre and since the day I did, I never let my hips touch the mat until class is over and it's time for the final stretch.
The bottom line is I have so much more room to grow and so many more muscles to make stronger, but I've come a long way and I don't give myself enough credit sometimes. Pure Barre is tough. I've taken Rachel and Christian to Friend Fridays and both of them were sore and got their butts kicked. They're the two strongest people I know!
Last week when I was headed into the studio, another one of the ladies in class said, "I'm so glad you're here! I love when we're in class together! You have such perfect form!" My response was an aghast, "Who? Me?" literally clutching my chest with my jaw dropped. That made me feel really, really great because there are plenty of women who I look at to check my own form against sometimes. It's kind of cool to know someone does that with me!
You may recall that I'm in the middle of my {60 Day Challenge} at Pure Barre Boulder. Tonight will be my 20th class towards the 40. It also means there's only one month to complete the challenge, which means in the next 30 days, I need to go to 20 classes. I've been slacking on weekends and I need to pick it up! But I'm halfway there, just like I'm halfway to 100!
Happy tucking!
Check out some of my other posts about Pure Barre:
2 Weeks of Unlimited Pure Barre | Pure Barre, 5 Classes In | What Is Pure Barre? | Pure Barre Class #9 | Pure Barre Update | Christian Hits the Barre | 60 Day Challenge
If you're interested in Pure Barre, there are studios across the country and more opening all the time. Check out the website {here} to find one in your state.
