Barre uses a ballet barre and movements from ballet and while it’s usually done in group classes at gyms or studios, it’s possible to do it at home. With these tips, you can improve your home barre workout sessions.
Choose Your Weight Carefully
If you only have heavy dumbbells, skip the weights or find lighter alternatives like water bottles or cans. When the weights are too heavy, it can mess with your form and cause you to raise your shoulders to try and complete the exercises. Barre is about higher rep counts, so lighter weights are important. The recommended weights to use is between two to five pounds.
Check Your Barre Height
Since you probably don’t have a ballet barre at home, use a chair or tabletop for balance. These alternatives may be lower than a barre bar is, so try and maintain proper posture. If you don’t have an object that’s the right height, you can use a wall.
Be Mindful of Your Shoulders When Planking
Planks are a full-body workout that engage your core, arms, back, and legs. When you start to get tired, it’s natural to sink into your shoulders, which puts strain on your neck and back. If you feel like you’re going to sag, press your palms on the mat and hold your gaze about six inches beyond your fingertips.
Don’t Roll Your Hips Back
When lying on your side for poses, you top leg is doing most of the work and it’s common to roll back on the hip, opening it up towards the ceiling. But when you’re doing this, you’re not fully doing the exercise and you won’t feel it as much.
Remember to Cool Down
The cooldown section of your barre workout is important to allow your muscles to recover. Plus it’s the best part of the exercise as you’ll be lying on a mat!
