Tips for Bringing Your Bump to the Barre

I know that I've gotten a little off barre topics recently which is why I figured I'd bring back a topic that comes up a lot. Can you still do barre when you are pregnant? The answer is YES!

SoulBody Barre instructor, Amy Winemiller, is a perfect example. She just taught her final class with her baby boy expected to arrive in one month. I wanted to get some of her tips to share with all of you so that you can still come and sweat at the barre throughout your pregnancy. 

For pregnant woman who continue to take barre throughout their pregnancy here are several modifications/suggestions from Amy;

• Listen to your body and do what feels comfortable

• Continue performing as much of the class as possible; the majority of the class you should be able to do, but most of the core and plank exercises will become more difficult

• Whenever needed place your knee(s) on the ground for planks/push-ups

• For the side plank place your top hand on the ground in front for support if you feel too off balance

• If the boat position becomes too difficult even with your hands behind your knees you can always place both hands on the ground directly below your shoulders

• If you need to move from high boat to low boat you can lower back tapping your elbows on the ground for low boat, then use your arms to help assist back to high boat

• After 12 weeks (possibly sooner; consult your doctor) you can no longer lay on your stomach, so the Pilates frog and Pilates swimming performed in the second release this year are not allowed; instead hold a plank

• For any core exercises performed lying flat on your back, lift up to reclined forearm to reduce the amount of time on your back and tension in your lower abdominal muscles

• The short amount of time spent lying on our backs for the bridge work shouldn't be an issue, but consult your doctor

• Remember to keep you head above your heart. This will keep circulation consistent and the heart rate at a reasonable level. 

As always, please continue to discuss you workout regimen with your doctor throughout
your pregnancy. Please feel free to reach out to your SB Barre and Body Barre instructors regarding modifications during your class. We'd love to get your feedback on any other modifications you've found and you can share on our Soul Body Community Page on Facebook. 

It's always refreshing to focus on the positive and know that it's important to enjoy yourself while doing it.

Happy Thursday!
Emily

Motivation Monday with SB Body Barre Instructor Annie Truax

I'm backkkk and I sorry I left all of you hanging last week with the spotlight. Before we get to the instructor spotlight, I wanted to wish all of you a Happy Monday. It's a new week which is the perfect time for a fresh start. 

This week's spotlight is with SB Body Barre instructor....

ANNIE TRUAX

 

Where do you teach and when? I teach SB Body Barre at Beachfit BaltimoreWednesdays at 5:30PM

Do you teach any other classes besides barre? If so, what? Currently teach several different styles of barre at various studios all over Charm City, SB Body Barre being one of them.

Do you prefer early AM or PM sweat sessions? Personally I love sweating first thing in the morning - it clears my mind and helps me focus throughout the day!

A tip for staying motivated as we head into fall/winter? As the weather gets colder and the days get shorter, it get really challenging to get out of bed when it's still dark out! I definitely live by the mantra "fail to plan, plan to fail." As my schedule continues to get busier as I take on more classes, I have to write out my schedule for the week every Sunday and schedule in my own sweat sessions, thinking of them like a business meeting with myself. With more studios opening left and right, the free fitness movement blowing up in Baltimore with opportunities like November Project & Free Baltimore Yoga, and Class Pass, it's almost overwhelming how many workout choices we have! I try to keep it simple and schedule myself at least 1 yoga class, 1 run & 1 spin class each week, filling in where I can!

Favorite pre-workout meal/snack: Most of the time I'm working out really early, so I'm not hungry yet - I usually grab a Gundalow Juice (Mainstay Green is my fav!) on the way out the door, or if I'm going to be teaching & working out myself back-to-back, I'll grab a banana with almond butter to go with it.

Favorite recovery meal/snack: After teaching AM classes avocado toast on whole wheat bread with an egg & sricha on top is my fav! 

You never leave home without_______:  My phone charger. ALL my music for class is stored on Spotify, and I do social media/PR for a living, so I'm on my phone constantly. 

What’s in your gym bag? Usually a change of clothes, tennis shoes (5) in case I have time to squeeze in a run or spin class after I teach, dry hairspray, deodorant (2), EOS lip balm, notebook (4), laptop (3) and usually a snack bar - Lara & Kind are my favorites or Gundalow Juice (1)

Favorite workout gear, water bottle, etc.: I recently stumbled upon Fabletics and am loving their gear - great price point, quality and can very easily transition from class to happy hour. Plus their referral program rocks. In terms of water bottle, I am REALLY bad about making myself drink enough water and am super excited about purchasing my FIRST Nalgeine - no more excuses!

Favorite barre move: I'm a sucker for pretzel - seated, standing, lying on one side, I love it!!

Favorite quote: “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." - Melody Beattie

When you’re not at the barre, where may we find you?  I love going for a run along the promenade, taking hot yoga classes, checking out various fitness events all over Baltimore with my BMOREtoned crew, and hanging out at various coffee places in Fells Point with my boyfriend and pup Darby!

Share something fun/interesting about yourself:   I fell in love with Soulbody classes back when they first came to the Canton Merritt and were an additional fee on top of your monthly membership, and there were only about 4 of 5 instructors, including Stacey & Ann Marie, Soulbody's founders! Needless to say classes were a little more intimate and I distinctly remember one 6AM Wednesday class with Stacey in which I was the only student and thought I might die. Never in a million years then did I think I'd end up teaching barre!

Thanks Annie for continuing to be such an inspiration to not only the SoulBody Community, but to Charm City. You are a rockstar!!

That's is for your Monday...now go out and have a great week!!

Emily

A Fun Post and Life Outside of Barre

In case you were wondering what life is like outside of barre for many of our instructors, here is a glimpse.

We run half marathons...

SB Barre instructor Kelly Rabil during the Baltimore Half Marathon

SB Body Barre instructor Annie Truax at the Brooklyn Half Marathon

We run for those that can't...

SB Barre and Body Barre instructor Emily (me) at the Ravens 5K with Athletes Serving Athletes

We walk 39 miles to crush Beast Cancer...

SB Barre instructor Hillary Gras at Avon 39, The Walk to End Breast Cancer

We have pretzel parties...

SB Barre and Body Barre instructor Suangela with her White Marsh Barre ladies

We model...

SB Co-Founder Stacey at a photoshoot via (Cool) Progeny

We find time to relax and recover...

SB Co-Founder Ann Marie enjoying some relaxation at the Four Seasons Spa

We love juice...

Plant Bar

Gundalow Juice

And Wine too...

We spend time supporting local teams...

SB Barre instructor Jaime Dardine enjoying a Friday Night at The Yard

We teach mother daughter classes in fun spaces...

SB Body Barre instructor Katie at ivivva Towson Town Center

AND most importantly...

We love this community!

And remember...

That's it for now, but check back for more posts later this week!

Happy Fall ya'll!!

Emily

Another Friday, Another Amazing Instructor. Spotlight with Ann-Marie Bruchey

You asked...so I'm back for another instructor spotlight. This time with...

Ann-Marie Bruchey

Where do you teach and when? 

SB Barre on Wednesday 5:45AM Merritt Canton and Friday 6AM Merritt Fort Avenue

Do you teach any other classes besides barre? If so, what? I teach Les Mills Bodystep every other Sunday at Merritt Fort Avenue at 9:30AM

Do you prefer early AM or PM sweat sessions? I LOVE AM sweat sessions.  I love getting my workout done early so I can spend the evening with with my son and husband.

A tip for staying motivated as we head into fall/winter?  Make it a part of your daily routine to get in a 30-60 minute workout in 3 days a week.  Find the time to push yourself to make a change so you can eat those holiday goods :)

 Favorite pre-workout meal/snack: I actually don't eat a snack or food before I workout because I go so early

Favorite recovery meal/snack:. Love to eat a banana, or a protein bar or a spoonful of peanut butter

You never leave home without_______:  my phone

What’s in your gym bag? my headset, citrus and sage body spray and choreography notes

Favorite workout gear, water bottle, etc.: I love Under Armour...their clothes, headbands, water bottles, sneakers, etc.

Favorite barre move: Hip swings....a little sass with our barre :)

Favorite quote: Everything happens for a reason!  Just so true!

Share something fun/interesting about yourself:  I love cleaning and organization....OCD if you want to call it that :) I probably clean the house 2-3 times a week and my closet is completely color-coordinated.  That is just the tip of the iceberg :)

Thank you Ann-Marie for being a part of our SB Community and for sharing your passion for our program with your classes.  

Thankful Thursday; Recaping Some Great Happenings in Charm City

Happy Thursday! You will have to forgive me for the late post, but I wanted to take a brief moment to thank the entire Soul Body community for getting out there and sweating with us these past few weeks at some pretty cool events. We've been rather busy with the launch of new choreo, barre training, expos, and some great fundraising events.We LOVE all of your energy and we hope you continue to be a part of such a great fitness community.

We kicked things off at the beginning of the month with the launch of SB Body Barre at Merritt Athletic Clubs Canton.  Plie for Pink was a huge success and all money raised went to the American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. 

We are sweating in PINK all month long at Merritt so come join me and the other amazing instructors.

 A very special shout out to SB Barre instructor Amy Winemiller who's still crushing at the barre at 33 weeks pregnant!

Post barre photo with Taylor and Stacey...two new SB Barre instructors.

Let's see....next we spent a weekend at the American Aerobics Association International spreading the word about SoulBody Barre and SoulBody Body Barre which was a HUGE success.

We completed another SB Body Barre Training at the incredible Under Armour Performance Center. Interested in joining the SB Team? You can check out all of our upcoming SB trainings here.

Stacey did Barre and Brunch. This is such a great way to get together with your girls and do something empowering and uplifting.

As you can see it has been a pretty busy month, but we wouldn't want it any other way.

Don't forget to check out the lovely fitness calendar over at the Bmoretoned blog.  There are still some great opportunities to sweat this month.

And remember....

Have a fabulous rest of your day!

Emily

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

I really wish the weekends didn't go by so fast. We are already two weeks into October, crazy right?!?! I figured that since we are all loving this time of year that I should probably share some of the amazing pumpkin recipes that I've been cooking up in the kitchen.

First up, this Chai Pumpkin Bread from PaleOMG

Chai Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients

• 1 cup almond butter (or other nut butter or seed butter)
• ½ cup pumpkin puree
• 1 banana, mashed
• ¼ cup honey (optional- i like it sweeter)
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 2 chai tea packets (tea spices removed from packets)
• 3 tablespoons coconut flour
• ½ tablespoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix together almond butter, pumpkin, banana, and eggs.
3. Cut open the two tea bags and remove all the tea spices from the tea bags and add to almond butter mixture.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined.
5. Grease a bread pan and then line it with parchment paper.
6. Pour batter in pan and place in oven. Bake for 45 minutes. Let rest before slicing.

Next, these Flourless Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars from one of my favorite bloggers, Fitnessista. I actually whipped these up today. Healthy, delicious, and super easy....perfect combo!

Ingredients

1/2 cup creamy almond butter
1 egg
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
1 tablespoon coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of sea salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used dairy free)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a 9-inch baking dish with nonstick spray or grease with coconut oil.
2. In a large bowl, use a fork to whisk the almond butter until fluffy. Add the egg and mix well.
3. Stir in the pumpkin and remaining ingredients, gently folding in the chocolate chips.
4. Pour into your prepared baking dish and bake for 20-25 minutes, until slightly golden and set. Allow to cool completely before storing covered in the fridge.

I'm a huge fan of  VegaOne Protein powder and this time of year I love the Vanilla Chai. Here's one of my favorite go-to smoothie recipes. 

Pumpkin Spice Protein Smoothie

I hope you all are enjoying fall and are excited to eat as much pumpkin as possible. Share your recipes with us and I'll be sure to share them on the blog. 

Have a great week!
E

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Another Round of Instructor Spotlight....Eyes on You Jaime Dardine

Happy Friday friends! I hope everyone is excited about seeing the new barre and body barre choreography that will be launched this weekend across many of the Merritt Athletic Clubs. Let us know what you think!!

I'm back with another Instructor Spotlight and excited to share some fun things about SB Barre and recently certified Body Barre instructor..... 

JAIME DARDINE

Where do you teach and when?

Wednesdays 6:30AM at Under Armour

Wednesdays 6:30PM Merritt Athletic Clubs Fort Avenue 

& Sub where needed at Under Armour & Fort/Canton Merritt

Early Bird or Night Owl? Definitely AM. It helps to wake me up and starts my day off on the right foot!

A tip for staying motivated as we head into fall/winter? Sweat every day. No matter the elements outside, you always can find some time and a place to get that sweat in. It should be the best part of your day!

Favorite pre-workout meal/snack: I don’t normally eat prior to working out but post workout, I love fruit and smoothies

Favorite recovery meal/snack:. Fruit and Smoothies with a big coffee if it’s post AM workout

You never leave home without_______:  My planner – I would be LOST and late without it

What’s in your gym bag? Spin + Barre gear. I never know when I may need to sub last minute or if I’ll have some time to do some barre before another workout! Also – my phone… it’s not a workout without some good jams – LOVE music

Favorite workout gear, water bottle, etc.: This is tough…I’m lucky because since I work in product at UA, I get to wear test the latest and greatest  but my favorite are headbands – fun prints since I tend to wear a lot of black, livens up my outfit a bit 

Favorite barre move: Waterski – it never lets me down, always burns each and every time [and I’ll willingly admit, it  makes me giggle to see some of my members faces trying to hold it]

Favorite quote: “Anyone who thinks it’s more than you can handle, is less than the kind of person you need in your life.”

When you’re not at the barre, where may we find you? A lot of days/weekends are planned out for me so I take full advantage of a weekend where I have nothing to do and I can just go with the flow.  I love spending time just relaxing with my boyfriend and going to visit my family and my 3 crazy nephews + friends! (at the shore in the summer)

Share something fun/interesting about yourself:  If my college friends couldn’t find me, they would always say I was out in the parking lot squatting mini coopers … it’s because I used to squat 255lbs in college.


Thanks Jaime! We love having you a part of the SB Community.

Have a great weekend everyone...see you at the barre!

Emily