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Ballet Barre, or “Bella Barre,” For a Lean Dancer’s Body at Any Fitness Level

I’ve danced most of my adult life, starred in countless dance productions and taught for years in regional theaters. Dancing and its fitness benefits have always been important to me.

Until one day in a rehearsal,  a 700 lb set wall fell on me and crushed the right side of my body.  For three long months, my injuries made it impossible to walk, much less dance.

It took about eight months to finish rehab and recover the injuries.  Fear of failing to get back to “the way I was” kept me from dancing or any fitness activity other than the prescribed rehab.

During this time, I acquired forty extra pounds and a much-lowered self image.  I let go of any idea of dancing again and allowed six years to go by without it.  I eventually decided I had to do something to end the slump and enrolled in a beginner ballet class.  I also had some success with rebuilding in a mat Pilates program.

I decided to have a little faith and audition for Center Dance Ensemble and won the roll of Beastie in Snow Queen.   After that accomplishment,  it was time to ramp up conditioning and strive to become a strong and confident dancer once again.

Friend and fellow dancer Teal Darkenwald who – by the way – is an accomplished Abby Bella Dance instructor, with a Bachelors in Exercise Science and a Masters of Fine Arts, dragged me to a ballet barre class.  After being a self proclaimed “Pilates person,” I tried ballet barre and quickly decided this was the best dance/fitness workout for me.  Ballet Barre, known at Abby Bella as “Bella Barre” was such a fun, full-body workout and quickly became my favorite program.

Now as a certified Bella Barre instructor, it’s truly rewarding to see the body transformations of the students at Abby Bella.  One student who comes to mind is a woman of fifty+ who has chiseled away pounds of body fat leaving her with a strong, solid figure that’s been completely rebuilt.  She looks amazing and it shows on her face and in her attitude!

As for me with Bella barre, I’ve managed to lose over twenty-five lbs and 15 inches over the course of only four months.  Many of my students say they see marked change in their appearances and strength in the first two weeks of taking the class.

I’m excited that Abby Bella is ramping up the Bella barre program. They’ve brought Teal in to offer even more advanced teacher training, so we can continue to challenge and give our students more as their fitness levels increase and they have more need for more advanced methods of physical conditioning.

Bottom line: Bella Barre is an incredible full body conditioning program that is fun to do.  You work hard, but the best part is that the hour goes by incredibly fast.   Hey, you’re dancing!

Each Bella barre classes at Abby Bella is special.  For each class, we have a different theme with the appropriate music and I, being so happy about this program, am often seen in theme-matching costumes teaching the classes.  I can’t help it.  The rewards I’ve gained from this program are boundless and it’s my goal to make each class experience a fun and joyful time for each student at Abby Bella!

-Brad Speck
Director, Abby Bella Arcadia