When I heard that Ellie Williams had started a new business, Pure Barre in Ladue, I was more than a little curious. Ellie and I were ‘money girls.’ We both came from the financial services industry. Ellie is a financial adviser and author, and I was confused about why she would be switching careers with the market still strong. It was one thing for me to drop out of the money girl club, but not her. Well, leave it to Ellie to be an overachiever. She just added business owner to her resume.
Ellie and two partners, Julie Belz and Heidi Yates, have brought a new kind of exercise to St. Louis. By now you probably know how I feel about working out: I don’t like to sweat and I particularly hate group fitness classes. Especially the kind with mirrors on the walls. During the ’80s, I very much wanted to ‘get physical,’ but was often asked to move to the back row in aerobics at the old Vic Tanny’s in Clayton because I was a distraction to the other members. That’s code for, “You don’t know your right from your left, have no idea what it means to ‘grapevine’ and spend most of the class two to three beats off from everyone else.”
I have tried a variety of classes over the past 30 years—cardio dance, kettle ball, Zumba—and have never really felt comfortable … though I must say in Zumba, no one really cares how bad you dance. So while I was excited for Ellie and her partners’ new venture, I wasn’t sure I’d be a happy participant.
But since I am a big supporter of St. Louis-owned businesses, I decided to sign up for the grand opening package, which would allow me to take as many classes as I could convince myself to go to in a five-week period. Ellie told me that it would take a few classes before I understood all the terms, and 10 classes before I saw a difference in my body. What Ellie did not tell me was that I would be unable to walk up the stairs the day after the first class, or that the abs I assumed had long ago atrophied would reappear.
Pure Barre is a fitness routine that is all about toning, lifting and burning. You work using light weights, a small ball and a ballet barre. Your movements are slight. There is lots of tucking and holding: things that should be easy to do but clearly aren’t because about halfway through class, you are trying to figure out how to crawl out without anyone noticing.
So let me tell you what I like and hate about Pure Barre. For the likes: In every class, there are all ages and sizes of women. Seriously, from 16 to 75, all of us were sweating together. No one looks at you. If you took fitness classes in the ’80s, you know exactly what I’m talking about. There is no one checking out what you are wearing or if you are keeping up. Rather, the class requires you to focus on yourself so it is impossible to stare at someone else, even though I tried. Also, the instructors are very nice and not in a sugary, overly peppy way. They tell you what to do, count down, walk around the room, correct your form as needed and provide just the right amount of encouragement without you wanting to hit them for being in better shape than you. And the music is great. I have been in other mind/body classes where there is no music, or very Zen-like music, but I must say a little Beyonce can really keep you going. And, as I already mentioned, I have rediscovered muscles I didn’t know I had!
OK, here’s what I hate: sweating. For little movements, I sure had to sweat a lot. I also hate the mirrors. I really do not need to see myself close up in the morning; even without glasses, it is not pretty. And, as I mentioned, the instructors are very nice and supportive. It might work out better for me if they were a little snarky and mean—you know, like the ones at Vic Tanny’s.
So, can I tell a difference in my body after six weeks and 15 sessions? Yes, mostly in my upper body. Will I continue to do it? I actually will. The 55 minutes go by fast, after the first 10 excruciatingly long minutes, that is. So while I am glad Ellie is still a money girl, I am very happy that she and her partners brought this new form of exercise to St. Louis and I decided to try it out. Perhaps with enough time and patience the scars of my days in leg warmers, scrunchies and being off a beat or two will fade as I lift and tuck my way into shape.
Photo: Bill Barrett
