Hi everyone!
I’m writing this on Monday night, still recovering from my first free class trial on Sunday morning. Carl, my boyfriend, is playing Dungeons and Dragons in the other room, so if I suddenly start making metaphors to rolling the dice or playing pretend, you’ll know why.
That’s definitely how it feels going to a fitness class for the first time– I’m rolling the dice on a 60-minute experience where I know I’m going to feel uncomfortable and probably lost. I’m showing up pretending to be someone who knows what the instructor, Kelly, is talking about when she says “center your seat” and “do what feels right”… What even is barre? (I still can’t answer this question)
If you’ve made it this far and are wondering what’s going on, go check out my first blog post for the free group fitness challenge (it’s a quick read!).
Before Class
I was really nervous going into this first class– I was visiting my family in Milwaukee for the weekend, so I picked barre3 as it was walking distance from my parent’s place. I also managed to convince my mom to join me (thank god). Here’s us walking in the rain on our way to class on Sunday morning!
We showed up about 20-15 minutes early, and were greeted with friendly faces; 3 women at the front desk welcomed us in (and even made this cute sign!). We signed a quick waiver and completed a survey describing our fitness backgrounds, injuries, and what we were hoping to get out of barre3. I bought us grippy socks, but they told us it wasn’t necessary to wear them, so we stuck with our normal socks (I regret this).
barre3 Facility
We were then given a tour of the facility, which is super cute. The walls of the hallway are lined with hooks to hang bags and coats, light dumbbells (weights ranged from 3 lbs to 6 lbs), small clean towels, and resistance bands (long and short, 3 different resistance levels). There is a small merchandise section including grippy socks, and they provide free hairbands, wipes, and other little convenient goods.
The facility also has free lockers, 3 changing rooms, and a bathroom. A whiteboard greets you before you enter the studio with a list of the equipment needed for the upcoming class. One large studio takes up the majority of the square footage at this barre3 in downtown Milwaukee.
The floor is completely padded with a thick mat material, and both sides of the room have bars (barres?) stretching the width of the walls. The bars are numbered 1 through 28, and each spot is already set up with a ball. One wall is full of mirrors, and the other is the famous Cream City Brick, really tying in the industrial loft vibe that the Milwaukee 3rd Ward is known for.
Class – barre3 Signature 60
My mom and I got placed in spot 21 and 20 (nat twenty! woo!), right across from the instructor. Kelly guided us through some brief spine stretches before we jumped into some leg and arm work. I felt like I was squatting or lunging for pretty much the entire class. I definitely am feeling that today! The first 15 minutes felt great, I was starting to build up a sweat and I was pushing myself. I got confused with some of the movements a handful of times, but luckily there were others around us who definitely knew what they were doing. It also helped that other people jumped right into modifications before we were told how to modify.
I had no idea what barre was or how barre is different from other workouts before this class. It seems like the barre is not really needed for most of the exercises that we did, but its a great assistive device that lets you isolate your leg muscles or modify an exercise to be a little easier.
About 20 minutes in, I wanted to die. If there weren’t 22 other people in the room blocking me from my exit, I would have crawled right on out of there. I felt like I wasn’t strong enough to do some of the exercises, and I was starting to overheat. I kept wishing for the A/C to start blasting to no avail.
I opted not to wear the grippy socks I brought since it seemed like most people were wearing normal socks, but I definitely regretted it when it came to the last section– core. I’m a very sweaty girl, and I felt my feet slowly sliding away from me while trying to do plank exercises at the end. But back to this core workout at the end. WE DID CORE FOR TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES. I was struggling, and definitely not keeping up with great form, but I am proud of myself for getting through it.
SO. MANY. BUTT. BRIDGES.
We wrapped up the last 8 or so minutes of class with some stretching and breath work. I really love when a workout class incorporates this kind of cool down (or “short rest” for the DnD players in the room); it helps put all that pain into perspective.
barre3 Pricing
As we finished class and put away our equipment, the ladies at the front desk asked us about our first class experience and went over future class pricing options. If you sign up right after your free class, you get a $10 discount. Here’s barre3’s pricing chart:
| Option | Price | Rate |
| 2-Week Unlimited New Client Special | $65 | — |
| Drop-In Class | $29 | $29/class |
| 10 Class Package | $275 | $27.50/class |
| 4-Class Monthly Plan | $99/month | $24.80/class |
| 8-Class Monthly Plan | $139/month | $17.40/class |
| Unlimited Membership | $169/month | $14.10/class |
Final Thoughts and Scorecard
Here’s a picture of me after completing the class. I was feeling great overall, sweaty, and somehow both energized and exhausted. I really liked the class and would definitely consider going again. It was a lot of squatting, and I wish we did a bit more arm movements (especially since Kelly started class saying it was an “arm day”), but the fact that I’m still feeling it the next day means something! Here’s a silly little map i made to show you where I’m sore today.
Finally, here’s my scorecard for barre3. This is all subjective! I might change up the score card as I go…
| Category | Grade | Notes |
| Instructor vibe/energy | B+ | Sometimes she walked away and I didn’t know what to do |
| Class difficulty | B | Wish there were more “medium” modifications |
| Cleanliness of space | A | Everything felt clean! |
| Music quality/volume | B | Generally good, sometimes couldn’t hear the instructor |
| Class size / crowding | A | Did not feel crowded |
| Variety of classes offered / schedule convenience | C+ | It’s pretty much just barre, but you always get a full body workout |
| Price after trial | A | Prices feel reasonable |
| How my body felt after | A | I’m sore! |
| Sweat factor | A | I was really sweaty, maybe a little too sweaty |
| Fun factor | B | This was fun! |
| Number of people wearing coordinated outfits | — | maybe 1-2 people |
| Number of people who said Hi | — | 2 people spoke not working for barre spoke to us afterwards! |
Top Three Pros/Cons
| PROS | CONS |
| My body hurts! | Kinda hot? Needs more A/C |
| Music was fun | Arm day hurt my legs more than my arms |
| Facilities are clean and welcoming | I couldn’t see the instructor if I was at the barre |
Final grade for barre3: B+
Yay that was fun! I got a little carried away with this post (can you tell?) I can’t guarantee I’ll write such an in-depth review in the future, but I’m definitely going to stick to this challenge. I’m already signed up for my next class on Thursday. It’s getting late on this Monday evening, and I’m not feeling like proofreading tonight. Sorry for any typos!!
Would you guys try barre? Have you tried barre before?
Would love to hear your thoughts!
ttyl, Cait
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