My commitment to fitness started about five years ago and now I’m here to share with you the classes that I love. I’ll also share how often I workout and how much I pay for my memberships. These workouts along with a mostly plant based diet have given me the body I’ve always wanted, and most importantly, keep me feeling confident and strong. It’s a lot of hard work, but it pays off. Check out my faves below:

Pure Barre: I started these classes almost 5 years ago! Wow, just thinking of that blows my mind. When I first started I couldn’t believe how hard it was (I jokingly called the classes little torture chambers) and almost gave up. Being a newbie to fitness it was a total shock to my system, but I kept at it and thank god I did. The difference Pure Barre has made on my hips, thighs, seat, abdominals and arms is night and day.  My body is longer, leaner and stronger than it has ever been. Once I added muscle to my body the fat melted off. I’m about 8 lbs lighter than I was 5 years ago. It’s also important to note that barre is a great way to lengthen and tone your body without bulking up. One of the ways this is accomplished is by stretching several times throughout the workout. For example, we will normally do some intense thigh, gluts or arm exercises followed by stretching to lengthen the muscle we just worked. The dumbbells (weights) we use do not exceed 3 lbs. This might seem light but the repetitive slow pulsing movements exhaust your muscles. This format reshaped my entire body. It’s incredible and I haven’t found anything that compares.

Membership: If I’m staying in one city for an extended amount of time I will typically get an unlimited membership and it costs me about $170/month. Unfortunately, Pure Barre is a franchise so you aren’t able to use your membership at different locations. One class will cost you between $25-$30 depending on location.

Pro tip: The good news is that most studios typically have beginner rates ($100 for the first month) and even offer the first week free! They also have promotions pretty often for their package deals. Try it and you will see some fantastic results!

How often I go: I go to Pure Barre about 2-3x a week. I believe this is how many times I need to go to see optimal results.

Orange Theory Fitness: I have a love hate relationship with this place! Part of me thinks it’s kind of cheesy with the competitions, high fives and occasional partner workouts (sorry Orangetheory) but the other part of me can’t live without it. It’s safe to say that after almost 5 years, I’m hooked. My favorite part of this 60-minute workout is definitely the cardio. To be completely honest, if it wasn’t for the cardio I wouldn’t take the class. 30 minutes is typically dedicated to cardio on a treadmill and rower while the other 30 minutes focuses on strength training. You might wonder why I don’t just get on a treadmill and workout on my own since I love the cardio so much… The truth is that this class is very motivating. The coaches are always pretty great at getting you to push yourself and stay on track. They will guide you through HIIT cardio using different speeds and inclines all while using a heart rate monitor to track your progress. This is a great workout for anyone beginning his or her fitness journey.

Membership: I get the Orangetheory Elite membership which is the 8 classes a month package and it cost me $99/month. I love this package because you have to use up all 8 classes before the end of the month or you lose them. That motivates you to go at least 2x per week. That’s all I need because I also have my Pure Barre membership. The best part about Orangetheory is that although it’s a franchise you can still use your membership at any location in the U.S. Also they are everywhere, so you’ll never have a tough time finding one near you.

Pro tip: Some locations offer the first class free.

How often I go: 2x a week

The time of day I workout: My schedule is flexible but I always try to work out around 9 or 10AM. That gives me enough time to wake up, eat breakfast and hydrate my body a bit before working on my fitness.

What I eat before my workout: These days I love steel cut oats or protein pancakes. These breakfast options give my body enough fuel to get through an intense workout. Check out this recipe from Running on Real food https://runningonrealfood.com/fluffy-vegan-protein-pancakes-3/

Bottom line: Building muscle on your body will burn fat. I build muscle in barre class. Cardio will build your endurance and fine tune your body, that’s why I go to Orangetheory.   The combination of these two workouts is my “silver bullet”. It works for me and gives me the body I love.

It’s important to note that working out is only half the battle. Clean eating is most important when reaching your fitness goals. If I do these workouts and eat clean I love the results. If I do these workouts and eat a moderately healthy diet, I still look pretty good, but not my best. If I do these workouts and eat a horrible diet, it doesn’t even look like I workout. Catch my drift? If you end up trying one of these workouts please let me know how it went in the comments below.