As of June I'll have been going to Bar Method for 2.5 years, and although I'm not the gym selfie type, I do enjoy reflecting on my fitness journey and documenting my progress on the blog. It still boggles my mind that when I started, I was so out of shape I couldn't hold a plank during the warm-up portion of class and I had to mentally pep-talk myself into completing 3 reps at a time during leg work; now I can do push-ups on my toes and the instructors are calling me out to go lower in leg work! I posted progress updates a couple months into doing Bar Method regularly and a year in, and I'm happy to report that I'm still seeing physical, emotional, and mental changes, which is pretty amazing. Here's where I'm at right now.
I still get sore after class. The thing with Bar Method is that it never gets easier. 2.5 years in I feel as though I'm actually getting worse at pretzel (a killer glutes and obliques exercise) and starting and stopping more often, but that's because I know what good form feels like and I get into "My muscles are hurting and shaking" posture right away instead of working up to it. The stronger you get, the harder the variation you can take and the lower you can go in certain exercises.
Not every class will be my best effort, but that's okay. Let's face it, some days I'd rather have a nap than go to class and before the instructor starts the warm-up leg lifts I'll have yawned five times already. Or maybe I've been sick and it's my first class back. On those days, instead of giving each exercise my all, I enjoy how good it feels to be active and moving and working my muscles again, and I linger in and deepen the stretches, breathing in and out slowly.
My flexibility and strength are still improving. For the first time in my life, I can do the splits(!) and push-ups on my toes. Chair and zinger are still challenging, but no longer feel impossible. I'm also taking harder variations more often, like L shape in round back or going on relevé in arabesque.
I still see changes in my body. Bar Method hasn't helped me lose any weight, and if anything, I think I've gained about 8 pounds since I started. However, my shoulders, arms, thighs, glutes, and core are all so much firmer and more sculpted. The definition and the enervated muscles I could feel under a layer of fat when I first started are starting to come through on the surface. My pants are looser around the waist. As I've mentioned before, I've had to buy new jackets and shirts because my shoulders are bigger—that did freak me out a little, until I realized that these shoulders are bigger because they're stronger and they're doing things my old shoulders couldn't do, like holding up my body weight as I do push-ups on my toes.
Full disclosure: I'm not sponsored by Bar Method in any way, and other than receiving a New Client Special for free to start and a couple pairs of grippy socks, I've been paying my own way for my monthly membership. I just love the classes and the community! If you're thinking of trying it out, the New Client Special ($80 for unlimited classes your first month) is an excellent way to do so. Trust me, a year from now you'll wish you had started today.
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