Virtual Fitness Classes, What is It?!

Well, it is time for me to explain all these facebook posts, tweets and DanceFIT Studio moving to the next level! We now offer our signature BalletFIT class via skype conference.  Does it sound weird to you? It is not!  In fact, it is remarkable what a great workout you get, personal corrections by your instructor, not to mention the convenience of working out from your own home. 

How did this virtual concept evolve?  Well, kind of selfishly....We all know the story....I have two children, run DanceFIT Studio primarily from home, drive 1 hour to Brookline to teach 1-3 classes and then drive 1 hour home.  The days I can't teach I have my wonderful staff teaching their classes: Zumba, Hip Hop, Barre, Yoga, etc.  I wish I could take their classes every night too.   I want to teach more and I know my clients want more classes, but the scheduling issue is a nightmare with the need for babysitting and the long commute right at rush hour. 

SOLUTION....live fitness classes via skype conference.  I can allow up to 10 participants in a class and  I have a huge monitor at home to see all of them working hard on their living room floors.  So, this idea began selfishly, so I can teach more, but I found out that there is such a need for this.  The DanceFIT community of parents and busy professionals are loving them.  To be able to workout with a fitness and dance professional in the comfort of their home while the kids are sleeping is quite popular!

I am teaching two virtual classes a week in addition to my hours at DanceFIT Studio.  I teach virtually Tuesdays at 8:30 PM and Thursday mornings bright and early at 6:15 AM.  I have partnered with Tanya, the owner of Barre N9NE Studio in Danvers.  Tanya is teaching her signature (and amazing) barre n9ne workout on Wednesday & Friday mornings at 6:15 AM.  Stay tuned for more classes from both of us!

This is how it works.  You register for a VIRTUAL class on DanceFIT Studio's mind body registration system.  New clients will receive the promotion, buy 1 class, get 1 free.
https://clients.mindbodyonline.com/ASP/adm/home.asp?studioid=10045


Any questions?  Curious and want to learn more??  Email me or Tanya:
gina@dancefistudio.com
barren9ne@gmail.com

Water Challenge is BACK

In this post, my 6fitter's know exactly what I am talking about.   6FIT is a program (lifestyle) I have designed and adapted to increase overall health & well-being (and reap drastic positive physical changes on the way.)

6FIT program has a dual focus.  First, what do you do on a daily basis to stay FIT, exercise and push yourself physically? Second, what foods fuel your body and how do these habit forming choices directly relate to our personal health and energy levels?  Excelling in one of these areas is good. Mastering both of them is life changing and necessary to reach your goal of a healthy lifestyle.

What to learn more or join in the next 6 week challenge?   http://www.dancefitstudio.com/6fit.php

I am going to give you a sneak peek at week #1. 

Week #1 starts off with a bang--the WATER CHALLENGE!

We all know that water is good for us.  But there are some very powerful reasons to drink lots of water every day, and forming the habit isn't hard, with a little focus.  The thing about it is, we don't often focus on this habit. We end up drinking coffee, and lots of soda, and alcohol, not to mention fruit juices and teas and milk and a bunch of other possibilities. Or just as often, we don't drink enough fluids, and we become dehydrated -- and that isn't good for our health. 

1. Weight loss: Water is a great appetite suppressant, and often when we think we're hungry, we're actually just thirsty. Water has no fat, no calories, no carbs, no sugar.  

2. Energy: Being dehydrated can sap your energy and make you feel tired -- even mild dehydration of as little as 1 or 2 percent of your body weight. If you're thirsty, you're already dehydrated -- and this can lead to fatigue, muscle weakness, dizziness and other symptoms.

3. Headache Cure: Another symptom of dehydration is headaches.

4. Healthy Skin: Drinking water can clear up your skin and people often report a healthy glow after drinking water. It won't happen overnight, of course, but just a week of drinking a healthy amount of water can have good effects on your skin.
 

5. Cleansing: Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body.

6. Reduces Cancer Risk: Drinking a healthy amount of water has also been found to reduce the risk of colon cancer by 45%. Drinking lots of water can also reduce the risk of bladder cancer by 50% and potentially reduce the risk of breast cancer.

6FIT Rules

• Drink plain regular water (no sparkling, no flavored)
• No juice, soda, smoothies, hot chocolate, coffee drinks, iced tea, etc
• No alcohol, except 1 glass of wine in the evening (Michael Pollan suggests it!..if you don’t like wine, no substitutions for this.  Please just drink water instead.)
• 1 small cup of coffee/tea/milk before noon is accepted.  (Green tea is recommended!)
• Drink 60 ounces or more of water a day. (This number changes if you are nursing or pregnant!)

For all of you who groaned when you saw the title for this post, chill out...remember my rule of this mini challenge only being a week ;) Try it again...tell me how it goes.  You all felt AMAZING at the start of 6FIT.  I attribute it to caring for your body with something as simple as water :) This is easy & cheap :)

Lazy Day Blues

Ugh!  This weather is depressing!  As I was just feeling frustrated about low DanceFIT attendance when it rains (we have had such large crowds the past few weeks!), my friend sent me an e-mail...Gina, can you please blog about how to be motivated to workout when the weather is terrible?

Why are we so accustomed to lounging on the couch during dreary weather?  Is it a comfort thing?  Does it really affect us that much?   What can you do to boost out of those blues!? What happened to our "child-like" excitement of splashing in puddles and running in the rain?!

A FEW MOTIVATING TIPS:


1) E-mail or call a friend to go workout with you after work.  Peer motivation

2) Pre-register yourself for a class! Once you commit, you commit :)

3) Remind yourself why you are working out.  To look & feel beautiful & energized, of course!

4) Plan a creative and new post-workout healthy snack. (I love natural peanut butter on a banana or apple. Perfect amount of sweet & salty and good protein.)


5)  Remind yourself how great you feel when you stay committed to your fitness routine!  One night off can result in loss of fitness momentum. 


6) I like this little challenge....Every rainy or gross day, commit to trying a new fitness class that day.  Go to something a little bit out of your comfort zone.  Challenging new muscles & performing new movements will keep your body in perfect physique!!!

7) My newest solution & responsible answer to these lazy day blues would be to enroll in a Virtual Barre class offered at www.dancefitstudio.com OR
http://www.barren9ne.com/
Enjoy a well planned, unique, intense barre workout with me or Tanya :)

Don't let the puddles keep you on the couch!!! 

Baby Take A Bow!

Do you remember your first dance performance?

Tutus, lipstick, blush, roses, and a sea of "pink" flooded my studio last night.  

At DanceFIT Studio we just had our first ballet recital of the year!  Our recital differs from other studios.  We don't buy the expensive costumes, rent out the theater or have stage lights, surround sound, etc.  The dancers are so excited about this performance experience experience; after teaching 3 year olds for over 8 years now, I know that the little dancers feel very comfortable during the actual "recital" because they are performing in the space they have grown to know & love. 

Without revealing all the precious dances and cute choreography, I just want to say how proud I am of all of them.  In their own way, each little dancer has grown up and blossomed into beautiful ballerinas.  Dancers who were too shy to leave their parents arms are now in the front row smiling and dancing.  Ballet will boost confidence at ANY age.

I had been anxious about this recital all week.  Will they remember it?  Will they run off their shapes?  Will they face the audience (Yes, this is a challenge.)  Will I be able to maintain a sense of order and organization with over 100 adults in the studio?  Will I have enough seats? Will the dancers enjoy this experience or be nervous?  My goal as a children's ballet teacher is to create ballet memories to be wonderful, exciting and not-scary...that is my big thing....dance classes can be very intimidating, and I want it to always be a positive experience.  BIG RESPONSIBILITY! 

 

Proud parents, a zillion video cameras, flashes everywhere.  I must say, it was like the red carpet in Brookline!  I was a little self-conscious, honestly, squeezing a post partum body into a skin tight, shiny light pink leotard with a romantic length tutu adorned with sparkles.  Yes, I was a little bit out of my comfort zone, BUT the compliments and admiration from all the little dancers made the uncomfortable outfit well worth it!  And I actually am excited to wear it again on Saturday ;)

In our tutus!

How did it go?  Well, it naturally, it started off a little chaotically,....with 60 dancers waiting for their headpieces and lots of excitement and giggles in the air ;)  We started 4 minutes late (which I think is pretty good!) and the show was a success.  It was so cute to see the different levels; watch the girls grow with new movements, choreography and dance expressions/emotions while performing.   The Ballet 1B (my oldest group) dancers performed true classical choreography from Coppelia, and let me tell you, they were in full perfect character last night.  They were mechanical, graceful, and had perfect doll smiles!  I think the big round pink cheeks made them feel "real."

It was beautiful for me to see these dances come alive.

Stay tuned...more blogging to come after Saturdays performances! 

*PS.  Big thank you to all those involved in making the performance such a success and for all the extra parent help before the performance: setting up the reception and helping all the dancers with their headpieces!  I couldn't have done it without you.  A HUGE thanks to Chris for setting up the entire studio and my boys for cooperating!! Miss Nicole, you danced beautifully.  Thanks for setting a great example for the dancers!

BalletFIT....It's INTENSE!

After having my babies I needed a 1 hour workout that would give me the intense cardio, dripping in sweat feeling, without the pounding of traditional jumping jacks and burpies (which I know, I am known to still do in other classes...yet, it gets old after a while). 

Of course, my ballet roots resurfaced and, yes, the best workout really is ballet.  BalletFIT boasts...

...the intensity of a bootcamp

...the grace of a swan

...repetition for comfort and weekly improvement

Lets take the hardest parts of ballet class and put them all into one challenging workout for the average person to do.  Without revealing all my secrets and the well thought out flow, I will just tell you this is a class you need to get to.  The next day walking will be difficult, your shoulders will ache and you will feel so proud to say, yea, this is from BALLET.  

A Ballerina Sandwich

A tiny ballerina favorite...."Let's make a sandwich!"

All the little dancers giggle in delight.  We sit on the floor, our ballet backs very straight against the stage.  We say hello to our toes and goodbye to our toes...flex & pointe.  Then we begin to build our ballet sandwich.  We lay the bread out and start to spread, chop and place all sorts of random things on it (I let them all offer suggestions)...I have heard everything....marshmallows, ice cream, jelly beans, cream cheese, eye balls (yes, random!). 

Yesterday I told them we are making a green sandwich.  They offered up suggestions of cucumbers, celery, lettuce, pickles (lots of pickles) green beans, grapes, spinach, broccoli and peas.  They actually smiled as they "ate" it.  A few parents thanked me afterwards saying that the only way they get their child to eat broccoli at night is reminding them that Ms. Gina always puts it on her sandwiches to get strong ballet bones.  How cute is that?!  I hope these little dancers keep eating their greens to keep their brains and bodies young and agile.

I better practice what I preach and eat all these fabulous green things.  My personal favorite green...spinach!  The "busy mom" and "lazy" way to cook spinach:

• Place baby spinach and water in a microwaveable bowl. 
• Cover tightly and microwave until starting to wilt, about 30 seconds to 2 minutes depending on your microwave. 
• Add a dash of olive oil, salt & pepper and voila! A healthy bowlful of greens just for you!

Listen to these ballerinas....lay out a lavish or wheat tortilla....giggle a little and start to make a huge green sandwich.  Your body, waistline and energy level will thank you!

Mammas Can Move!! (With our Baby!)

I recently started teaching a DanceFIT Babies class.  Well, before you imagine all these adorable little babies in pink tutus, I have to tell you that I am thinking a little selfishly on this one.  Picture very happy moms (because they finally get to go workout!) with a baby bijorn on, holding their little one close to their heart and ready to do some fitness. 

We are hard core!  My friend Tanya (another fitness professional) and I designed this program to give moms a unique barre workout while dancing and holding their precious one that they couldn't fathom leaving at home with a babysitter.  My son Tommy (10 months old) loves this class!  He even holds onto the barre when I am facing it doing exercises.  He just learned to clap and of course claps for me and all the other mommies when exercises get tough ;)

So, what can you possibly do with a baby strapped to you?  Let me tell you, with a 20 pound child attached to you, this just makes the average workout much harder!   We do plies (demi and grande), tondus, degagees, matwork and even incorporate some salsa and dancing in the beginning to warm up.  I teach it with Tanya which has made this class so peaceful for me.  If Tommy is crying or fussy, I don't freak out and stress, she just takes the exact exercise I was working on and finishes counting and adds on the next exercise.  Her baby hardly ever fusses so I don't have to do this much for her;  I love co-teaching and look forward to this class every Tuesday morning. 

After this class Tommy sleeps for 3 hours.  Perfect!