Remember Natalie Portman’s amazing physical transformation for Black Swan? Heck, we sure do. Well listen up, fitness fanatics, as it seems like ballet might just be the next hottest workout trend. Our beady beauty eyes have noticed that Taylor Swift has spent a lot of time over the past few months hanging out at LA fitness hotspot Ballet Beautiful where she has been jumping and leaping to her hearts’ content for a serious (and rock hard) A-list physique. After all, celebs have long touted ballet’s abilities to sculpt long and lean physiques. Ready to feel the ballerina burn? We are.
Then Rosie Huntington-Whiteley yesterday Instagrammed shots of herself looking ah-mazing, in a series of mind boggling poses she attributed to *Ballet Bodies - a super-chic Hollywood hangout created by former New York City Ballet dancer Andie Hecker in 2008. Each session integrates pilates, personal training and ballet to “create an aesthetic as long, lean and graceful as a dancer’s.” What’s more, as the website explains, it’s not a traditional dance studio: “Ballet Bodies was developed with the idea that physical fitness should be imparted by those who have learned to master the art of body awareness and aesthetic change.” The likes of Taylor Swift, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Gennifer Goodwin and Christina Ricci are also huge fans, so we reckon it's the time to dig out those ballet shoes.
What’s more, Johnathan Lomax, CEO and founder of super-chic Chelsea gym Lomax told us, “A ballet workout is so great as it will improve posture and alignment as well as improving balance. Like any exercise, it also reduces stress levels but ballet in particular is fantastic at working your mind and your muscle memory.” Plus, with a whole host of ballet-inspired classes and workshops popping up all over the country right now, we just cannot wait to let our inner ballerina show. Read on to discover the ballet classes you should be signing up to now. See you at the barre...
Brit beauty Alexa Chung is also a huge fan of a ballet-inspired workout (Instagram)
1. Sweaty Betty’s Ballet Bootcamp
Starting on 5th February for 4 weeks, fitness gurus Sweaty Betty will be holding 45-minute Ballet Bootcamp sessions in their stores all across the UK. Put together by two ex-ballet dancers, this stellar workout combines military-style pace and energy with the posture-correcting movements of classical ballet to tone legs, arms and abs to total perfection. Perfect for those looking to strengthen their core or for ladies who are bored with their workout routine. Go to www.sweatybetty.com/getfit4free to find the date and time of your nearest class.
2. Barrecore
A real Grazia fave, this ballet workout will tone muscles you didn’t even know existed. Using isometric movements mixed in with fat-burning interval training to reshape your body, this is one serious cardio workout that will guarantee some real results. If you’re looking for a longer, more defined physique then this is the class for you. What’s more, the average class burns 450 calories. Enough said.
Sweaty Betty have just unveiled their Dance Statement clothing line- we want it all (Sweaty Betty)
3. Barreworks
Based in Richmond and with origins in Lotte Berk and New York City Ballet Methods, this is one of the best low-impact but high-intensity, full-body, ballet workouts we’ve come across. If you’re willing to put in the effort (and time), a dancer’s body can be yours after only a couple of months. For more information click here.
4. Glow Yoga Ballet Tone
Grazia’s beauty director Liz Hambleton couldn’t live without Covent Garden-based studio Glow Yoga and is a big fan of their Ballet Tone class. This stellar conditioning class is a mix of ballet and pilates, using weight-bearing exercise and conditioning techniques to produce a long, lean and toned physique.
(Barrecore)
5. BARREtoned
Based in Notting Hill, this ballet workout is a combination of interval training at the barre and on the mat using small, controlled movements and your own body weight to work every major muscle group. Looking to increase flexibility and elongate your muscles? This is the one for you. BARREtoned claim that their signature results include sculpted arms, flat abs, defined thighs and a lifted seat.