Ditching the traditional gym - #lakewoodnews

For people like Highlands Ranch resident Devyn St. Aubin, a traditional gym setting or running program doesn't work.

Two years ago, she stumbled across a The Ballet Physique --; a ballet barre studio in Lone Tree --; and she hasn't looked back.

"I have bad knees, so running is out of the question for me," said St. Aubin, 26. "I needed to find a workout that would hit all my areas."

And that's what the workout that focuses on small movements does.

"It doesn't look intense, but it builds a really prominent burn in your muscles that you're not going to get from some of the other classes out there," said Ballet Physique owner Kristen Zurek.

From ballet barre in Highlands Ranch to pole dancing in Arvada to UFC fighting in Westminster, metro-area residents are looking for alternative ways to stay in shape.

Zurek, who has a professional dance background, discovered the ballet barre form of fitness while studying in New York City. When she moved to Colorado in 2008, the workout had yet to make it to Colorado. So Zurek started a studio from scratch and opened in downtown Littleton in 2010. She opened her second studio in Lone Tree in 2014.

Over the years, the workout has become more popular throughout the Front Range.

"When I came here, I couldn't find a studio," Zurek said, "and now there 50 of them."

But although "ballet" is in the name, Zurek noted that the workout is not ballet. The low-impact workout uses the ballet bar to help stabilize and leverage body weight. It's designed to sculpt and tone long, lean danceresque muscles.

Students at The Ballet Physique run the full spectrum, from teenagers who are trying to stay fit to 75-year-old women.

"The nature of the workout appeals to many parts of the population because everyone wants to have strong and sculpted muscles," Zurek said. "Mostly women between the ages of 30 and 60 --; not dancers and not athletes. A lot of them have had kids and are just ready to get back into shape."

Another dance form that is growing in the workout world is pole dancing. Colorado now has 12 pole dance fitness studios, with the majority located in Denver, Colorado Springs and Boulder. Two are in the Denver metro area: Vertical Academy Workout in Highlands Ranch and Rockstar Pole Fitness in Arvada.

"The philosophy behind it is that it's a workout for everybody, no matter your fitness level, your age, weight or whatever you've done in the past," said Jenna McNamar, owner of Rockstar Pole Fitness, which opened two years ago in Olde Town Arvada.

McNamar starting practicing pole fitness 10 years ago and has been teaching it for eight years.

"When I first started, people wouldn't talk about it because people relate it to exotic dancing," she said. "It still is and we at Rockstar want to have a huge part in that, too, because that's where it came from. But I think when people realize the strength it takes to do this stuff --; it is hard and it is challenging and I think that's why it grows."

Madeline Haenel, 42, had been looking for a workout routine she could stick with for a while. After attending pole class for the first time two months ago, she found it.

"The first experience was so fun and amazing and freeing that the next week, I signed up for two classes and now I have the monthly membership," Haenel said.

But for her, it's not just about the sore muscles and full body workout. It's also about the personal empowerment found at the studio.

"For me, taking a pole class has been a really empowering thing," Haenel said, adding that she is transgender and recently had gender confirmation surgery. "It's really a whole new perspective on me and my body, and it's a whole new freedom that I have."

The studio has also been a source of community for Haenel and others.

"There's this whole community of people that are very supportive," Haenel said. "Ladies that go there of all shapes and body types. You don't have to be a specific body type to pole dance. It breaks some of the preconceived notions that people might have."

On the other end of the spectrum, UFC gym in Westminster is giving people motivation to break the cycle of weights and the treadmill.

"I like it because it hits your whole body," said James Camire, who attends classes at the gym and trains twice a week. "The intensity, it's really hard to get similar intensity doing other things."

Dalton Grinstead, coach and personal trainer at UFC in Westminster, said the mixed martial arts workout helps teach problem-solving skills for the real world.

"You can always get a cheap membership somewhere and wait for the macho man to get off the machine and do your curls for the girls, but you're kind of turning your brain off there," Grinstead said. "These workouts, it's a complex movement pattern and it's fast-paced. So you understand what jab cross is, but there's 15 other things associated with it. Where's my feet? Where's my head? So you're constantly problem-solving both hemispheres of the brain."

Walking into a UFC gym, which are also located in Highlands Ranch and Parker, is not the scene many people expect, Grinstead said.

"It's kind of surprising because we're a UFC gym and if you ever watch the UFC, it's blood and, really, some people say violent fighting," he said. "But our UFC gym is totally different. There's only a small handful of guys here that want to compete in fighting. Really, 80 percent of the people here want to lose weight. A large percentage of that also want to learn self defense as well."

People also are surprised that the gym has more female than male members, Grinstead said.

"That little bit of extra money you're spending is so much more valuable because you're learning a skill," he said. "It's something totally different than most gyms can offer."For people like Highlands Ranch resident Devyn St. Aubin, a traditional gym setting or running program doesn't work.

from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/Ditching-the-traditional-gym,239247