Raising the barre in Doylestown

By Lauren Rooney, Photoraphy by Michael Brooks

Whether you are a fitness enthusiast or someone just looking to get into better shape before swimsuit season, there is a new studio in Doylestown that has a solution for you. Barre3, which is a workout method started in Oregon in 2008 by Sadie and Chris Lincoln, combines ballet barre work with yoga and pilates to provide a great full body, low impact, workout that focuses on strength training and balance.

“We have a three-step process to work the deepest layer of muscle in your body. We start with an isometric hold to fire up the muscles and focus on alignment and posture. Then we layer on a small, 1-inch movement to build strength and fatigue the muscles, then we flush out the muscle with a functional, large range movement. All set to fun, upbeat music, we move seamlessly through the postures to work the body head-to-toe.” Says Lauren Ziel, owner of the barre3 location in Doylestown as well as a Newtown location.

Lauren, a resident of Wrightstown and graduate of Council Rock high school, found the workout sort of by accident.

“I started doing the classes online and fell in love with it. Truly, I'd wake up in the morning looking forward to my workout. It didn't feel like a chore! I began to crave it, which was new for me.”

So many of us can relate to getting tired of the same old gym routine or just hating the experience of working out altogether, and it isn't always easy to find a club or a sport that you can play due to time restraints and strict practices. If this rings a bell for you, barre3 just might be the answer.

“Finding barre3 reminded me what it felt like to look forward exercising, like when playing a sport.” Lauren explains.

Once she was hooked on the workout Lauren had the chance to visit Portland and experience barre3 in person.

“It was at that moment that I knew I had to bring this home to Bucks County.”

Bucks County is filled with health conscious people who enjoy trying new things and being part of a caring community. A glance at Doylestown's active Facebook group will often show locals sharing helpful health & wellness advice every day. It's no surprise, therefore, that a studio like barre3 would already have such a following.

“After only 6 months, we already have a strong, united community building in our studio. That says a lot about the people of Doylestown. They embrace new things and share it with their friends!” says Lauren.

Even the instructors, who are all residents of Bucks as well, mostly started as clients, Lauren explains, “They fell in love with the workout, connected to our community, and just had to be a part of it.”

So if getting into shape, trying something new, and being part of an enthusiastic fitness community sounds like a fit for you, this spring is the perfect time to visit Lauren and take advantage of some of the new client specials she has to offer. For more information pricing and class schedules visit www.barre3.com.