Truth: I get bored with working out when I do the same thing over and over. I like to mix things up, whether it be doing Pilates on the mat (I taught mat classes for 5 years and have been doing Pilates for 13 years - LOVE IT!), taking a Yoga class, sweating it out at the gym or working out to an at-home DVD like Barre 3. I can now add another type of exercise to my repertoire that I've been doing for about a month now that I'm really enjoying. It's called 'Ballet Beautiful' and I bought two of their DVD's before Christmas: The Classic 60 Minute Workout and the Body Blast Series (you can check them out here.) Created by former New York City Ballet dancer Mary Helen Bowers who trained Natalie Portman for the movie "Black Swan," Ballet Beautiful provides exercises to sculpt and tone sleek "ballet muscles." I was a dancer for 15 years and I loved the body it gave me but unfortunately I had to cut down on the amount of dancing I did when I was 16 because of the severe tendonitis in my knees that I developed at age 11. My 2013 fitness goal is to get that body back with continuing Pilates and cardio and adding the 'Ballet Beautiful' DVD's to my workout plan. So far, so good!
You DO NOT need pointe shoes to do the DVD's, you can exercise in your bare feet but getting back into ballet exercises inspired me to purchase pointe shoes. Why? It's a long story but here goes: When I was in my last year of high school I was in the school play and one of the other actress's required pointe shoes for her character so I lent her mine. They were my only pair and she never gave them back!! And I've been upset about that ever since! I've seen her many times since high school in public - once on the street, once while I was getting a pedicure and funny enough, two days after I purchased my new pair I saw her at a restaurant, she was sitting right behind D.! What are the chances? But she always pretends she doesn't know who I am and I've always wanted to go up to her and ask her if she still has my pointe shoes but I never had the courage. (But if she's reading this now, can you please kindly give them back?? YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!) So, after 15 years after the disappearance of the most beautiful pair of shoes I have ever owned, I bought a new pair! Aren't they pretty?? Now I just have to break them in and learn how to walk on my toes again ; ).
What do you do to exercise and get your sweat on? Let me know in the comment section below!
14 comments:
This sounds like so much fun, what an interesting workout!! I am definitely not graceful or coordinated enough for ballet haha, I should try something like this out just to try to be more coordinated.
Love the new ballet shoes, they're gorgeous. That shout out to whomever stole your shoes makes me laugh, hope they get returned
xJennaD
I wish I had taken ballet when I was younger. I remember a childhood friend of mine was always in tap/ jazz/ ballet and there were professional portraits of her in dance uniforms plastered all around their house. I was so jealous.
I would love to have a ballet dancer's body. I'd lounge around in my leotard and pointe shoes all day.
funny story - my beau was working at a theatre and one of the ballet dancers gave him a pair of points for me - so now i have a pair - never wore them, but i have em' - i guess the DVD would be the next step!
i just got put on yet ANOTHER medication - UP 10 lbs - i swear i'm in a losing fight - but i still bust it at the gym and at home - at least i'm trying!
great story Marie! I am sure you can get that body back you are already super fit so it wont be long! I also need to start again with my running and get fit too!!! Those good old days when we were teenagers and ate what we wanted while getting away with it was amazing but so finished....for years now for me ;)
xoxo
PS: next time you see that girl, you should just go straight to her and ask her for your pointe shoes! No shame, she should be ashamed! If I learned a thing or two living in the Netherlands is so to never be ashamed and have the guts to get what is yours!
cool, i think i'm going to try that! I never got too into ballet but I was in dance for a long time, so it sounds like fun! And I'm the exact same way, getting bored sucks.
PS i'm really impressed with the shoes!!!
Those shoes are so beautiful! I never did pointe and always wished I had. I even went to a dance shop once to buy some for fun but they wouldn't sell them to me, afraid I would hurt myself.
Probably for the best but it's still on my mind. Can you learn pointe as an adult?
I also LOVED your shout out, good for you.
This looks soo cool! I may want to give it a whirl :)
they are very pretty!!! and wow, ballet exercise sounds so fun! :D
p.s. i'm not much of an exercise person (i knooow, bad!), but i like to go walking around the neighborhood in the morning. :)
<3, Mimi
http://whatmimiwrites.blogspot.com/
Ooh, that definitely makes working out fun, I don't have time anymore but I was going to start doing Pilates...haha
AND UGH! What a poo poo head...I would have wanted to kill her if she borrowed something from me and never gave it back
http://www.closet-fashionista.com
I used to have a ballet workout video (VHS!) from the New York city ballet many years ago and I love it. I'm a big yoga fan and have gotten back into running too which I'm stoked about.
Reading this makes me think about doing some ballet again.
Yay for exercising! I've gotta exercise every day, too. I usually do about 25 minutes of pilates and then 30 minutes of cardio... either a bike ride, maybe a jog, maybe a pattern on the recumbent bike, depending on how I feel. Mixing things up definitely makes it easier to stick to things, too.
However I recently crashed on my bike and so I'm kind of afraid to get back on it until my scar heals! I think in a week or so I'll be fine, but for now, pilates and the stationary bike are my friends hahaha.
I hope you enjoy your ballet!
First of all, I love your reasoning for buying new pointe shoes. They will make your life better with their charm.
Second, I just bought the book of Ballet Beautiful and am wishing I'd ordered the DVDs as well.. Maybe next time I buy something for myself :)
I am excited to read about your progress with the workouts! It looks promising, doesn't it?
Those shoes are so beautiful i really like your blog and how much cost of those shoes
Ballet fitness classes | Getting fit using ballet
its really great you ballet shoes i am so glad to see this
its very useful for ballet lovers .
for best ideas you can check this now thanks
Ballet business | \A\Rachel Withers
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