In Pure Barre there are “clubs.” More specifically, the 100, 250, 500, 750, and 1,000 clubs. To reach the 100 club, you have to take 100 Pure Barre classes. To reach 250, you have to take 250 classes, you get the idea. I finally – two weeks before my 1 year Pure Barre anniversary – reached the 100 club! It was not an easy road at all, but it was so freaking rewarding!

I wanted to share my Pure Barre journey thus far to encourage anyone pursuing something they’re passionate about to not let anything stand in your way no matter how detrimental it may seem at the time.

I took my first Pure Barre class mid-August 2018. I had some free time over the summer before classes started and I knew I needed to do something to be active again. I noticed I’d started losing tone and gaining weight since graduating from UF because I wasn’t dancing every week with my dance company at UF or walking miles around campus to get to classes. I took a barre class at UF once a week – though it was more of a ballet strength class – and had always wanted to try Pure Barre. I thought this was the perfect opportunity to do just that.

My first class KICKED MY BUTT! It really made me realize just how weak my body was. I kept wondering how everyone around me was able to do everything so well. I called my mom as soon as I got in the car to tell her about my experience at my first class. I said, “Mom, you should never try it. I thought I was going to die, but I can’t wait to come back tomorrow!” I signed up for the one-month unlimited membership with a student discount after that first class and never looked back.

For the first 3 months, I went 2-3 times a week and was really enjoying every class. Then it came time to renew my monthly membership in November and my bank account told me that was not going to happen. Even with a student discount, Pure Barre is expensive. It’s about $120 a month for unlimited classes throughout the month – and that’s with the student discount. So I had to take a month off because I just couldn’t afford it.

I started making it a higher priority and haven’t run into that issue since. Instead, I budget for Barre so I never have to skip a month. I started back after that one missed month pretty much at square one, but eager to get my strength back. I even started taking Pure Empower – Pure Barre’s cardio class – a few times a month to change things up a little bit.

Things were going so well and I could really see a difference in how strong I was. I was able to hold my weights up throughout the entire arm workout without having to set them down and I could hold my plank through the entire ab workout. I felt fantastic and tried to go as many days a week as I possibly could.

In March, Pure Barre does a March Madness challenge where the goal is 20 classes in 30 days. They keep track of your progress on a chart in the lobby for everyone to see and I was so stoked and motivated to start the challenge and absolutely crush it! I was 6 classes in when I tripped in my living room one night and broke my foot. The first thing I thought when I fell was What about the Pure Barre challenge?!

My broken foot put me in a boot and took me out of all exercise for 3 months. Every day I was so disappointed I couldn’t be at Pure Barre and was stuck on the couch instead. I knew I was losing strength every single day. I about cried when I was finally cleared to exercise after those looooong 3 months.

I was definitely a lot weaker and had to modify some moves with my freshly healed foot when I started back at Pure Barre in May. The instructors were super understanding and knew not to push me to go higher up on my toes or stay on my toes for my plank because I didn’t want to do any further damage to my foot.

My strength has increased ten-fold these past 3 months I’ve been back at Pure Barre. In an effort to reach 100 classes by my 1 year of being at Pure Barre, I’ve been at the studio almost every single day. Every class still kicks my butt, but there are a few times during class when I feel like I’m the one kicking the workout’s butt. I’ve gotten back to the point where I don’t have to drop my weights during the arm workout and I can (sometimes) hold my plank for the whole 90 second plank exercise.

This past year, Pure Barre has become one of my top passions. For someone who hates to exercise, that says a lot. I come away every class feeling empowered and strong no matter how well I do in the class that day. Every single woman in class with me is so friendly and there are not enough amazing words in the world to explain how incredible the Pure Barre instructors are. The instructors are so uplifting and motivating that not only do I want to do well at Barre for myself, but I also want to do well and not quit because I don’t want to let the instructors down.

These past 100 classes, I don’t just see a huge difference in my physical strength, but in my mental strength as well. I feel like the instructors know the exact moment you’re about to come out of a really tough workout position because that’s right when you hear them say, “You got this Sammy!” It really is mind over matter a lot of the time and I’ve learned to push myself past the point of comfort because that’s the only way I’m going to see any progress.

From day 1 at Pure Barre I’ve felt like I belong there and that I’m welcome just as I am. I don’t think the classes will ever get easy and I think that’s what I love about it. I’m always up for a challenge and Pure Barre is one of the biggest challenges I’ve ever taken on.

Today I left Pure Barre with my 100 Club shirt and socks in hand and such a full heart. I received so many congratulations and words of encouragement from the instructors and women in my class this morning. So here’s to 100 classes and almost 1 year at Pure Barre and moving toward year 2 and a new goal of reaching the 250 club by this time next year. Stay tuned!