Pure Barre During Pregnancy: My Experience So Far

It’s no secret that I love Pure Barre, and since starting at the studio about four years ago it’s changed both my body and my life in a big way. I’ve transitioned from “What am I doing here?” to “OMG, I love this place” to “Can I live in this studio?” to “I think want to teach, too.” I’m so grateful to have found this workout and this community!

When I found out I was pregnant last July, Pure Barre immediately came to mind. I’d watched lots of other inspirational clients and fellow teachers attend classes well into their pregnancies (some right up to their due dates!), and that was certainly motivating. I’d read several blog posts, too, about women who’d written about their accounts of continuing Pure Barre while they were expecting. I found the posts (like this one!) by women who had at least two children and had done PB with one and not the other to be especially interesting. I knew doing this workout as much as I felt up to it during pregnancy would help me feel better throughout and help with delivery and recovery as well.

Thankfully, I felt pretty good throughout my first trimester, skirting the morning sickness so many women experience. I was TIRED, but I was able to keep my pre-pregnancy Pure Barre routine — both teaching and taking classes — intact. (I still attended and taught lots of 6 a.m. classes — I’d just go to bed around, oh, 7:30 p.m. the night before!) This continued into my second trimester as well (and the exhaustion subsided a bit — wahoo!). I was feeling really, really good.

With the arrival of my third trimester, I noticed my body telling me to dial back the classes a bit — and I’ve been listening. I’m now taking about three classes per week on average (in addition to teaching regularly), which is about half the amount of classes I’d typically be taking. Still, I’m getting so many benefits from continuing to show up at the barre.

I haven’t experienced any back pain yet. My abs are still intact (though there’s a lot happening underneath them these days!). I don’t have any issues with mobility or going from sitting on the floor to standing. Despite having gained 18 pounds so far (I’m in my 32nd week right now), I really do feel good, and much like myself in many ways. I’m confident I have Pure Barre to thank for this in a big way — both the hundreds of classes I took before becoming pregnant as well as the ones I’ve been able to take during this pregnancy.

Here are a few photos documenting the evolution of my pregnancy at Pure Barre:

Week 19:

Week 22:

Week 24:

Week 27:

Week 32:

I’m hopeful I can be one of those amazing women who keeps coming to class right up until it’s time to give birth! We’ll see. In the meantime, I’ll keep showing up as much as I can, getting lots of good LTB time in before this little girl arrives. THANK YOU, PURE BARRE!