Transform your aquatic fitness class into a barre studio with nothing more than a pool noodle and the pool wall. H2O Barre with Kelly Bullard is a water fitness instructor video that blends ballet barre movements, Pilates and traditional water exercise. Belly up to the barre and help your students improve balance, muscular endurance, core strength, flexibility and more.
BARRE: LAND VS. WATER
Studio barre classes are popular because they are low impact, featuring mainly assisted barre exercises and mat work. Like Pilates, Barre classes deliver results that focus on lengthening, strengthening and core. However, the standing work in barre also helps improve balance and coordination. Equipment, such as hand weights, rubberized resistance and small balls is often used in a studio barre class.
The pool can easily be transformed into a barre studio and an aqua barre class can deliver the same if not better results. Instead of a ballet barre, support in an aqua Barre class can be provided by a pool noodle or the pool wall. Aqua Instructors can also include barre-inspired exercises without a noodle or the wall thanks the supportive assistance provided by the water’s viscosity. Your aqua class members will exercise with more confidence and greater range of motion in the water without the fear of falling. Even better, you can skip all of the equipment in an aqua barre class thanks to the 360-degree resistance provided by water.
AQUA BARRE CLASS-AT-A-GLANCE
H2O Barre is a 40-minute aqua mind & body routine that includes a warm-up, cool down and three barre-inspired exercise blocks. The warm-up is a great way to prepare your students for the different kinds of exercises, as it previews many of the barre movements. The warm-up is taught without the noodle and pool wall. The first two exercise blocks feature barre exercises using a pool noodle. The final block is taught at the pool wall. All three blocks include slower, controlled movements combined with barre inspired cardio drills to keep class participants warm in cooler pools. In the video below, Kelly discusses the class routine. Below the video, read more about her inspiration for adapting her studio barre classes into the pool.
Bringing a Barre Routine to my Aqua Students
By Kelly Bullard
As a land and water fitness instructor, part of my weekly routine has been teaching an aquatic fitness class in the pool and then running up the stairs to teach a barre class in the studio. Eventually it occurred to me that I could try bringing a barre routine to the water. Some of my students do both land and water classes, but most of my water fitness participants choose to stay in the water due to health reasons, joint impact issues, accessibility, comfort and cooler temperatures (less sweating). Some of my aqua students didn’t really understand what a barre class was when I first suggested trying it. They wondered if I was bringing margaritas. Once I explained to them that a barre routine was low-impact and included ballet and Pilates movements, as well as regular water exercises, they were game to try.
Initially, I tried using various equipment but eventually discovered that a pool noodle and the pool wall was all I really needed to bring a barre routine into the pool. Some of the barre exercises even worked with the support of the noodle and wall. While practicing myself in the pool, I discovered that some of the traditional barre exercises performed in the studio with gravity did not translate well to the water. In chest-depth water, gravity is limited, with class participants bearing 25% of their body weight. The other 75% is acted on by buoyant forces. However, I did discover several barre exercises that worked really well using the water’s resistance.
For instructors, it is crucial to guide your students into the correct depth in the shallow end. Not all pools will be suitable. If the water is too shallow, it will hard for participants to hold their balance while performing exercises without the assistance of a noodle or pool wall. If the water is too deep, buoyant forces will make it nearly impossible to balance and stabilize. You’ll notice the students bobbling all over the place.
Adapting barre to the pool has certainly been worth the efforts. My class participants tell me they have enjoyed trying something new and that the workout was much harder than they thought it would be. They have reported to me that their balance has improved, along with their overall strength and flexibility. I now add segments of barre into regular aqua classes, and sometimes I do an entire aqua barre class.
Related Fitmotivation Aqua Instructor Videos
If you enjoyed H20 Barre, consider trying these videos.
FunKtional Barre
Pilates Power
Aqua Flex & Flow
Aqua Allegro
Liquid Pilates
Fitmotivation extends gratitude to Kelly for sharing how she has adapted a barre routine into her classes. Stay tuned for her next video posting in February 2025. Strike & Kick is an aquatic kickboxing inspired class format.