Written by: Kelly Drewnowski, Southeast Ambassador
During the evening of April 23rd many ladies from the Richmond area attended the Get the Girls Out Pure Barre Burn and Earn event to burn calories while helping earn money to support the programs and initiatives of SheJumps. Sarah Love and her amazing team at Pure Barre Richmond – Near West End generously hosted a donation-based class benefiting this incredible organization. We spent 55 minutes finding our mind-body connection before heading to Mosaic Restaurant for a raffle and Community Give Back to wrap up the night’s event.
Nikki, our amazing instructor, took us through each sprint with ease and expertise as we lifted, toned and burned our way to stronger, healthier bodies. Before we started she gave everyone some pointers on many of the various positions we’d encounter, like how to tuck and really feel it. Then she took us through a low impact warm-up, which included a 90 second plank and several abdominal strengthening moves. Next, we worked on toning our arms with 2 and 3 lbs weights. Sounds easy enough, but it’s shocking how quickly they felt like 20 and 30 lbs! Arms were followed by taking our thighs to shake on the floor and at the barre before we moved on to lifting and tightening our seats. Each sprint was followed by a series of stretches targeted at lengthening the muscles we had just worked (and exhausted!) Once we could hardly stand any longer, she moved us on to abs on the floor for the final few minutes and stretching, which felt oh so good to our tight and toned muscles!
Photo: Sarah Love
During class Nikki patiently walked the room tweaking each of us to help maximize the burn of every position. Something we felt at the time…and for a few days later! The class included Anna and Hallie, two other PB instructors, to provide additional hands-on corrections and demonstrations. It was great to have several references in the room, especially since this was the first time for most of the participants. Overall the ladies loved the class and several have already signed up for more. By the end of the hour everyone was relieved, refreshed and ready to head to Mosaic!
Photo: Sarah Love
Wondering how attending a Pure Barre class helps support the SheJumps mission of getting women outside and active? STRENGTH! I’ve been taking classes at PBR-NWE for about 10 months and can honestly tell a significant difference in my overall strength, especially in my legs. If you attend regularly you’ll quickly find that your muscles will become more toned and stronger than ever! This past ski season I noticed how much stronger my legs were, despite working as a ski patroller and ski instructor for over 17 years. Burning at the Barre not only lifts and tones, but it also prevents that uncomfortable burning in thighs while helping you keep up with the guys on the slopes! An added bonus is that for the first time in about 20 years I can do the splits again. Not something I was expecting, but the increased flexibility is great!
Photo: Sarah Love
After the class we gathered next door at Mosaic Restaurant for a Community Give Back event they were holding to benefit SheJumps. Each table had a hot pink info card on the organization and it’s initiatives while the wait staff had more detailed packets to share with patrons if they requested info. During the event Mosaic generously donated 13% of that night’s food sales to our organization and provided a great opportunity to spread the word about SheJumps!
With the ladies seated together at a large table, it was a fantastic chance for many familiar faces to finally connect and new friendships to be made. The conversations flowed effortlessly over delicious food and drink and the hours flew by as we discussed SheJumps in the Southeast. New jumpers were filled in on past events while several great ideas were tossed around for future adventures. The overall vibe from the women was a super positive, supportive and energetic one! All were eager to hear of upcoming events and opportunities and excited to see the organization grow in Virginia.
Photo: Kelly Drewnowski
To show their enthusiasm several participants picked up new SheJumps Girafficorn t-shirts and everyone took home Girafficorn stickers. Keep an eye out, there should be an increase in Girafficorn sightings in the Richmond area thanks to everyone’s generous support!
A few lucky ladies also won some of the fabulous items donated by the Athleta store in Short Pump. Raffle items included store gift cards and new yoga mats. We are very grateful to Carrie and everyone at Athleta for supporting our organization. Women supporting women is what it’s all about!
Photo: Kelly Drewnowski
The Pure Barre Burn and Earn event was a fun Get the Girls Out to support keeping our bodies healthy and in shape for future outdoor adventures. The class was an amazing workout and we had a ton of fun getting together afterwards! Thanks to all of the ladies who joined us. It was a great way to burn some calories and an excellent opportunity for many to try something new, to give back and meet new women in the Richmond area.
We’d like to give a huge thanks to Sarah Love at Pure Barre Richmond – Near West End, who so generously hosted the donation class and to Nikki who patiently helped us to get our burn on! We’d also like to thank Jill and the staff of Mosaic Restaurant for an incredible Community Give Back and Athleta at Short Pump for donating several great raffle prizes. We can’t wait to partner again with each of you for future SheJumps events!
Featured Image: Sarah Love