Maiden Motion Fitness Studio

A practical way to build self confidence

annaluke — Wed, 11 Mar 2020 14:49:37 +0000

Confidence: it seems like something you’re either born with or you’re not. But we all struggle with self confidence at times, right?

I heard something on a podcast recently that struck a chord with me.

Confidence is built by keeping the promises you have made to yourself.

It reminded me of our Move More March Challenge – you need self belief to accomplish your goal. You believe you will follow through and you trust that you won’t let yourself down.

First, think about a small promise. How many times have all of us thought before bed “I’m going to get up 30 minutes earlier than normal and really start the day off right. I’m gonna stretch and make a nice breakfast. It’s gonna be great! ”

Then the alarm goes off and we contemplate briefly what we’re going to do. Are we going to keep that promise that we made to ourself, or are we going to skip it? For most of us, some days we will and some days we won’t, which is fine.

But what if you kept that promise every day for a week, or a month? How much trust would you gain in yourself that you’re going to do the things you set out to do, the things that you know will make you happier and healthier?

A lot of us are really good with keeping the promises that we’ve made to other people, but not to ourselves. Like what if you needed to wake up early to drive a friend to an appointment? You’d totally be there. But it’s harder to show up for ourselves in the same way.

This really affects us when it comes to a BIG promise.

When I took my most recent “regular” job in 2016, I made a BIG promise to myself that it would be the LAST time I took a job that I wasn’t 100% excited about. It took more than two years until I could keep that promise and open Maiden Motion. Even though I had other opportunities, I couldn’t let myself down with another mediocre job.

Is there a big promise that you’ve made to yourself, but you’re not feeling confident that you’ll make it there?

Start with some small promises. Keep those every day and see how your self confidence grows.

#MoveMoreMarch: You’ve set a goal, and it’s going to feel so good to achieve it.

Keep the promise. Take the classes.

I’ll be cheering you along!

– Anna

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How to get a runner’s high without running

annaluke — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 18:18:53 +0000

Join a book club discussion of The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal on Thursday, February 27th. Book club will start right after our 6:30pm Disney Cardio Dance class.

If you haven’t picked up a copy of the book, you still have time to read or listen to it on audio book.

One of the most interesting parts of the book to me was the evolutionary science behind the idea of the “Runner’s High.”

“Our brains reward us for exercising at intensities similar to those successfully used for hunting and foraging two million years ago.”

It’s not just running that can get you “high”

The buzz that you get from sustained exercise is thought to be a reward for persisting when we’d forage or hunt all day. But you don’t have to run to get the high.

“Anything that keeps you moving and increases your heart rate is enough to trigger nature’s reward for not giving up. There’s no objective measure of performance you must achieve, no pace or distance you need to reach, that determines whether you experience an exercise-induced euphoria. You just have to do something that is moderately difficult for you and stick to it for at least twenty minutes.”

This is good news for people like me who don’t run. Maiden Motion’s cardio dance and barre classes do the trick in getting the heart rate elevated enough to reap the benefits of an exercise endorphin rush.

The book goes further into the effects that an exercise high has on your brain. They reduce anxiety, increase optimism, and help us bond with others.

Learning the science behind what we feel when we move helps me appreciate more all of the benefits that movement has on our brains.

If you’re curious on this topic, get yourself a copy of The Joy of Movement and come chat about it with us on February 27th!

Podcasts Featuring Kelly McGonigal

Kelly McGonigal has been making the podcast circuit to promote the book, so if you want to start there, here are some links:

The Rich Roll Podcast

Impact Theory with Tom Bilyeu

Be Well By Kelly

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What Tony Robbins taught me about barre class

annaluke — Mon, 27 Jan 2020 13:28:53 +0000

I know what you’re thinking – Tony Robbins? The alpha-male self-help mogul? Yes, that guy. Have you watched his documentary “I’m Not Your Guru”? It came out in 2016 but is now streaming on Netflix.

I saw someone post on Instagram about it and figured I’d give it a shot (plus I needed a little break from my Call the Midwife binge!)

Just a few minutes into watching, he said something that struck a chord.

“Life is always happening for us, not to us.”

I paused and rewound.

“Life is always happening FOR us, not TO us.”

How does this relate to barre? Well, it’s incredibly true for your classes at Maiden Motion.

“Your classes are happening FOR YOU, not TO YOU.”

Let me tell you what I mean…

When you show up for class, you’re showing up for yourself. Your instructor is there FOR YOU, providing coaching and exercises FOR YOU to make the most of.

Let’s talk push ups. Your instructor isn’t forcing you to do push ups. The push ups are there FOR YOU as a tool to build strength mentally and physically. They are there FOR YOU to work on your form, to challenge yourself, and to make progress on.

I know there are times in class when you can get frustrated, or downright exhausted. These are the times it can start to feel like class is being done TO YOU… “Eight more reps?! You’ve got to be crazy, lady! I can’t do it. It’s too hard. Why are you doing this to me? Don’t make me do any more.” (Slightly dramatic, but you get my point).

Try to remember that each exercise that is thrown your way is there FOR YOU. It’s not happening TO YOU.

You can take it at your own pace. Or you can go balls to the wall. The hour of time is here for you. We are here for you. Your class is here for you; it’s not happening to you.

Can you relate to feeling like class is happening TO YOU rather than FOR YOU? I think it could be a pretty powerful mindset shift to flip that around.

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Why we do ab exercises in our cardio dance classes

annaluke — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 10:10:47 +0000

After the warm up in our cardio dance classes, we head down to our mats for a 6-7 minute abdominal section. We quickly target your upper and lower abs and oblique muscles. This might come to a surprise to people who have gone to other cardio dance classes that either 1) don’t specifically work abs, or 2) save abs until the end of class.

Here’s why we do abs the way we do:

You need your abs engaged while you’re dancing. By activating your abs at the start of class, they’re ready to help you during dance. Think of a high kick – your low abs help you lift your leg. Once you’ve woken up your abs, they’ll help stabilize and support you for the rest of class. By turning on your core at the start of class, your posture and form will improve and you’ll decrease the risk of injury.
The end of class is not ideal for abdominals. After intense cardio, it’s unsafe to sit down and let your blood pressure drop too rapidly. Plus laying down after dancing and having fun is sort of a buzz kill.
We want to end class on a high note. It’s an incredible feeling to leave it all on the dance floor knowing that a nice cool down is waiting for you.

We know it’s a bit unconventional for a cardio dance class to have a floor abs section, but we think it’s critical to optimizing your performance and keeping you safe!

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What makes our cardio dance classes stand out

annaluke — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 09:23:47 +0000

We built our cardio dance classes to have a perfect level of challenge, fun, and function. Nearly every person who comes to class for the first time says, “I’m so uncoordinated!” And they end up hitting the choreography (at least most of it…lol) and having a blast! Not to mention sweating up a storm, getting in a full-blown cardio workout.

You may want to know how ours are similar or different from the other cardio dance classes you’ve taken or heard of. So we’re pointing out some of the main differentiators:

Typical cardio dance class: Maintain a medium level of cardio throughout class

Maiden Motion: Strength and functional movement with bursts of cardio

Yes, dancing is super fun. But we also want to make sure that you’re getting a full-body, effective workout. That’s why we incorporate traditional strength and body-weight exercises into our dances. Squats, lunges, push-ups, planks, you name it. Then you’ll go hard during cardio bursts lasting about 20 seconds. These include jumping jacks, kicks, burpees, plyometrics, shuffles, and other fast-paced moves.

Typical cardio dance class: Little or no instruction

Maiden Motion: Brief instruction and practice to move toward confidence, reduce confusion and provide modifications

There’s nothing more frustrating than feeling lost during a fitness class. That’s why we give a 1-2 minute breakdown of dances before we do them to walk you through any trickier choreography. During the breakdown we give options for modifications so you can choose your own intensity level and modify for injuries or other limitations. During class we do each dance twice, so you’ll get the hang of it! The more you come to class, the more familiar you’ll become with the typical moves we do.

Typical cardio dance class: Dancing from start to finish

Maiden Motion: Segments for abs and arms, and targeted warm up and cool down

Our dances are intense, which is why we need to diversify our classes with other elements. The warm up will prepare your joints and muscles. Strength sections for abs and arms make sure you’re getting a full-body workout. And the standing cool down will help you safely transition out of class.

Whichever method you choose... It'll be okay. Just dance!

We’re huge fans of any kind of cardio dance, since it is such a fun and freeing form of movement. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of moving in synchrony with other women to the beat of the music. You get to sway your hips, pop your chest, swing your arms…if you’re used to more rigid forms of exercise it can feel so good to just let loose for an hour.

You may feel nervous about trying a dance class if it’s out of your comfort zone. We encourage you to keep an open mind and try something new!

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The method behind our cardio barre classes

annaluke — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 09:23:44 +0000

When I was deciding how to train Maiden Motion instructors, I really didn’t have to think twice about what method to use. Barre Intensity is gaining steam as a leading method in the barre community. Their style is similar to Xtend Barre, which I taught for nearly five years. Both are higher cardio than the traditional barre styles, and allow for a lot of flexibility and creativity for instructors.

All Maiden Motion instructors use the Barre Intensity method as their baseline. Then we customized our class format and exercises to make them unique to Maiden Motion.

The main things I love about our barre style are:

Flow – our classes keep moving, in almost a constant flow from one series to the next. We try to avoid very complicated set ups and seamlessly transition between exercises. This makes the class fly by and brings up the energy level in the room.
Cardio – Our barre classes really have it all – strength, balance, function, and cardio. You can keep all of the cardio moves low impact, or we offer the option to do exercises like jumping jacks or plank jacks for a more intense cardio burst. Many people coming to a barre class don’t expect to sweat, but that’s not the case in our classes!
Fatigue, but not torture – As with most barre methods, we are aiming to fatigue specific muscles in sequence (biceps, shoulders, then triceps, for example). But we plan our classes carefully to avoid overly fatiguing to the point where you get too frustrated, risk injury, or compromise your form. You’ll feel challenged, but not like it’s impossible. We encourage you to clear your head of negative inner thoughts and listen to your body. We want to make sure the workout is safe for both your body and mind.
No ballet jargon – Now, I’ve had mixed feeling on this. As a former dancer, I loved hearing the ballet terms I grew up with (first position, second position, batement, tendu, etc.) But I know that those terms can cause confusion and intimidation to people new to barre. Barre Intensity still uses the ballet positions, but simplifies the terms so everyone is on the same page (V, Wide V, kick, tap forward).

These elements all help create a class that feels like something you can manage. Something you can improve on and practice. Not something so hard you need a month to recover. Don’t get me wrong, you will feel challenged and will likely be sore. But you’ll also hopefully feel like “I did that! It wasn’t easy, but my body feels good and strong. I’m feeling energized and confident.”

I’ve been there before. Where you take a class and walk out just feeling terrible about yourself. I’ve felt “out of shape” or defeated that I couldn’t keep up or do some of the moves. I don’t want that for anyone who comes to Maiden Motion. We’ve got your back.

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Meet the studio owner: Anna Luke

annaluke — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 15:00:14 +0000

Name: Anna Luke
Hometown: Grosse Pointe, Michigan
Personal mantra: Vincit qui se vincit (She who conquers, conquers herself)

Can I first just tell you what a thrill it is to be able to call myself a “studio owner”?

If you would have asked me even two years ago, I wouldn’t have predicted this is what I would be doing. At that point I was working in public affairs for a trade association, living in Washington, D.C., and just teaching barre classes as a side hustle.

I’ve heard before that whatever you’re most interested in when you’re 10 years old is a good indication of what you’d be most interested in doing as an adult. Which makes sense – at that point you’re following your intuition and things that spark your curiosity.

When I was 10, I was dancing all the time. I took tap, ballet and jazz classes, danced around my living room (it had the best slippery hardwood floors to twirl on!), and choreographed little dances for me and my friends.

Here is some embarrassing photographic evidence!

A dream that wouldn't die.

It wasn’t until I started thinking about opening my own studio that I recalled a conversation I had back in high school with one of my friends from dance. As I remember it, we were talking about something like finals, the ACT test, or college admissions. And one of us said “We should just forget about this and open our own dance studio.” 15 years later and I followed through.

Obviously I wasn’t in the position at 18 to open my own business, but it’s pretty remarkable the way life has a way of not letting some dreams die.

Another reason I’d never believe I’d be dancing for a living? I was never a fantastic dancer. Compared to the other girls in my dance classes I wasn’t the highest jumper or best turner. But dance was a huge part of my identity. I tried to hold on to dance through adulthood, but it’s not easy. When I lived in New York I took a couple of adult ballet classes, but they were intimidating and serious. When I moved to D.C. I dabbled in some Zumba and barre classes.

Finding a barre method that worked for me

Then, I found Xtend Barre. I loved the method and instantly got hooked on the cardio-infused barre style.

One day after class the instructor pulled me aside and asked if I had thought about auditioning to become an instructor. She thought I would be good. Without her encouragement, I would never have signed up for training. In my five years at Xtend, I had become a confident barre teacher and had created my own format of cardio dance. That’s when I realized that I could take those skills and make them into a business.

Creating my own happy place

With Maiden Motion I wanted to create a place that I would want to go. A women-centered, fun, welcoming place where the focus is on the joy of movement. A happy place.

I know so many women struggle to find a way to exercise that feels good and that they look forward to doing. And on top of that, to find a place to do it that’s safe, friendly, and bright. I hope Maiden Motion can be that place for you. It certainly is for me.

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