South Main Street in Newtown has become something of a mecca for fitness studios. At least 10 are now operating along a two-mile strip, ranging from traditional exercise gyms to yoga studios and martial arts academies.
But Jeanine Parsons believes that she”™s found something new enough to the area that she can peacefully co-exist with her competitors ”“ and thrive.
As its name implies, Barre Boutique, officially opening on July 15 at 87 S. Main St., specializes in the increasingly popular form of fitness that employs the ballet barre and various exercises derived from ballet to focus on small, pulsing movements with an emphasis on form, alignment and core engagement.
Participants hold their bodies still while contracting specific, targeted sets of muscles in isometric exercises, often while using small 2- or 3-pound weights. The positions are held long enough that they often need to “embrace the shake,” in Parsons”™ words, as the targeted muscles begin to fatigue.
“It includes some positions that will be familiar to people who do yoga and Pilates,” she said. “It”™s completely low impact, and ”“ I hope ”“ a lot of fun.”
Parsons”™ interest in exercise dates back to her days as a professional dancer, which included a two-year stint as a Radio City Music Hall Rockette. Once marriage and parenthood ”“ she has four children ”“ entered the picture, she said, the need to remain fit became even greater.
“I”™ve been doing weight-training since I was 18 ”“ it”™s like brushing my teeth for me,” she said. For the past five years she taught classes in such disciplines as Body Pump, P90X, Insanity and Pilates before attending her first barre class in Ridgefield.
“It was really appealing,” she said, “especially since it encourages sculpting the body without bulking up. There were quite a few other Newtown moms making that trip or going to Fairfield, so I thought, ”˜Why not open the first barre studio in Newtown?”™”
With construction well under way for a soft opening on July 1, the 46-year-old Newtown resident said that one of her first orders of business was to put up a wall to block the studio off from the main entrance. “It provides more privacy and you”™re not being watched by people coming in for the next class,” she said.
The 1,200-square-foot space will be staffed by two additional instructors, and classes will be open to people of all backgrounds. “It can be ideal for little girls who are in ballet who want to get a little extra exercise in,” she said. “And men are certainly welcome, too. It”™s low impact enough that it really isn”™t intimidating.”
However, Parsons said that being a first-time business owner has caused more than a little agita. “I”™ve had to learn QuickBooks, building codes, electrical ”¦ everything, really,” she laughed. “I also found out that social media is everything when it comes to marketing a new business ”“ I wasn”™t even on Facebook until about a year ago. But I decided to just go for it.”
Classes will max out at 15, she said. “You don”™t need a lot of space to do the exercises, but you don”™t want to be on top of each other.”
Parsons is running an early bird special of $75 per month for unlimited visits over six months for those signing up before July 31. Otherwise the cost is $110 per month for unlimited classes. Drop-ins will be charged $17 per class and she plans to offer 10-class and 20-class packages as well.
