Ah working out. Gotta love it…right?
The perk of living in a big city is finding a wide variety of different ways to work out. The problem with the endless options is that it is so hard to decide what to do since there are way to many options. Workout classes in the city can range anywhere from $30-$40 per class (WOOF) so you want to make sure the classes are worth it before wasting money. My big piece of advice is reading reviews on the studio, the class, and especially the instructor. Finding a good instructor can be very challenging and frankly they make the experience worth it. For the most part, I actually enjoy working out and I’ve been to quite a few different places across the city. Some I love, some I hate, and that is why I decided to put together a list. Many of these places actually are located in many cities across the US so be sure to take advantage of them if you can! If not, give these a try during your next visit to the Big Apple.
My ABSOLUTE favorite. I’ve been going to Soul Cycle for many years now and my love has grown even deeper. It is such an experience and honestly takes your mind off of life during those 45 mins. I’ve rode with many different instructors and my favorite are Mantas, Christina, and Ryan (he plays Taylor Swift for me).
When I moved to NYC, I joined Pure Barre right away because it is located on my block. I was doing Pure Barre for a while in Minneapolis and absolutely loved it. I signed up for the 1-year contract because it came out to be the cheapest option (around $210 a month) but by the end of my contract it started becoming way to repetitive and I knew I wanted to add cardio to my routine.
I’ve belonged to Equinox for a little over a year now. I joined right after my Pure Barre contract expired. I was excited about joining Equinox because of their classes. They have everything you can think of. When I first joined I was doing barre and their cycle class and thought it was perfect because I wasn’t going to Soul Cycle as much (saving a sh*t ton of money) but I realized that I still loved Soul Cycle too much not to go. I still go to Equinox every now and then and do enjoy it. The classes can be kind of difficult with my work schedule but once I’m in a routine I do find myself going.
Not on to a studio that isn’t my favorite. I gave this a try once because my friend had a free class and she brought me along. I don’t know what it was but I honestly did not enjoy the class. I wasn’t a fan of the instructor (see they make such a difference) and it just didn’t feel like a great workout. My friend still swears by it so maybe I just need to give it another try.
Fun fact, I LOVE pilates. Flex Studios offers a reformer class that is incredible. So difficult. But they also offer barre (not my favorite there) and TRX. Dana and I have taken the TRX/Pilates class and man it was so difficult. It was 30 mins of TRX circuits and then you finish it off at the reformer.
I’ve given Flywheel a chance many times because there is an instructor that I absolutely love. Soul Cycle will forever have my heart so that is why I choose to go there over Flywheel. What is great about Flywheel is that you can see your resistance and your score which is great for me because I am SO competitive. I feel like I have to beat what others in the class are doing and that pushes me even further.
Exhale is a great fitness studio and they have some pretty great classes. I haven’t been in a while but I really enjoy their Cardio Barre class. It is 30 mins of cardio (aka pure hell) and then you finish off the class at the barre.
Went there once and died. That is honestly all that I have to say there.
This place is interesting. They have a really good mat pilates class that I love but I tried Barre once before and wasn’t a fan.
Studios I want to try next:
- Barry’s Bootcamp (I’m too nervous to go)
- Orange Theory (again, too scared to go)
- 305 Fitness
- Rumble Boxing
- SLT
Are there any other studios I should try out? Have you ever been to any of these?
Thanks for reading Elle’s Edit. If you have any topics that you would like for me to discuss, feel free to email me at elle@itscasualblog.com. I would love to hear from you! xo
