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Studio Owner Spotlight: Liz Hay
We love working with Liz Hay from barre3 Needham because she knows when to celebrate the wins and when to let go of the things she can’t control. Today, Liz is sharing her strategies for staying healthy all summer long as well as what she’s learned from our recent barre3 Anywhere Challenge. Here’s Liz in her own words:
I had done just about every type of fitness out there; I even got my yoga certification in 2008. After I had my son Johnathan, I was looking for a more efficient workout that would help me get my pre-baby body back. I gravitated towards barre classes, but it was with a different company and they didn’t offer childcare, so it was tough to get to the studio.
During the first two years of my son’s life, I was working a job that was incredibly demanding. That’s when I started to realize that my work/life balance was seriously out of whack. My husband and I both traveled a lot for our jobs, so we were always trying to coordinate our schedules so that someone could be home with our son. We were like ships in the night, and rarely together as a family. I wanted a career where I could be there for my little boy in the morning, take him to work if I needed to, and put him to bed at the end of the day.
My ultimate goal was to own my own business, so I started doing some research—that search led me to barre3. When I went on the barre3 website, it immediately hit me in my gut: I knew that barre3 was supposed to be my path. I started by visiting a studio, and felt like I was home the minute I walked in the door. After that first class, I continued doing online workouts and getting to studios whenever I could. Eventually I headed to Portland for training, and the rest is history.
I’ve always believed in the importance of surrounding yourself with good people, and that’s especially true now that I’ve opened the Needham studio. My team is everything to me and I know that our studio is as strong as it is because of them.
I feel the same way about my clients. We’ve created such a tight-knit community here, and I love seeing friendships blossom between these women. They carpool to class, they meet for drinks afterwards…it’s really special. Not only have their physical transformations been astounding, they’re stronger mentally too. It’s truly inspiring to me.
This sense of community is one of my favorite things about the barre3 challenges. We cheer each other on, hold each other accountable, and we love filling up the tracking board! (It’s a running joke in the studio about how much adults love stickers).
With the January Challenge, the big takeaway for me was the importance of modifications. I was teaching all the time, so I needed to keep an eye on my energy levels and modify some of the workouts so I wouldn’t get depleted.
With the barre3 Anywhere Challenge, my goal was to be better about planning out meals. I did my shopping and cooking at the start of each week so that I’d always have healthy foods within easy reach. It made a huge difference in my results, and the summery recipes were so delicious. The almond banana oat cups are my new favorite.
For me, staying healthy this summer is all about balance: making sure to get outside and have fun in the sun with family and friends, getting together for barbecues, and always adding a few barre3 recipes into the mix. I also love that you can do barre3 workouts outside— I’ve done them everywhere from a park bench across from the studio to the beach at Cape Cod. This summer we’ll be heading to upstate New York, and I’m looking forward to doing barre3 at the family lake house.
No matter where my summer takes me though, I’m always happy to come back to this amazing community. I love sharing this lifestyle with my clients and getting people excited about whole-body health. It brings me joy every single day; for me, it’s the best part of my job.
Do you want to own a barre3 studio? Learn more.
We love working with Liz Hay from barre3 Needham because she knows when to celebrate the wins and when to let go of the things she can’t control. Today, Liz is sharing her strategies for staying healthy all summer long as well as what she’s learned from our recent barre3 Anywhere Challenge. Here’s Liz in her own words:
I had done just about every type of fitness out there; I even got my yoga certification in 2008. After I had my son Johnathan, I was looking for a more efficient workout that would help me get my pre-baby body back. I gravitated towards barre classes, but it was with a different company and they didn’t offer childcare, so it was tough to get to the studio.
During the first two years of my son’s life, I was working a job that was incredibly demanding. That’s when I started to realize that my work/life balance was seriously out of whack. My husband and I both traveled a lot for our jobs, so we were always trying to coordinate our schedules so that someone could be home with our son. We were like ships in the night, and rarely together as a family. I wanted a career where I could be there for my little boy in the morning, take him to work if I needed to, and put him to bed at the end of the day.
My ultimate goal was to own my own business, so I started doing some research—that search led me to barre3. When I went on the barre3 website, it immediately hit me in my gut: I knew that barre3 was supposed to be my path. I started by visiting a studio, and felt like I was home the minute I walked in the door. After that first class, I continued doing online workouts and getting to studios whenever I could. Eventually I headed to Portland for training, and the rest is history.
I’ve always believed in the importance of surrounding yourself with good people, and that’s especially true now that I’ve opened the Needham studio. My team is everything to me and I know that our studio is as strong as it is because of them.
I feel the same way about my clients. We’ve created such a tight-knit community here, and I love seeing friendships blossom between these women. They carpool to class, they meet for drinks afterwards…it’s really special. Not only have their physical transformations been astounding, they’re stronger mentally too. It’s truly inspiring to me.
This sense of community is one of my favorite things about the barre3 challenges. We cheer each other on, hold each other accountable, and we love filling up the tracking board! (It’s a running joke in the studio about how much adults love stickers).
With the January Challenge, the big takeaway for me was the importance of modifications. I was teaching all the time, so I needed to keep an eye on my energy levels and modify some of the workouts so I wouldn’t get depleted.
With the barre3 Anywhere Challenge, my goal was to be better about planning out meals. I did my shopping and cooking at the start of each week so that I’d always have healthy foods within easy reach. It made a huge difference in my results, and the summery recipes were so delicious. The almond banana oat cups are my new favorite.
For me, staying healthy this summer is all about balance: making sure to get outside and have fun in the sun with family and friends, getting together for barbecues, and always adding a few barre3 recipes into the mix. I also love that you can do barre3 workouts outside— I’ve done them everywhere from a park bench across from the studio to the beach at Cape Cod. This summer we’ll be heading to upstate New York, and I’m looking forward to doing barre3 at the family lake house.
No matter where my summer takes me though, I’m always happy to come back to this amazing community. I love sharing this lifestyle with my clients and getting people excited about whole-body health. It brings me joy every single day; for me, it’s the best part of my job.
Do you want to own a barre3 studio? Learn more.
