Connect
INSTRUCTOR SPOTLIGHT SERIES: Christa Joy
With so many of us taking our barre3 practice into our homes these past few months, the online instructors have become familiar faces—friends we invite into our living rooms to help us move, breathe, and destress. In our new Instructor Spotlight Series, you’ll get to know the instructors beyond their energy-boosting choreography and motivating mantras.
This week, we’re chatting with Christa joy. If you do our online workouts, you know her as the cheerful, highly-motivating instructor whose workouts deliver a serious dose of cardio and satisfying burn. Read on to learn about Christa joy’s role behind the scenes at barre3, what she does for fun outside of work, and what it was like to film her At-Home workout from her 315-square-foot apartment.
BARRE3: The barre3 online community knows you for your incredible energy and your heart-pumping workouts. What don’t we know about you?
CHRISTA JOY: I grew up in Hood River, Oregon, and am in love with the outdoors. Camping is my absolute favorite thing to do. I love finding secret hike-in camping spots around Mt. Hood National Forest, and I live to unplug with a good book and a beer. I also love kiteboarding. My family has a second home in La Ventana, Mexico, which has a huge kiteboarding community (just like Hood River), and I have been going down there almost every winter since I was 4 years old. My pup, Stella, was rescued down there as well! I have nine tattoos that all mean a lot to me. One is the coordinates of my home in La Ventana, one is a phrase my dad used to say, in his handwriting, and one I got with my bestie and fellow barre3 instructor, Holly!
BARRE3: How did you first discover barre3? What drew you to it?
CHRISTA JOY: I found barre3 six years ago. Honestly, I thought it would be something like ballet and I was hoping to supplement my dance training. I grew up dancing (ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop) and performed with a few companies through high school and college. I then became a dance teacher and did that for 13 years.
What kept me coming back to barre3 was the community, the deep-muscle burn, and the music! Barre3 is also excellent cross-training for whatever activities you do!
BARRE3: Studio clients in Portland know you as an in-studio instructor, online clients know you as an at-home workout instructor, and our Home Office crew knows you as part of the team. Can you tell us about your current role at barre3?
CHRISTA JOY: I am currently working full-time with the Barre3 Digital Team. My official title is Producer + Manager of Online Instructor Development. I create choreography and playlists for online workouts, train online leads, direct online workouts, lead online workouts, and organize the talent for each filming.
BARRE3: Clients often comment that they feel so connected to you when they do your online workouts. Can you talk a little about how you foster that connection, even from a great distance?
CHRISTA JOY: Honestly, I just keep it real. I am so comfortable in front of the camera because I am able to truly visualize each client right there with me—just hanging out, getting in a good workout together, digging deep but also just having fun! I love that at barre3 I am able to be authentically me, and I love sharing that with clients.
BARRE3: Your workout in our At-Home Series was such a hit! What was it like to film it?
CHRISTA JOY: It was challenging, but so fun! I live in a 315-square-foot studio with my pup, Stella, so we had to move some furniture around to make it work, but I loved sharing my home with online clients. It was fun to see so many people comment on how much they loved seeing Stella snoozing away on the couch. I think pets can be a welcome and healthy distraction from the challenge of the workout.
BARRE3: Can you tell us a bit about your own barre3 practice? What was it like before the pandemic, and how has it changed since?
CHRISTA JOY: Before the pandemic I was taking in-studio barre3 classes about two to three times a week and then getting outside and hiking and/or engaging in other outdoor sports like snowboarding and kiteboarding. I am typically a very active person. The pandemic really hit me hard emotionally and mentally, so for the first part of it I gave myself a lot of grace—I listened to my body and I rested. Eventually I was ready to jump back in, and it has been really wonderful to take livestream classes from barre3 instructors across the country. For about the last month or so I have been really inspired to create new and innovative barre3 online workouts, and I have essentially been kicking my own butt as I test these workouts out before we film them. We have some EXCELLENT online workouts coming your way in the next few months!
BARRE3: Do you have any go-to barre3 online workouts you turn to for specific needs?
CHRISTA JOY: I love the mindful workouts! They are sneaky burners and always leave me feeling centered and refreshed. Lately I’ve been loving this one, by Allison. And here’s one I filmed back in April—a great way to reset in just 10 minutes!
BARRE3: Are there any lessons you feel like you’ve learned from sheltering in place that you hope to take with you going forward?
CHRISTA JOY: YES. I’ve learned to live simply. I’ve taken stock of the “stuff” I fill my life with and have really cleared out a lot of space. I’ve learned how little I actually need to survive and be happy, and I’ve learned to be so much more grateful for what I do have. I’ve learned to approach life with open palms. Letting everything that is just flow in and flow out exactly as it should. Remembering that life is a circle, and everything comes back around. When I start to get overwhelmed or worried about the state of our world, I remember that “normal” wasn’t working, and that this is a big huge beautiful opportunity for rebirth. This is a call to action, and I am grateful that I get to be a part of the change for a better world.
BARRE3: What do you hope people take away from your classes, whether they’re online or in person?
CHRISTA JOY: I think right now is a time for change. For growth. Both change and growth are typically a little uncomfortable, and I want to encourage clients to be OK with the uncomfortable bit. To sit in it a bit. To let go of the idea of perfection. To let go of the idea of how things were. To let go of old routines and habits. I want to encourage clients to be curious again. To play. To not take it so seriously. To find joy in movement. I also want clients to learn to have grace for themselves, right where they are, so that they are then able to extend that grace to the people around them.
Thank you so much, Christa joy! Try one of Christa joy’s uplifting workouts for free with a 15-day trial of barre3 online.
With so many of us taking our barre3 practice into our homes these past few months, the online instructors have become familiar faces—friends we invite into our living rooms to help us move, breathe, and destress. In our new Instructor Spotlight Series, you’ll get to know the instructors beyond their energy-boosting choreography and motivating mantras.
This week, we’re chatting with Christa joy. If you do our online workouts, you know her as the cheerful, highly-motivating instructor whose workouts deliver a serious dose of cardio and satisfying burn. Read on to learn about Christa joy’s role behind the scenes at barre3, what she does for fun outside of work, and what it was like to film her At-Home workout from her 315-square-foot apartment.
BARRE3: The barre3 online community knows you for your incredible energy and your heart-pumping workouts. What don’t we know about you?
CHRISTA JOY: I grew up in Hood River, Oregon, and am in love with the outdoors. Camping is my absolute favorite thing to do. I love finding secret hike-in camping spots around Mt. Hood National Forest, and I live to unplug with a good book and a beer. I also love kiteboarding. My family has a second home in La Ventana, Mexico, which has a huge kiteboarding community (just like Hood River), and I have been going down there almost every winter since I was 4 years old. My pup, Stella, was rescued down there as well! I have nine tattoos that all mean a lot to me. One is the coordinates of my home in La Ventana, one is a phrase my dad used to say, in his handwriting, and one I got with my bestie and fellow barre3 instructor, Holly!
BARRE3: How did you first discover barre3? What drew you to it?
CHRISTA JOY: I found barre3 six years ago. Honestly, I thought it would be something like ballet and I was hoping to supplement my dance training. I grew up dancing (ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop) and performed with a few companies through high school and college. I then became a dance teacher and did that for 13 years.
What kept me coming back to barre3 was the community, the deep-muscle burn, and the music! Barre3 is also excellent cross-training for whatever activities you do!
BARRE3: Studio clients in Portland know you as an in-studio instructor, online clients know you as an at-home workout instructor, and our Home Office crew knows you as part of the team. Can you tell us about your current role at barre3?
CHRISTA JOY: I am currently working full-time with the Barre3 Digital Team. My official title is Producer + Manager of Online Instructor Development. I create choreography and playlists for online workouts, train online leads, direct online workouts, lead online workouts, and organize the talent for each filming.
BARRE3: Clients often comment that they feel so connected to you when they do your online workouts. Can you talk a little about how you foster that connection, even from a great distance?
CHRISTA JOY: Honestly, I just keep it real. I am so comfortable in front of the camera because I am able to truly visualize each client right there with me—just hanging out, getting in a good workout together, digging deep but also just having fun! I love that at barre3 I am able to be authentically me, and I love sharing that with clients.
BARRE3: Your workout in our At-Home Series was such a hit! What was it like to film it?
CHRISTA JOY: It was challenging, but so fun! I live in a 315-square-foot studio with my pup, Stella, so we had to move some furniture around to make it work, but I loved sharing my home with online clients. It was fun to see so many people comment on how much they loved seeing Stella snoozing away on the couch. I think pets can be a welcome and healthy distraction from the challenge of the workout.
BARRE3: Can you tell us a bit about your own barre3 practice? What was it like before the pandemic, and how has it changed since?
CHRISTA JOY: Before the pandemic I was taking in-studio barre3 classes about two to three times a week and then getting outside and hiking and/or engaging in other outdoor sports like snowboarding and kiteboarding. I am typically a very active person. The pandemic really hit me hard emotionally and mentally, so for the first part of it I gave myself a lot of grace—I listened to my body and I rested. Eventually I was ready to jump back in, and it has been really wonderful to take livestream classes from barre3 instructors across the country. For about the last month or so I have been really inspired to create new and innovative barre3 online workouts, and I have essentially been kicking my own butt as I test these workouts out before we film them. We have some EXCELLENT online workouts coming your way in the next few months!
BARRE3: Do you have any go-to barre3 online workouts you turn to for specific needs?
CHRISTA JOY: I love the mindful workouts! They are sneaky burners and always leave me feeling centered and refreshed. Lately I’ve been loving this one, by Allison. And here’s one I filmed back in April—a great way to reset in just 10 minutes!
BARRE3: Are there any lessons you feel like you’ve learned from sheltering in place that you hope to take with you going forward?
CHRISTA JOY: YES. I’ve learned to live simply. I’ve taken stock of the “stuff” I fill my life with and have really cleared out a lot of space. I’ve learned how little I actually need to survive and be happy, and I’ve learned to be so much more grateful for what I do have. I’ve learned to approach life with open palms. Letting everything that is just flow in and flow out exactly as it should. Remembering that life is a circle, and everything comes back around. When I start to get overwhelmed or worried about the state of our world, I remember that “normal” wasn’t working, and that this is a big huge beautiful opportunity for rebirth. This is a call to action, and I am grateful that I get to be a part of the change for a better world.
BARRE3: What do you hope people take away from your classes, whether they’re online or in person?
CHRISTA JOY: I think right now is a time for change. For growth. Both change and growth are typically a little uncomfortable, and I want to encourage clients to be OK with the uncomfortable bit. To sit in it a bit. To let go of the idea of perfection. To let go of the idea of how things were. To let go of old routines and habits. I want to encourage clients to be curious again. To play. To not take it so seriously. To find joy in movement. I also want clients to learn to have grace for themselves, right where they are, so that they are then able to extend that grace to the people around them.
Thank you so much, Christa joy! Try one of Christa joy’s uplifting workouts for free with a 15-day trial of barre3 online.
