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The 4 Most Common Body Imbalances (And How Barre3 Counters Them)
Our bodies are meant to move, but our modern lifestyle is largely sedentary. The result? Major muscle groups suffer from lack of daily use, causing imbalances in the body that can cause pain and even lead to injury.
That’s why every barre3 class is designed to help restore balance in the body. We asked Lisa Schale-Drake, barre3 VP of Research & Development, to walk us through the most common imbalances in the body, and to explain how our signature barre3 moves help counter these imbalances. Read on to learn how our workout is helping restore balance to your body.
Common imbalance #1: Tight front of shoulders (aka chest)
This is caused by the amount of time we spend in front of our computers. When we work at our desks, the tendency is for the upper back to round and the muscles in the front of the chest and the shoulders to tighten and shorten. This can lead to tension and pain in the shoulders and neck, and potential injury due to the imbalances in the muscles.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
At barre3, we do a combination of stretches and strength-based exercises that help open up the front of the chest and strengthen the upper-back muscles. Here are two of our favorites:
- Chest Stretch. Seems simple, but this is a highly effective stretch to open the short and tight chest muscles. When you’re in this stretch, you’re actually activating your upper-back muscles, which will help lengthen and release the front of your chest. Simply reach your hands back like a cape, with the option to interlace your fingers and draw the back of the shoulders toward each other. Take three to five deep breaths and release.
- Weighted Rows. This-upper body move is designed to strengthen the muscles between your shoulder blades and open the front of the chest. It helps with overall upper-back strength, while encouraging the chest muscles to open.
Common imbalance #2: Inactive glutes
Sitting for a long time can also create imbalances in your hips and core. Your muscles are meant to both contract and lengthen, but when you sit, your glute muscles are in a lengthened state, often for long periods of time. This can affect your glutes’ ability to contract correctly. Also, the pressure of sitting can impact the nerves, which can make it harder for your glutes to engage when they need to. When you stand and get moving again, your glutes don’t activate correctly, so other muscles, your lower-back muscles, must kick in to do the work of standing and walking. While your lower-back muscles are key to supporting your overall core, they’re not equipped to take on the job of your glutes, so it can lead to lower-back tension and pain.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
We are obsessed with igniting the glutes! Here are some of our favorite postures that get the glutes to work.
- Bridge Lifts. This move is a winner when it comes to waking up the glutes. As you lift your hips off the ground, this movement is exactly what your glutes are designed to do. However, know that sometimes it takes a bit to wake up your sleepy glutes. If you feel it more in your hamstrings or lower back, the glutes aren’t working to their fullest potential. To activate them, slow down, work in a smaller range, and focus your attention on lifting from the back of your hips.
- Standing Seat Work. This multi-functioning move is a great way to kick on the glutes in a functional way. Unlike Bridge Lifts, it focuses on building glute and hip strength one side at a time. This is important because we want our glutes to be able to work as a team but also independently, depending on what we’re doing. For example, when you run, your hips are working independently right to left to move your body forward. Running Man supports this while helping to build strength and mobility in your glutes.
Common imbalance #3: Front of your core (aka your abs).
Your core consists of 35 muscle groups that help support the function and stability of your torso and your overall movement. The front of your core, or abs, are the most known muscle group of the core. When the front of your core is balanced, it supports the stability and mobility of your spine and hips. However, modern-day living can lead to compromised posture and shallow breathing, which can put the abs in a weakened position and make it hard for them to activate properly. This can lead to tension in the lower-back, but also to lack of power, efficiency, and endurance in your movement (for example, slower running times and balance issues when doing squats and lunges).
How barre3 counters this imbalance
Because the core is the foundation of all movement, it is engaged in every barre3 posture. However, here are our favorites that focus on front-of-core strength.
- Plank. This move strengthens the front of your core through gravity pull. When you hold Plank on the floor, gravity is pulling your whole torso toward the ground. It is the job of your abs to lift against gravity and stabilize your body. We also love Planks because they can easily be modified to meet your needs.
- Breathwork. I know what you’re thinking: Does breathwork really strengthen the front of your core? Yes, it does! When you exhale, you activate the deepest layer of your ab wall, which then sends a signal to the rest of your ab muscles to engage and “brace.” This is why when you breath in any core-based posture, you can deepen your connection because you are engaging your ab muscles on a deeper level.
Common imbalance #4: Lack of mobility in your overall hip joint.
Did you know your hip joint has a lot of mobility? You can flex your hip, extend it, reach it to the side and pull it back in, turn it out, turn it in, and make circles with it. Because of our lifestyle and some common exercises like running and cycling, we are overusing certain directions in the body and under using others. This can lead to imbalances in our hip muscles and tension and pain in the hips and knees, and it can affect how you move in your favorite exercises and sports.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
At barre3, we focus on moving the hip joint in all directions in each and every class. This ensures that we’re working toward strength and mobility that will support you in your everyday life. Here are some of our favorite postures that address movement that we lack in everyday life.
- Side Lunges. This side-to-side series is a great way to increase your range of motion while still strengthening your quads, hamstrings, and glutes. Bonus: It’s known for getting your heart rate up, too.
- Diamonds. This side-seat series works rotation in the hips. As you move your top leg up and down, you are increasing your mobility to turn your leg out and in while strengthening your outer glutes and deep hip muscles. Bonus: It kicks on your obliques, too!
In every barre3 workout, we focus on strengthening key muscle groups to help balance the body. Ready to try? Find your local studio, or get started online with a 15-day free trial today!
Our bodies are meant to move, but our modern lifestyle is largely sedentary. The result? Major muscle groups suffer from lack of daily use, causing imbalances in the body that can cause pain and even lead to injury.
That’s why every barre3 class is designed to help restore balance in the body. We asked Lisa Schale-Drake, barre3 VP of Research & Development, to walk us through the most common imbalances in the body, and to explain how our signature barre3 moves help counter these imbalances. Read on to learn how our workout is helping restore balance to your body.
Common imbalance #1: Tight front of shoulders (aka chest)
This is caused by the amount of time we spend in front of our computers. When we work at our desks, the tendency is for the upper back to round and the muscles in the front of the chest and the shoulders to tighten and shorten. This can lead to tension and pain in the shoulders and neck, and potential injury due to the imbalances in the muscles.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
At barre3, we do a combination of stretches and strength-based exercises that help open up the front of the chest and strengthen the upper-back muscles. Here are two of our favorites:
- Chest Stretch. Seems simple, but this is a highly effective stretch to open the short and tight chest muscles. When you’re in this stretch, you’re actually activating your upper-back muscles, which will help lengthen and release the front of your chest. Simply reach your hands back like a cape, with the option to interlace your fingers and draw the back of the shoulders toward each other. Take three to five deep breaths and release.
- Weighted Rows. This-upper body move is designed to strengthen the muscles between your shoulder blades and open the front of the chest. It helps with overall upper-back strength, while encouraging the chest muscles to open.
Common imbalance #2: Inactive glutes
Sitting for a long time can also create imbalances in your hips and core. Your muscles are meant to both contract and lengthen, but when you sit, your glute muscles are in a lengthened state, often for long periods of time. This can affect your glutes’ ability to contract correctly. Also, the pressure of sitting can impact the nerves, which can make it harder for your glutes to engage when they need to. When you stand and get moving again, your glutes don’t activate correctly, so other muscles, your lower-back muscles, must kick in to do the work of standing and walking. While your lower-back muscles are key to supporting your overall core, they’re not equipped to take on the job of your glutes, so it can lead to lower-back tension and pain.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
We are obsessed with igniting the glutes! Here are some of our favorite postures that get the glutes to work.
- Bridge Lifts. This move is a winner when it comes to waking up the glutes. As you lift your hips off the ground, this movement is exactly what your glutes are designed to do. However, know that sometimes it takes a bit to wake up your sleepy glutes. If you feel it more in your hamstrings or lower back, the glutes aren’t working to their fullest potential. To activate them, slow down, work in a smaller range, and focus your attention on lifting from the back of your hips.
- Standing Seat Work. This multi-functioning move is a great way to kick on the glutes in a functional way. Unlike Bridge Lifts, it focuses on building glute and hip strength one side at a time. This is important because we want our glutes to be able to work as a team but also independently, depending on what we’re doing. For example, when you run, your hips are working independently right to left to move your body forward. Running Man supports this while helping to build strength and mobility in your glutes.
Common imbalance #3: Front of your core (aka your abs).
Your core consists of 35 muscle groups that help support the function and stability of your torso and your overall movement. The front of your core, or abs, are the most known muscle group of the core. When the front of your core is balanced, it supports the stability and mobility of your spine and hips. However, modern-day living can lead to compromised posture and shallow breathing, which can put the abs in a weakened position and make it hard for them to activate properly. This can lead to tension in the lower-back, but also to lack of power, efficiency, and endurance in your movement (for example, slower running times and balance issues when doing squats and lunges).
How barre3 counters this imbalance
Because the core is the foundation of all movement, it is engaged in every barre3 posture. However, here are our favorites that focus on front-of-core strength.
- Plank. This move strengthens the front of your core through gravity pull. When you hold Plank on the floor, gravity is pulling your whole torso toward the ground. It is the job of your abs to lift against gravity and stabilize your body. We also love Planks because they can easily be modified to meet your needs.
- Breathwork. I know what you’re thinking: Does breathwork really strengthen the front of your core? Yes, it does! When you exhale, you activate the deepest layer of your ab wall, which then sends a signal to the rest of your ab muscles to engage and “brace.” This is why when you breath in any core-based posture, you can deepen your connection because you are engaging your ab muscles on a deeper level.
Common imbalance #4: Lack of mobility in your overall hip joint.
Did you know your hip joint has a lot of mobility? You can flex your hip, extend it, reach it to the side and pull it back in, turn it out, turn it in, and make circles with it. Because of our lifestyle and some common exercises like running and cycling, we are overusing certain directions in the body and under using others. This can lead to imbalances in our hip muscles and tension and pain in the hips and knees, and it can affect how you move in your favorite exercises and sports.
How barre3 counters this imbalance
At barre3, we focus on moving the hip joint in all directions in each and every class. This ensures that we’re working toward strength and mobility that will support you in your everyday life. Here are some of our favorite postures that address movement that we lack in everyday life.
- Side Lunges. This side-to-side series is a great way to increase your range of motion while still strengthening your quads, hamstrings, and glutes. Bonus: It’s known for getting your heart rate up, too.
- Diamonds. This side-seat series works rotation in the hips. As you move your top leg up and down, you are increasing your mobility to turn your leg out and in while strengthening your outer glutes and deep hip muscles. Bonus: It kicks on your obliques, too!
In every barre3 workout, we focus on strengthening key muscle groups to help balance the body. Ready to try? Find your local studio, or get started online with a 15-day free trial today!
