At Stacey DeGenaro’s Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow, clients are connecting with their bodies through Pilates and Barre classes

By Mary Malik

CONTROLOGY: the Complete Coordination of Body, Mind & Spirit

If practicing Pilates brings me half the energy and joy that it does for Stacey DeGenaro, owner of Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow in Fairlawn, I’m in. Stacey has been both practicing and teaching Pilates-based workouts for more than 17 years, and has added other forms of exercise to her personal routine along the way. She credits Pilates with keeping her physically fit.

“Pilates has allowed me to remain active in my daily life, keep up with my busy family and do other things like run and play soccer,” says Stacey. “Pilates teaches you how to connect with your body and be aware of how you’re moving so you can naturally protect yourself from injury.”

A Pilates-based studio, Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow offers classes in Barre, Reformer Pilates, Mat Pilates, TRX suspension training and Aerial Fitness.

“Our instructors have over 45 years of combined experience in teaching Pilates-based workouts,” says Stacey. “We use the STOTT Pilates Reformer machines. STOTT Pilates is a contemporary approach to classical Pilates based on modern principles of exercise science and rehabilitation. It’s a more athletic style, but you don’t need to be an athlete. We have clients from their 30s through their 80s. They include post rehab clients all the way to elite athletes. Everyone is continuing on their personal path to wellness.”

No matter your age, it’s all about longevity when it comes to exercise. What form of exercise is going to keep you fit and allow you to continue to not only exercise but also do all of the other activities of your daily life?

“This is different for everyone,” says Stacey. “Some people want to run marathons or climb mountains while others want to keep up with their kids or grandkids, continue playing tennis or golf or just be able to carry their own groceries to the car. Pilates supports the other things you’re doing in your life by improving posture and increasing core strength, stability and flexibility.”

Stacey says that all of these benefits serve to heighten a person’s sense of body awareness. Pilates practitioners learn how to connect, stabilize and avoid injury.

“You can really turn it on and you don’t even realize you’re doing it,” says Stacey. “It’s that sense of stabilizing before you even move and it works from the inside out. We work all of the intrinsic muscles that will keep you safe.”

That idea of connection to your body and your movements is why Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow is a barefoot studio.

“The barefoot connection is critical to good balance, alignment, mobility and strength,” says Stacey. “At the risk of getting technical, it’s about the proprioceptors in your feet. These are sensory receptors that are on the nerve endings of muscles, joints, tendons, the skin and other tissues of our bodies. They tell us where our body is in space and govern that sense of your limbs belonging to you. Feeling your feet grounding you is essential to making those connections for lasting fitness.”

The barre classes at Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow also take a somewhat different approach to barre that focuses on recreating the natural curvature of the spine to avoid injury and pain.

“Many barre studios want you to tuck your pelvis,” says Stacey. “We don’t tuck. It’s an awful movement for your hip flexors and your knees. We do a pelvic tilt that creates a natural curve of your spine. We also avoid pulsing for long periods because these constricted movements restrict your spine. Most people who come to us with spinal pain from desk jobs or driving all day already have compromised spinal positions from daily life. We teach you how to undo that position and relieve your pain.”

Stacey describes Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow as a boutique studio with an individualized approach to working out.

“This is not a franchise where we are following certain rules or a pre-set daily or weekly workout,” says Stacey. “Our focus is on you. Our clients become friends and some have been with us for over 15 years. That says a lot in this business. Our goal is to empower people to find their own strength and feel good about themselves. It’s all about confidence and self-love.”

Stacey says that she and her team at Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow see a lot of people who are in constant physical pain in their daily lives, which can make many forms of exercise difficult and even impossible.

“One reformer workout replaces any workout with weights, and is so much easier on your body,” says Stacey. “That’s why so many people do Pilates when they’ve completed physical therapy. We’ll teach you how to take control, connect with your own body and keep moving.”

Barre Pose Studio Pure Flow is located at 77 North Miller Road in Fairlawn. For more information and to sign up for classes, call 330-701-7368 or go to BarrePoseStudio.com.