Get the Abs of a Ballerina

I tried out another one of Acacia's ballet-inspired "BalletBody"workouts this morning. This one was the Core Workout which promises to flatten your midsection and develop core strength with its Pilates-type workout. It started a little shaky with standing balance exercises and I had to laugh out loud thinking about how silly I must have looked. I couldn't help but to be grateful that I was alone in my house rather than in a public class making a fool of myself. Like I mentioned in my previous Ballet Workout Review, a ballerina I am not.

Luckily I didn't let my bad balance get in the way and discourage me. And I'm happy I didn't give up because sooner or later my yoga experience came to the rescue and I actually impressed myself with some of the one legged moves. There is no doubt that this is the type of video that will get easier with repeated use.

I did pretty good with all the standing exercises and found them all doable - both in technique (as long as I wasn't being graded) and difficulty. The movement sequences progressed into various moves to be done on the mat. That's when things got a bit more challenging. Not sure if it was because those moves were actually harder or it was simply due to the fact that I had already been working for 15-20 minutes at that point.

I loved that this workout included so many new moves for me. After being a workout junkie for more years that I care to admit it almost seems impossible for me to experience brand new moves and techniques. I think that is what got me so intrigued by the whole "ballet workout." This is a foreign thing to me and dancing workout moves are so very different than the typical routines. For this reason the video flew by and kept me constantly engaged. Well, my core muscles were constantly engaged, that's for sure, but this also kept my mind engaged just from the newness of it all. I think most people will normally except hundreds of boring crunch-type moves in a ab or core workout, but what you'll find here is an assortment of fresh new moves that you have likely never seen before (unless of course you really are a ballerina).

The routine ends with some back exercises and some deep stretches for flexibility. I'm hoping those deep stretches will save me from some of the inevitable soreness I'll be feeling tomorrow. I'm excited to try it again soon.

The video is approximately 45 minutes long and will be available for purchase through the Acacia catalog.