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If you haven't heard of Pure Barre, you likely soon will, because there's a good chance your wife, mother, daughter, coworker or neighbor will become a loyal follower.
The Pure Barre technique is a fitness craze that uses a ballet barre to perform small isometric movements set to high-energy music during a 55-minute class. While men are encouraged to attend class, the exercises mainly target the areas where women struggle the most: abs, hips, thighs, back of the arm and seat.
The franchise is sweeping the nation with more than 70 locations in 20 states, several of which are owned and operated by Kentucky women.
"We are a women-centered business - run by women, for women. We have a woman CEO, women franchise owners, women clients. It's completely women-based," said Edie Green, 43, who owns the Lexington Pure Barre location with business partner Amanda Arnold, 40.
Pure Barre exercises, which fuse elements of Pilates, yoga, dance and weight training, are designed to strengthen and tone a woman's body to look like a dancer's: long, lean, strong and toned. Offering low-impact exercises that are easy on the joints, the company has attracted clients of all shapes, sizes and ages too - from young teens to women in their 70s.
Its mission statement is simple, yet poignant: "To provide a workout that can change every woman's body in the world while at the same time empowering her, connecting her with a community of like-minded women and encouraging her to have fun along the way."
Started in 2001 by dancer, choreographer and fitness guru Carrie Rezabek Dorr, Pure Barre's first classes were held in the basement of an office in Birmingham, Mich. After building a solid client base and moving to a new location, Pure Barre began expanding in 2006, with Dorr's brother Tom Rezabek opening Pure Barre's first standalone location in Lexington, Ky.
After a little more than a year in business, Rezabek decided it was time to...