Lotte Berk Archives

Sep 23

Fred DeVito and Elisabeth Halfpapp at the Lotte Berk Method studio in New York City

What It Was Like to Train and Teach at the Iconic Lotte Berk Method

By Melissa Feeney Barre Culture, Lotte Berk, Studio Spotlight One Comment

It’s the early 1970s. The Lotte Berk Method has opened on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and will soon garner a following among the who’s who of New York’s elite. This is the studio that back in 1984 The New York Times called the fanciest accommodations in town and one of the most rigorous workouts for women in New York. This is where Burr Leonard of The Bar Method trained, where a slew of celebrities from Julia Roberts to Caroline Kennedy to Bianca Jagger used to take classes on a regular basis, and where you could argue barre started in America.

Long before boutique barre studios went mainstream, The Lotte Berk Method built a cult-like following and would produce some of the most beloved barre brands in the world today.

The unassuming five-story brownstone on East 67th Street that housed the flagship studio is where you would find women (it began as a women’s only fitness studio) file into any one of the classrooms across three floors of the townhouse at all hours throughout the day.

Although I can try to imagine what it would have been like to do some knee dancing on the deep rose-coloured carpet of this iconic studio, I thought there is no greater pair of people to speak with about their time there than Fred DeVito and Elisabeth Halfpapp to really understand the brand’s lasting impact on the barre community.

Not only were the pair instrumental in the success of the business (Elisabeth and Fred expanded the teacher training program) but were there almost every day, teaching 6 classes a day, 6 days a week, managing the studio and even lived above the studio for a period of time.

Elisabeth Halfpapp and Fred DeVito at the Lotte Berk Method Studio on the Upper East Side of Manhattan

Fred and Elisabeth in the Bridgehampton barn in the early ’90s. Source: Elisabeth Halfpapp and Fred DeVito

How The Lotte Berk Method Came to Be

Lydia Bach travelled to London to study Lotte’s technique and eventually purchased the North American rights to her name. Elisabeth explained that she named it after Lotte because she had great respect for what Lotte had started, and so she called her business The Lotte Berk Method Ltd. in her honour.

“Lydia furthered it in many ways, you know with pushups and planks and added a balance of strength and stretching to it as well,” explained Elisabeth on the changes Lydia made to the original technique which included making it into an hour-long class.

In the early days, Lydia was heavily involved in the day-to-day operations of the business. Elisabeth credits Lydia for working one on one with everyone to develop what she considered to be the first barre studio in the United States. “We were really lucky to have her at that point,” said Elisabeth.

Discovering The Lotte Berk Method

Elisabeth was first introduced to the method via an ad in the classified section of the New York Times.

I was a dancer coming from the Hartford Ballet, auditioning in New York and teaching ballet. My audition class was with a teacher who was actually visiting from London, from The Lotte Berk studio there. I was in bed after 9:00 am when I got a call from The Lotte Berk Method. They said they were interested in hiring me and I almost said ‘Are you sure?’ because I couldn’t move. It was one of the hardest things I had ever done.

Fred’s background was in physical education. Having taught in the public school system as well as having been a coach and personal trainer, he credits his experience in teaching to making the transition to The Lotte Berk Method an easy one. “I saw what Lis was doing with The Lotte Berk Method and I said ‘oh my god,’ I need to teach people how to do this.” Fred also happened to be the studio’s first male barre teacher.

Immersion was the best way to learn

A year after being hired, Elisabeth started to run the studio. “I managed the studio, I teacher trained. I taught 6 classes a day, 6 days a week. Pretty much immersed myself.”

At that point, there was no manual. “Our training really was classroom teaching. You take 4 classes a day, 6 days a week and then you teach,” said Elisabeth.

Original help wanted ad in the New York Times for The Lotte Berk Method

The original help wanted ad in The New York Times that Elisabeth answered.

The who’s who of New York and beyond flocked to the studio

Thanks to prominent locations in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, the Hamptons and Los Angeles, The Lotte Berk Method attracted many notable people over the years. From Julia Roberts to Melanie Griffith, to Brooke Shields, there are just too many to name but as you can imagine, having studios located in premium markets helped to bring in a high-end clientele.

When I asked if they could recall any great stories, Elisabeth had this to say: “I really have to jog my mind to think about those special people who came because they were such a part of the group that they don’t stand out unless I really think about it. We never put them on a pedestal and I think they really appreciated that.”

In our Hamptons studio, we would have up to 6 or 7 high-profile celebrities in one class. Actresses, actors, directors, artists. In NYC we would have Julia Roberts coming every day, you know dress down, no makeup, in her sweats. She would be hanging out before class just like… People would have to do a double-take, isn’t that Julia Roberts? One time someone asked, “Are you, Julia Roberts? You look just like her.” It was so cute, she laughed and said “I am.”

On teaching notable clients, Fred recalled some advice that Lydia passed down to them. “Treat celebrities like you treat everybody else. They need something from you. They need the workout, they have injuries that need to be taken care of, they’re coming to you for your expertise. Don’t be starstruck by it all.”

We got into this routine and habit of not being starstruck and just talking to people no matter who they were, we would talk to everybody the same way, no matter whether you were a housekeeper or a babysitter for somebody coming in or you were a high-profile celebrity, we just treated everybody the same, so that made it really easy for people to all be in the same class together. And a lot of celebrities felt very comfortable.

The other locations

The Lotte Berk Method’s Bridgehampton location (where SoulCycle is now) was a 1600 square foot potato barn that Lydia renovated into a “very open, airy space” studio according to Elisabeth. “It had all sliding glass doors on one side of the studio that overlooked (back then) farm fields.”

Clients were vocal about wanting a studio in the Hamptons since that’s where they summered. “She decided Bridgehampton because it’s centrally located between South and East Hampton,” recalled Elisabeth. “We limited it to 12 people per class but by the time we left, we had 3 classes going on and there were over 60 people on the hour coming through.”

Ads for The Lotte Berk Method Bridgehampton location from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.

In 1983 The Lotte Berk Method opened at Sunset Plaza and West Hollywood in Los Angeles. The pair moved to LA. before being called back to New York at the end of ’83 when the Master Teacher-Trainer left the Manhatten location.

A day in the life

A typical day according to Elisabeth and Fred was a busy one. With multiple studios available, they could have three different classes taking place at one time. “We had classes going on every floor, three classes on the hour. At 7:00, 7:15, 7:30 am and continued all day long until 8:00 pm at night,” Elisabeth explained. “We would teach 3 classes in the morning and 3 classes in the evening, take a break in the afternoon, do any other work like teacher training, or client relationship things, shooting for articles etc.”

[Classes] were all by appointment before computers… it was all hand-written check-in. We had little cards that we would just mark and check people off when they came in.

Fred explained that most of the morning classes were filled with the same women every day. The same women in the same class every morning meant that they got to know each other very well. The “zoo-ey” nature as Fred described was part of the reason why they wanted to make classes more mindful. “It was like pulling teeth, you could not get these women into a mindful place,” Fred recalled.

People would walk into the room and then they would start talking before class started. It was like a school cafeteria, very loud talking about their kids and where they went and the restaurants and their social life and whatever… We came in with a policy and we said, look when you walk into the classroom, we’d like to treat it more like a sanctuary, like sit on the carpet, close your eyes, breathe, meditate, just be alone with yourself for a while. If you wanted to chitchat just do that out in the hallway.

Impacting the barre landscape

At one point during my interview, I wondered if there was anyone who hadn’t gotten their start there. You can trace so many barre brands back to this one method. Instructors and clients who have gone on to build some of the biggest franchises, studios and methods out there today. From Carrie Dorr at Pure Barre, to Burr Leonard of The Bar Method, Tanya Becker and Jennifer Maanavi of Physique 57, and of course Fred and Lis who would go onto create Exhale and then CoreBarreFit, and the list goes on and on and on.

“Bar Method was actually our first and only license,” says Elisabeth, explaining that before Burr Leonard went on to open The Bar Method, Burr opened up a Lotte Berk Method in Greenwich Connecticut followed by three more locations in the state. For a decade she ran those studios before deciding not to renew the license after the 10-year agreement was up.

We trained her as a teacher to open up her license of The Lotte Berk Method. She is probably the closest to The Lotte Berk Method besides Fred and me, even though everything continues to evolve.

How one business could make such a lasting impact on the barre industry

Wondering if there was something in the water since so many notable brands can be traced back to this one method, I asked Fred and Lis if they could pinpoint anything specifically.

I think Fred and I created a really thorough teacher training program. We cared about everyone who came in. We were hands-on teaching all those classes each week and hands-on with our teachers. I think it was that care and camaraderie, that inspired a lot of teachers to become who they are.

Fred also pointed out that the exercises themselves helped their word of mouth efforts. “I think one of the hooks is that it works,” said Fred. “When people see results it’s like wildfire. Their friends see their bodies changing and want to know what they’re doing.”

We got more business from word of mouth referral than any other way. There were more people wanting to take the class than there was actual space. It was just like one of those great restaurants that you can’t get in, we were that. Even in Bridgehampton, we were the only exercise studio in Bridgehampton back in the late ’80s, ’90s and up to 2000s. There was no competition so people would flock there.

“We became real disciples of the work because of the results that we saw and the benefits that people would have from it and that’s why it became so popular,” said Elisabeth.

At the time boutique fitness wasn’t what it is today. It was somewhat novel, especially in the early 1970s for women to go to a fitness studio to exercise. Elisabeth remembered when a female client asked “What are these droplets on my arm?” Lydia told her, “that’s sweat, my dear.”

What happened to the Lotte Berk Method?

Lydia preferred to keep her operation small, despite numerous opportunities to expand. So why didn’t she? For one, “Lydia was an absentee owner,” Elisabeth explains. “It was pretty much just Fred and I.” Near the end of the studio’s run, she was living in India for half the year. “Lydia was never there except maybe 2 months out of the year.”

Fred and Elisabeth departed The Lotte Berk Method and opened Exhale [Exhale Spa at the time], which was successful in its own right with the pair at the helm for two decades. “That’s another reason we wanted to move on to Exhale,” said Elisabeth. “It could have been expanded globally. When we left she closed a few years later because we did pretty much everything. She was left with no teacher training procedures or a team to help develop a training program. That’s one of the reasons it didn’t go beyond Lydia Bach.”

She was a genius when she was at her best. The barre fitness world would not be where it is today if it were not for her. Lotte, yes, Lotte was the seed in London but Lydia is really who brought it to the forefront. She was a challenging individual but we learned so much from her.

Successful as the business was, it was not without controversy

Did Lotte have regret signing away those North American rights? In her 2020 memoir How to Live and Die, Lotte’s daughter Esther Fairfax had this to say about the decision.

In America, Lotte Berk had a truly huge presence. Only no one was teaching it as authentically as Mother had–and because of a foolish decision she’d made to sign away the American rights years ago, she had not been able to set the record straight by training or publishing books there. Her hands had been tied, truly handcuffed, and no matter how hard the lawyers tried they could not break the contract. Sadly, no one could use the name Lotte Berk in the States unless they were licensed by the one person who had taken it from Mother so cunningly all those years ago. My mother just had to watch as her technique was misinterpreted and mistaught.

The legacy lives on

The Lotte Berk Method was one of the most successful fitness brands of the 20th century. When exercise fads come and go, it’s no easy feat to sustain interest over more than three decades.

“I’m just tickled pink to see where barre is at today from that little studio at 23 East 67th Street,” said Elisabeth. “What is amazing is that we still teach a lot of the same clients we had back then and their children and some even their grandchildren. It’s just so wonderful to continue the journey with so many people after all these years.”

The Lenox Hill brownstone where the Lotte Berk Method housed their operation in New York is now the site of luxury apartments, art galleries and high-end retail.

Want to know more?

Fred and Elisabeth are going to dive into the history of barre during their lunch and learn session of the same name during this year’s Virtual Barre Summit. You don’t want to miss it! This year’s summit takes place online over two weekends beginning October 16. Visit barresummit.com for more details and to purchase tickets. The Barre Blog is proud to be the event’s Media Partner. Look out for more complimentary content in the weeks to come!

Sep 17

The London Method training on the computer.

My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: First Weekend of Training Recap

By Jennifer Mathieu Henshall Barre Culture, Lotte Berk, Lotte Berk Training No Comments

In this series of posts, our Southern US Editor Jennifer Mathieu Henshall shares her POV while on her journey to getting certified by theLONDONmethod in the original Lotte Berk Technique.

Refresh. Refresh. Refresh. Like waiting for water to boil, I kept hitting that familiar curved arrow button on my browser hoping the email would arrive. I leapt out of bed (I was too excited to immediately drift off to sleep that night) when the words, “TLM Teacher Training…It’s Only Just Begun” appeared in my inbox. It was here — a link to the course materials that I knew were going to continue to shape my entire outlook on fitness and wellness. I quickly opened the PDF that housed the 2020 version of the TLM Teacher Training Online Manual for a glimpse at the Fairfax Family’s Secret Recipe and began scrolling through the pages…

I awoke early the next morning to get a few things settled before training officially began, for me, at noon EST. Because I’m old-school and prefer paper over digital copies, I printed up the TLM Teacher Training Manual (in color — it’s really pretty!), put my three-hole punch to good use and then placed the almost 50-page document in a white three-ring binder.

With laptop, binder, pen and water in-hand, I headed down to my home barre studio/exercise sanctuary and settled in for Day 1 of the first weekend of training in the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique.

Day 1 of Training – “You’ll Have Fun and Get Your Work Done,” tLm

I have to admit that I was nervously excited as I switched on my laptop, positioned my camera and settled into a comfy seat with my newly printed TLM Manual. I was excited because I was going to be learning the ORIGINAL Technique and equally nervous because I was going to be learning the ORIGINAL Technique.

I logged into our virtual classroom precisely at noon and ready to absorb as much I could over the course of the next three hours. We spent the first hour and a half learning about the roots and history of the ORIGINAL, discussing how Kelly first discovered the Technique, what happened when she brought it back to America and how Pam and Kelly opened The London Method – the first studio in the U.S. to offer this one-of-a-kind, core-conditioning class.

After we reviewed some of the differences and similarities between Americanized-barre and the ORIGINAL Technique, we then spent some time getting to know the other trainees – our soon-to-be tLm family members.

Like new virtual friends, we chatted as if we were all in an actual tLm class. We talked about where we all lived, our current circumstances and why we wanted to learn the Technique. Then, it was time to learn the Warm-Up.

I flipped through my manual, which contains clear pictures to accent the concise instructions, cues and things to “watch for,” as Kelly described the moves and Pam executed proper form and alignment. Not only were the exercises printed in the manual and demonstrated during the training session, but they are also available online to all tLm trainees for future reference.

The Warm-Up is quite comprehensive and takes about five to seven minutes of class time to complete, so it took us a bit to grasp the moves before we got the chance to put them into practice ourselves. We concluded class on that first day with the Warm-Up fresh in our minds and muscles.

Jennifer trains in the original Lotte Berk Technique.

Day 2 of Training – “Essence, not just Exercise,” tLm

You would think that after having spent three hours in training the day before, that I wouldn’t have found myself jumping out of bed brighter and earlier than usual on that following Sunday morning. But there I was – coffee already brewing – looking through my manual and notes from the prior day before 7 a.m. I wanted to run through the Warm-Up a few times before class began that afternoon. As stated earlier, the Warm-Up kicks off the first five to seven minutes of class and is longer and more effective than any warm-up that I’ve ever taught in a barre class.

Through a variety of dynamic stretches and movements, which are all generated from the core, your entire body is lengthened, opened up and primed for the rest of the 60-minute session. As I practiced the movements, I zeroed in on my own body and remembered the prompts that Kelly and Pam had provided us with the day before – “up and over,” “lengthen,” and “stretch.” The way that the ORIGINAL Warm-Up is structured allows you to move freely – but, with control – mindfully engage those muscles that are going to be worked and focus on flowing from one movement to the next.

After practicing the Warm-Up several times and puttering around the house doing my Sunday chores, it was time to log back in for Day 2. We began class by performing the Warm-Up to music and then spent the next two hours learning the first few sections of the ORIGINAL class.

As with other training classes, I jotted down notes, while Pam demonstrated, and then tried the movements out on my own body. Again, I felt something different. We weren’t just learning to bend and straighten our legs. Because the movements are so small, slow and concise, I finally forced myself to truly straighten my leg, lift it as high as it could possibly go and push down any thoughts that my former “cardio-driven” self would have considered.

This Technique is not about AMRAPS or sets, it’s about moving and feeling your way through the exercises as honestly as you can and seeing the proven results of simultaneously stretching and strengthening your body. As Lotte Berk once said, “If you can’t get to the ultimate point of stretching, you’re cheating yourself.”

Pam and Kelly of The London Method teach the Original Lotte Berk Technique during a training

Week 1 Impressions

As a Certified Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor, I have taken many fitness training – both in-person and online – over the past five years. Most of them were well-organized and based in scientific research and some were so energizing and motivating that I felt compelled to go out and teach them to everyone I knew, but none of the training that I’ve ever taken has been quite like the ORIGINAL.

I felt like I was learning some wonderfully magical secret language, but one that I was allowed and encouraged to share with others.

As I learned during training, Lotte Berk developed her famous Technique to heal her injured back, while still maintaining her strength and figure, but it is Esther Fairfax, Lotte’s daughter, that we can thank for bringing the ORIGINAL to the world. Yes, Lotte was a genius when it came to working the body in ways that allow for both healing and strengthening, but it is Esther who took her mother’s movements and devised a workable structure that could be replicated and passed onto others. Today, we thank Esther for gifting us with her family’s secret recipe, as it is certainly one that will benefit many generations of fitness enthusiasts and instructors, alike.

I’ll be the first to admit that I tend to get overly excited about things – especially when it comes to health and fitness. As someone who has had her fair share of struggles in these two particular departments, I’m always on the hunt for new and innovative ways to stay fit and healthy. I have numerous fitness certifications, a couple of nutrition certifications and a home gym stuffed with all types of equipment and DVDs (yes, DVDs – mostly barre workouts, of course!).

My quest for knowledge is ongoing, but in all honesty, it gets overwhelming. It would take me a lifetime to get through and experiment with all of the information that is available on how to eat and train. But, this year – the year the world was forced to change and slow down – I followed suit. Sure, part of it was due to the fact that we were forced to stay home, but I was also motivated by a terrible autoimmune flare-up that I experienced at the end of 2019. And, during this time of self-isolation, I discovered if gentle, mindful movements – the types of movements that my body actually craved, but I often ignored – were able to heal me, they should certainly be able to heal others.

If you read my previous two posts, you already know that I sought out further training in the ORIGINAL Technique with The London Method because I wanted to know the origins of barre and to share this knowledge with others who may also be “sick and tired of feeling sick and tired,” crave a more mindful way of moving and desire a long, lean and svelte body. And, after the first week of training commenced, I discovered that the ORIGINAL will result in a long, lean and svelte body, but it goes beyond the physical. It is about feeling welcomed, excited, entranced – and maybe even a little silly at times – about exercise. And, as an instructor of the ORIGINAL Technique, these are the feelings that I want to create in my students, my classes and more.

See you at the barre!

Next up: My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: Second Weekend Recap

About the Author

Jennifer is a barre instructor, personal trainer, clinical aromatherapist and author who discovered barre — her soul-mate workout — while training for the 2016 Boston Marathon. As a long-time runner, former bodybuilder and melanoma skin cancer survivor, Jennifer’s recent battle with autoimmune disease has changed her fitness focus to one that incorporates more mindful, purposeful and low-impact movements.

A former communication professor and mother of two daughters, Jennifer is excited to share her thoughts and experiences on ways to create and maintain a strong connection between the mind and body through barre.

Images courtesy of Jennifer Mathieu Henshall

Sep 06

Jennifer Mathieu Henshall after a barre class

My Journey to Getting Certified in the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique: How I found My Way to the Barre – Part 2

By Jennifer Mathieu Henshall Barre Culture, Lotte Berk, Lotte Berk Training No Comments

In this series of posts, our Southern US Editor Jennifer Mathieu Henshall shares her POV while on her journey to getting certified by theLONDONmethod in the original Lotte Berk Technique.

The year is 1999. I’ve just finished a particularly sweaty 60 minutes on the treadmill and am ravenous. As I head back across campus to the townhouse that I share with my four college roommates, I reach into my backpack and pull out my post-workout snack – a package of SnackWell’s Fat-Free, Devil’s Food Cookies. Once home, I settle down to eat my dinner – a Subway turkey sandwich with low-fat mayo, a side of Wow! Doritos and a Diet Coke. As I eat, I applaud myself for making such healthy and wholesome choices that evening.

Throwback photo of author Jennifer Mathieu Henshall from the College years.

Looking back at the way I used to train and eat, I’m not surprised that almost 20 years later, I was diagnosed with several autoimmune conditions. Yes, over the years, I have refined my nutrition (i.e. I no longer eat fake food or thrive on artificial sweeteners), but it’s taken me a lot longer to get my fitness practices in-check.

A discovery that would change everything

Several years of running half-marathons, full-marathons and heavyweight training propelled my body into a state of self-attack. And, it wasn’t until a terrible autoimmune flare-up that I experienced at the end of 2019, I knew it was time to address the fact that I needed to stop overtraining once and for all, as it was doing more harm, than good, to my mental and physical health.

Jennifer Mathieu Henshall running

The last time I experienced an exercise-induced autoimmune flare-up was while I was training for the 2016 Boston Marathon. I didn’t know it at the time, however. For months leading up to the diagnosis of my autoimmune condition, I just assumed that the fatigue, brain fog and depression that I was experiencing were from the tough training regimen I had outlined for myself.

Undoubtedly, the training was putting a lot of strain on my body, but my system had become so inflamed, that it began attacking itself. I was immediately put on anti-inflammatory medication and began feeling better within a few months’ time.

This time around, my doctor increased my medication dosage – a drug that I will more than likely have to take for the rest of my life. And as someone who believes in the symbiotic relationship between Eastern and Western medicine, I knew that, in addition to taking more medication, there were several other things that I could do to heal myself.

Finding an alternative form of movement

One of them was to immediately cease all high-impact exercise and overtraining. I decided to revamp my entire workout routine and to focus on barre workouts alone. I slowly eased my way back into exercise and found that barre’s low-impact and mindful movements were exactly what I needed to begin feeling better both inside and out.

Jenn teaching a barre class.

As I mentioned in Part 1 of “How I Found My Way to the Barre,” I discovered barre almost five years ago while training for Boston, my second marathon. And, I’ve been a barre instructor for almost as long. I’ve always loved barre fitness but initially used it to supplement and refine my other more intense workouts. I’m not sure if it’s a function of coming into my own during a time when the fitness culture touted low-fat foods and high-cardio moves, but unless I felt completely defeated after a workout, I didn’t think that I had worked hard enough – until my body proved otherwise.

Author Jennifer Mathieu Henshall after teaching a barre class.

Yet, after my most recent autoimmune flare-up, I turned to low-impact, controlled exercise to heal myself. Movements that involve bodyweight, concentration and an acute awareness of one’s heart, mind and soul – those of the ORIGINAL Method – have provided me with the mental and physical results that I’ve been searching for my entire adult life. I’ve learned that it’s not about having a “perfect” body, it’s about having a happy, healthy and thriving body. And, the ORIGINAL Technique provides all of this and more. I am overjoyed at the opportunity to train with The London Method, to learn the roots and intricacies of Lotte Berk’s ORIGINAL Technique and to document my entire experience along the way. I want to absorb all that I can about the Fairfax Family Recipe, so that I may instruct others in the hopes that they, too, will share in the magnificent healing powers found in this remarkable form of movement medicine.

See you at the barre!

Next up: My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: First Weekend of Training Recap

About the Author

Aug 27

My Journey to Getting Certified in the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique: How I found My Way to the Barre – Part 1

By Jennifer Mathieu Henshall Barre Culture, Lotte Berk, Lotte Berk Training No Comments

In this series of posts, our Southern US Editor Jennifer Mathieu Henshall shares her POV while on her journey to getting certified by theLONDONmethod in the original Lotte Berk Technique.

Like many other noteworthy days in my life, I remember the first time I took a barre class. It was on a cold winter morning in my basement gym. I was training for the 2016 Boston Marathon, logging more miles on my legs than ever before, while also trying to find time to incorporate some all-important resistance and flexibility work into my routine. Running 40-plus miles per week doesn’t allow for a lot of extra exercise time, so I was in pursuit of a workout that would provide me with the strength and stretching I was seeking. And, that’s when I found it – barre. With about four months left of my marathon training, I built a couple of barre DVD workouts into my weekly routine and found that the micromovements, ballet- and Pilates-inspired exercises and yoga poses were the perfect complements to my cardio-heavy plan. When I crossed the finish line in Boston that Marathon Monday, I was injury-free, smiling from ear-to-ear and wondering how to integrate barre into my life on a full-time basis.

Jennifer Mathieu Henshall at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

My name is Jennifer Mathieu Henshall and I’m a full-fledged barre addict. My obsession began purely out of necessity and has since become my preferred method of exercise. I’ve been a certified barre instructor for four years and have been trained in several different barre modalities, including the American Barre Technique’s Pre & Postnatal Barre, H.I. (High Intensity) Barre, Barre-Less Barre Ballet Aerobics and Barre Stretch, BOSU Barre Strong and BarreAmped Bounce. I taught barre classes at a local studio for a couple of years and then from my home studio for the last few years, as well.

Taking my love of barre to the next level

As much as I love teaching barre, I am also a lifetime learner at-heart and always seeking out new techniques to incorporate into my classes, as well as my own workouts. Because of my background in research (I became a college professor after graduate school), I have a strong desire to swan dive into the history of all of my passions. In the summer of 2019, I wanted to know more about the roots of barre, so I began a search to learn about its origins. My quest led me to Kelly Wackerman and Pam Kennedy of The London Method, the first studio in the United States to teach and train in the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique. Although I wasn’t able to travel to California for the in-person training at the time (I am the primary caregiver for my two daughters – ages 8 and 10), as luck would have it, The London Method has since developed an online training course in the ORIGINAL technique, which I will be taking for three consecutive weekends in September.

Jennifer Mathieu Henshall at a barre class.

Before my certification journey begins, let me introduce myself

Before I begin my training and subsequent comprehensive, in-depth review of the virtual course for this blog, I wanted to provide a bit more of an introduction of myself and my “why.” As someone who needs to know all of the nitty-gritty details herself, I figured that a few more facts about my background – aside from my intro on this site – and excitement for barre and its amazing benefits would provide a bit of a warm-up before I Pluto Snuffles (this will make more sense in due time) into my virtual training experience with The London Method. So, without further ado, below are some ORIGINAL facts about me:

O: I am a former communication professor and professional and currently working on building The Barre Library – an online education center for all barre enthusiasts.
R: I reside just outside of Washington, DC, but was born and raised in Rhode Island, with my husband and two daughters.
I: I am constantly getting certified in different barre and exercise techniques as a way to further hone my skills as both a teacher and student. In addition to my various barre accreditations, I currently hold certifications in PiYo, CIZE, TurboKick and Core De Force. I am also a Pre & Postnatal Fitness Specialist for Moms Into Fitness, Inc.
G: Since having benefited from the extreme generosity of others (both of my pregnancies with my daughters were affected by a rare blood disease that required numerous platelet transfusions and blood plasma treatments), I have made it my mission to give back whatever and whenever I can to others. Through my writing and instructing, I hope to guide others as they learn to harness their own mind-body connections so that they can live more fulfilling lives.
I: I am a former marathoner and bodybuilder who used to thrive on high-intensity workouts until they became too much for my body to handle.
N: I am in my early 40s and currently a stay-at-home-mom, barre instructor, NASM certified personal trainer, certified aromatherapist and freelance writer. I joined The Barre Blog as the Southern US Editor in March of 2020.
A: Over the past 20 years, I have suffered from several ailments, including melanoma skin cancer, two pregnancy losses, two high-risk pregnancies and several autoimmune diseases.
L: I love to bake healthy treats, craft with my daughters, take frequent trips to the barre and read. Cozy culinary mysteries, cookbooks about baking and reality baking shows are my guilty pleasures!

Jennifer Mathieu Henshall does a barre pose outside.

As this series – My Journey to Getting Certified in the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique – unfolds, many of my ORIGINAL facts will begin to take shape. Through my own one-inch ups and downs, I’ve learned that movement has the dual-power of helping or healing. And as someone who has learned – the hard way – that exercise doesn’t have to be punishing in order to be effective and enjoyable, it is my hope to bring this awareness to those who have already taken their place at the barre or aspire to one day. Discover more about my “Why,” in Part 2 of How I Found My Way to the Barre.

See you at the barre!

Next up: My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: How I Found My Way to the Barre – Part 2

About the Author

Aug 11

My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: Getting Started

By Jennifer Mathieu Henshall Barre Culture, Lotte Berk, Lotte Berk Training No Comments

In this series of posts, our Southern US Editor Jennifer Mathieu Henshall shares her POV while on her journey to getting certified by theLONDONmethod in the original Lotte Berk Technique. This week: an introduction to the certification and how you can join her in getting certified.

Ladies from The London Method training program.

Become a Piece of the Tradition…

When Kelly Wackerman flew across the pond to Hungerford, England to train with Esther Fairfax, daughter of Lotte Berk, she had no idea that she would stumble upon one of the fitness world’s best-kept secrets – the ORIGINAL Lotte Berk Technique, which was later brought over to the United States and ultimately formed the basis of most modern barre classes. It wasn’t until Kelly spent three weeks experiencing this unique core-conditioning class, which uses the ballet barre for leverage and support, that she realized she had discovered a true find, and friend, in Esther. Five years after her journey to the English countryside, she and The London Method’s co-founder, Pam Kennedy, want to share the Fairfax Family’s secret recipe with you during this one-of-a-kind virtual training!

If you’ve always wanted to know more about the foundation of today’s modern barre classes, to discover the amazing physical and mental benefits that the ORIGINAL technique can bring to your clients and desire to be part of a family dedicated to helping Esther ensure that her mother’s ORIGINAL method is lived in the way in which Lotte intended, follow the recipe below and you’ll be en route to experiencing (and learning) the enchanting feelings of strength and empowerment that Esther’s clients have been feeling for over 60 years!

Kelly Wackerman, Esther Fairfax and Pamela Kennedy in Hungerford, England.

theLONDONmethod co-owners Kelly Wackerman and Pam Kennedy pose for a photo with Esther Fairfax, daughter of Lotte Berk.

The ORIGINAL Technique
A Fairfax Family Recipe
By: The London Method (tLm)

Servings: Limited! Register by August 15, 2020, for Early Bird Pricing!

Ingredients:

Background and history of Lotte Berk, Esther Fairfax and the elements of the ORIGINAL class
Secrets of the ORIGINAL technique that you can share and pass on to others
Hours of hands-on, specific-technique instruction and lectures from tLm Founders, Kelly Wackerman and Pam Kennedy
Six, 2-3-hour Zoom lectures from Kelly and Pam over the course of three weekends
Comprehensive, downloadable tLm manual
Library of videos, featuring Kelly, Pam and Esther Fairfax demonstrating the ORIGINAL moves
10, tLm Live Zoom classes to attend and observe
Your own sparkling personality!
Fun, can-do-attitude!
NASM and AFAA CEUs

Directions:

Sign-up for Early Bird pricing and get $100 off the cost of tuition (which is normally $1,500 USD/or three-monthly payments of $500 USD) by August 15, 2020, to reserve your spot.
Attend the Live virtual sessions each Saturday and Sunday in September, starting September 5th and ending September 20th. Live training sessions are accessible from ANYWHERE in the world and are hosted during PST {Pacific Standard Time} from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. on Saturdays & 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. on Sundays.
Observe 10, tLm Live Zoom classes.
Once you’ve completed the live training and course requirements, record your own ORIGINAL class and submit it for Kelly and Pam’s approval. (You can even have Esther watch and approve your class and sign your certificate! Please note, it will cost an additional $300 for Esther’s approval.).

Yield:

After your video has been approved, you will receive your signed ORIGINAL technique certification, become an official instructor of the ORIGINAL technique, get your very own listing on the tLm site and, most importantly, become a cherished member of the beloved tLm family.

So, what are you waiting for? Sign-up to join the ORIGINAL family today!

Next up: My Journey to Getting Certified in the Original Lotte Berk Technique: How I Found My Way to the Barre – Part 1

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