Studio Name: Inspire Yoga Studio
Location: Jerusalem, Israel
Cost per single class: 55nis or about $15 USD.
About the Studio
Inspire Yoga Studios offers classes in yoga, Pilates, aerial and barre but most of the classes are yoga and Pilates. In fact, there is only one barre class offered on Wednesday morning and it is a barre fusion class for females only. However, it is the only studio currently in Jerusalem that I could find that had a barre class. At Inspire Yoga Studio classes are offered in Hebrew and English. Luckily the Barre Fusion class is in English.
As I was on a vacation in Israel I visited this studio to take a break, focus on my body, and relieve some vacation stress. It was the perfect place. I actually attended both the yoga and Barre Fusion class. The studio has a strong community feel and I felt calm and welcome.
The Studio is owned by Katie-Elisheva, a dancer who studied yoga and Pilates, grew up in London and moved to Israel in 2012. In addition to the many classes the studio offers, they also have Pilates and yoga teacher training. The instructors have an impressive resume. Between them, they have studied movement, yoga, dance, meditation, among other forms of fitness from all over the world.
First Impressions
The studio is in a residential neighbourhood on the third floor of what seems to be an apartment building. There were no clear markers directing me where to go, but luckily, I saw a person in leggings on the sidewalk who was going to the class so they directed me to the studio. I am glad I saw someone! The studio is one room, medium size, but comes with character and a cat.
About the Workout
The Barre Fusion class I attended was taught by Chagit Lanton. We were asked to put a mat on the floor and to get a ball, small hand weights, and a resistance band. The class started on the mat. We worked through some yoga poses and intense abdominal exercises such as roll-ups, crunch pulses, and exercises with the ball. We also did some arm exercises with the weights that were not very intense. Since I had been touring Israel the past 10 days, it was nice to ease into the exercises. Chagit focused on the breath with movement and I embraced the opportunity to release tension. However, if you’re looking for a full intense barre class, this will probably not be the best choice.
We did move to the barre for the second part of the class. The studio has a portable barre which we put in the middle of the space. At the barre, we did typical barre gluteus, abductor, and adductor exercises. I felt the barre burn as the exercises were challenging. We even did some new ones I had never seen in a barre class before! We ended class by doing some resistance band arms in a wide second position at the barre.
Chagit gave knowledgeable body corrections and had a strong teacher personality that came across right from the beginning. She gave me a great anatomical correction that I am still thinking of when I go to class elsewhere. The music complimented the class well and I could tell Chagit had put some thought into her playlist.
Overall Impressions
The studio has a nice vibe and was such a respite for me while travelling. I do wish that it offered more barre classes though. It was really hard for me to make the Wednesday morning class as I had to catch my plane from Tel Aviv that evening. If you are looking for a positive place to breathe and move in Israel, this is your place!
About the Author
Joanna Stone (aka Jo) is a barre and yoga instructor, dancer, personal trainer, and avid traveller. Joanna had been teaching barre for over five years when she created Barre Vida because she wanted to create a new barre method and barre instructor certification course open to all individuals. Barre Vida focuses on the alignment principles in the barre workout, injury prevention, and strength. You can catch Joanna biking from class to class all over New York City. She really is a somatic nerd!
