Standing Pilates With Ellen Barrett

New Video Workout: Standing Pilates

Build impeccable core strength, reinforce stellar posture, and breath your way to increased energy in this 15minute standing Pilates series. A “sticky” yoga mat is all that’s required. Barefoot is best. *The video will appear on Let’s Move! by 9am EST on 2/19/24.

Mood Boosting Cardio With Ellen Barrett

Boost Your Mood In 15

For my entire life – without realizing it until fairly recently – I have used “doses” of cardio as mood boosting medicine. When I was an 8 year old, I freakishly took my dog on walks into the woods when I could have stayed inside idly watching cartoons. (Where were the adults 😉?) In my early teens, I’d bike to my friends house even though I could have gotten a ride. In college, when feeling blue...

Self-Acceptance on the Ellen Barrett Blog

WOW is Me

It’s easy to get down about aging, especially as a woman. There is so much negative messaging about getting older and many of the celebrities of the moment convey serious fear over it. If we follow their lead, I think we are doomed. Work on yourself. Be the best you can be, but accept yourself right here and now too. If you can do that, you win. I love being the age I am. I’ve come...

Ellen Barrett Mindful Movement

Like a Well-Oiled Machine

Symmetry is honest to God so important yet often ignored. Alignment gets more play, and while alignment is just as crucial, function and flow need both. When bodies are misaligned and asymmetrical, they feel strain and unease, like a sliding door with a wonky track. If you’d like to move like a well-oiled machine, here are five things to do that facilitate the one-two punch of symmetry and alignment:   We all have some specific nuances within...

Express Barre With Ellen Barrett

“Express Barre” is Here

There’s a new workout and its goal is truly effective, feel-good fitness. Express Barre is mindful and graceful – just 20minutes delivers a head-to-toe Ballet conditioning workout. In honor of our newest workout, I thought it’d be nice to share the five signature components of a barre class:  So there you have it folks, Barre in a nutshell. Don’t worry – it’s not Ballet, but rather Ballet conditioning (big difference). Be sure to give Express Barre a try this week (today!), and experience these five...

Ellen Barrett

Heart of Gold

Make sure your heart is in front of the head. Try to lift the heart and drop the shoulders. Does your heart lead the way? It is rare for me to see an adult with their heart open and shining bright, outside of class. I’d say the #1 alignment issue is a closed off, tight, sunken heart. Thus, getting that heart of yours unsunk is a major and ongoing alignment goal.  The physical act of aligning the heart center...

ELLEN BARRETT Let's Move!

Feel Good Energy Generating Haven

Deep thought of the day: your workout should make you feel good about yourself. It should make you be proud of your efforts, grateful for your body, and inspired to live a high vibe life. End of story.  For most of us, our workout is optional. It’s a choice we make. In fact, we often jump though hoops – from hiring a babysitter and navigating traffic to buying the right gear and waking up an hour or two...

ELLEN BARRETT Mudras

Another Tool In Your Toolbox: Mudras

Mudra is a Sanskrit word meaning “gesture.” The most common mudras arehand gestures. Doing the peace sign is a mudra. Waving the hang loose symbol is a mudra. Giving the middle finger is a mudra. You and I have been “mudra-ing” our whole lives without even realizing it. Our hands are extensions of our hearts and a reflection of our mental state, so by placing our hands in intentional ways, we potentially direct attentions and energies in...

ELLEN BARRETT Blog

A Workout Ritual You Should Try

There’s a lot we can accomplish when we are sitting on our mats. We could do a pre-movement chat, have a meditation or intention setting session, or do a breathing exercise. I also think the act of sitting on our mat could be part of the warm-up, where we ground and settle our bodies, and get situated with where we are in space and time. Simple stuff, right? But these simply things aren’t benign. They can really...

Ellen Barrett Fresh Yoga

New Workout Alert: Fresh Yoga

This 30minute workout is a true yoga workout, where you’ll thoroughly engage all the muscles of the body, but do so in a calm, unhurried fashion. Most everybody I meet today, is seeking some sort of stress relief, and I think this workout really helps with that, but at the same time, your muscles will feel this. Remember, your workout doesn’t have to only be about physical health, it can also help with mental health. Lots and...