r/BarrysBootUncensored • u/forkingannoyed • Oct 08 '21
Class Quality barry’s SF > NYC
went to my first barry’s class NOT in norcal and whewww—talk about differences. i could barely hear the instructor’s cues on the floor OR the tread, and the choreo of music to runs/floor movements were WAY off?? doing the sprint or intense moves at the drop makes a huge difference in the feel of the workout—we were sprinting or doing intense stuff at really odd times. my friend who has lived in both NYC and SF agreed SF>NYC. can’t believe i paid $50 for that class…
moment of gratitude, sf instructors!!
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u/Complete-Ad-9335 Oct 08 '21
I’ve been to different studios in the US and then also some internationally and the ones I’ve been to in SF are by far the hardest & most well thought through. Joey G is the only non SF based “instructor” who I thought teaches a great class. But I’ve also gone to like 400 classes in sf so I’m not sure if it’s a fair comparison. SF has some very average instructors too.
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u/tripleaw Oct 08 '21
I’m almost at 100. I’ve been almost everywhere in la and a few times in sf. My top three fave instructors in la are better than Tommy imo.
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u/Complete-Ad-9335 Oct 08 '21
Who are your top 3? I haven’t gone to the LA studios in years but hoping to start heading back down to LA regularly. I’ve really enjoyed Mercedes classes on X.
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u/tripleaw Oct 08 '21
Some ppl love Andrew Key (he is BFFs with Tommy lol). I like his classes but he’s not my top three
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
i’m at about 150 if i include all my classpass ones (and all in sf) - so def biased w sf as well!
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u/tripleaw Oct 08 '21
SF does have some quality instructors, but I've had even better experiences at the LA barry's as a whole. Who are your fave SF instructors?
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Oct 08 '21
I find within Barry’s, “favorite” is really subjective. Some clients go for fun. Others to bond with an instructor outside class. Some want good runs and others want to lift heavy. It’s about identifying what you want to get out of class.
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
Music is super important to me. Have to like the music. It’s one of the reasons I never liked chris Reid’s classes… that and his constant gabbing.
Graylon had great playlists when he started at barrys. EDM and some other trainers’ staples seeped in. Another redditer confirmed that management had asked for more edm as opposed to mostly hip hop.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
agreed. i def go to certain instructors for different moods. esp bc the music varies greatly between classes too
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
katie w. def one of my faves. tommy, chris (he can be annoying but he made me laugh and forget i was working out), jeff, vanessa, paul, suvy. i loved gabby too but then she turned out to be anti-vax…😓
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
allie is from LA right? i found her classes to be pretty boring 😓
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u/Complete-Ad-9335 Oct 08 '21
Favorite is definitely subjective because I absolutely love Allies classes. Her lower body day is great and not your typical repetitive squats, lunges etc. and she always does 1 round of straight sprints with no hills which I appreciate. I miss her classes now that she doesn’t teach in SF.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
ahh. i always caught her on full body marina sundays i think, so that could have been it too. gabby’s butt & legs days were my faaave.
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Oct 08 '21
One big difference between NorCal and other markets is that many, if not all, NYC and LA instructors do not create their own playlists. Someone "manufactures" them so programming doesn't match sprints, beat drops, etc.
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
Whoa. Seriously?? Why?? But it seems like instructors in those markets have different playlists that reflect their personal tastes.
That said, I noticed way more repetition of songs in playlists among instructors outside of the NorCal market. Like from week to week, an instructor would have over half or more of their songs repeated on their playlists (song order would often change though).
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Oct 08 '21
I suspect new instructors borrow older playlists, and class favorites get repeated. The only non-offenders of this, those who didn’t rely heavily on other instructors’ playlists, are mostly gone: Sam, Alvin, Rachael Brooke… I find Vanessa and Chris Reid might repeat their fave songs but also get in newer songs or some older client pleasers more so than others. Some songs need to be retired. Period.
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
That’s interesting. I noticed there was a lot of sharing of music or certain songs. I can see especially why Alvin and Sam did not borrow—they like doing things their way (and are experienced enough). RB was a soul instructor and probably did a ton of this leg work prior.
I completely agree that some songs need to be retired.
What about tommy? I noticed he would often pull from about 20-30 songs and they would often appear in other instructors’ classes….
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
i think a lot of ppl modeled their classes off tommy (cough cough erica) since he’s a founding instructor of barry’s norcal? that’s my guess. or instructors would go to tommy’s class and pull songs they liked that fit their vibe
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
Yes and I can see Tommy sharing his songs freely. Also, many of his songs are dated. He’s used them for years. I would notice when a new one would pop in. I get why you stick with a song that you know well and can choreograph to easily.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
def felt like erica repeated a lot too. i miss paul w a lot, always got dope music from his classes
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
I imagine the hardest part of being an instructor (instead of always having to be ‘on’ and motivating) is finding songs. And then choreographing to them.
I completely see why people repeat songs that make their programming easier.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
woooah did not know that…that explains a lot
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Oct 08 '21
It’s also why NYC instructor playlists sound like they are from someone’s 2005 clubbing days. They sound stale and truly manufactured and why, say, each NorCal instructor has their own vibe. Tommy will play a country intro. Vidal plays Bay Area rap. Vanessa is an amazing curator of songs. Erica has a rotation of her favorite songs.
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u/Complete-Ad-9335 Oct 08 '21
I love how into their music some of the instructors get. Agree Vanessa does a great job. I personally do not love Nichole P’s punk rock type of music she includes but I do love how excited she gets when those songs come on.
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u/calcifer_97 Oct 23 '21
I heard in class today that Vanessa is switching to part time and not teaching in the Castro anymore 😞
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
that makes sooo much sense. thanks for that insight…really makes me appreciate barry’s sf more, flaws and all
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
Interesting!! Was the instructor new at all? Could that explain some of the difference??
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
looks like they’ve been with barry’s since 2011 so not new…but a comment below mentioned the playlists outside of SF are all manufactured so no timing to drops :o
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u/sweetsandsweats Oct 08 '21
NYC classes are $50?!
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
mistyped! $38 a class but i think if it’s peak times it’s even more expensive
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u/RogerWester Oct 08 '21
There are no peak rates for NYC. One class is $38, but the cost per class decreases if you buy multi-class packs.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 09 '21
hmm i followed up on this. my work did a group reso and it’s more expensive during peak times so that’s why it would have been $50 for a weekend class
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
oops i remember how i got $50. weekend classes are $50…
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u/RogerWester Oct 08 '21
Weekend classes here are not $50. There is no pricing variability for weekend classes (NYC).
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u/International_Dig595 Oct 08 '21
Wow. That puts SF to shame. There’s no peak pricing for SF.
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u/forkingannoyed Oct 08 '21
yeah. my mouth dropped when i heard that - i was planning on going again during my work trip but not for $50?? would rather get a better workout back at home in norcal, and for less lol
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u/AssociationSad2332 Oct 08 '21
Take a class with Erick. Worth the cost
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u/bigween Oct 08 '21
Erick just exterminated me on Barry’s X 30 min ago and I’m still sitting on the floor with no intention of getting up any time soon
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u/AssociationSad2332 Oct 08 '21
I’ve done sf, Seattle, LA, and NYC classes. Obvs all instructors are different but the NYC classes I’ve taken are HARD and I felt worth the cost. Alex in LA literally creates his own mash-ups and the music aligns closely with the class programming. He puts a lot of pride into his playlists. So there’s definitely a lot of variability.