It's not known for being one of the hardest sessions and touted as 'the world's best workout' for nothing.
With a celebrity following that includes the likes of Ellie Goulding, Victoria and David Beckham, Naomi Campbell and Harry Styles, the ELLEfit team decided to go see what all the fuss was about. And boy, were we unprepared.
Let us take you through our 60minutes of pure sweat, blood and tears.
Thanks to PUMA for kitting us out with the perfect workout gear!
We ran/sprinted:
We started off with a bit of high intesity cardio on treadmills, which involved different speed intervals that increased/decreased as of when instructed by Jay. Difficulty also increases when they incoporate the speed with an incline so it feels like you're running uphill. Prepare to be seriously out of breath!
We lifted:
In between each of the three cardio intervals was strength training using free weights.
Each set consisted of three or four workouts in circuit, isolating different areas of the body: squats with arm raises, lunges with bicep curls, overhead extensions to work the triceps and a core workout (pictured), for example. With beginners' weights starting at 5kg, you may want to build your strength training first before commiting to a class at Barry's. We'd say it was (just about) manageable, but definitely challenging.
Sounds pretty simple, right? Wrong. In total you spend 30minutes on cardio and 30minutes on strength training. The good news is that when you're about to pass out on the treadmill, the floor and weight work allows you to recover, and vice-versa.
We were definitely pushed to our limits:
...But we survived and came out strong!
Here's some of the ELLE team's verdicts about our session:
Natasha Bird, Digital Content Editor
I'm a big fan of the mix of HIIT and weights and the darkened room does allow you to feel a bit more in the zone, or in your own world. I also thought that Jay was very encouraging instead of military about things, which I prefer.
Rachel MacBeth, Editor in Chief's PA
Barry's is intense. I personally found that it pushed me to my breaking point and beyond! The changing from cardio to weight training throughout the workout was something that definitely kept me on my toes but at the same time allowed me the opportunity to rest muscles and catch my breath in between sprints and floor work. Towards the end I was exhausted, but upon reflection I am surprised at how deep I dug to get the job done! The trainer was encouraging and wasn't as scary as I thought he would be.
Eva Pineda, Beauty & Bookings Assistant
It's definitely a class you walk away from feeling that you underesimated how hard you can really push yourself. It's intense but if you push through the pain, you'll be surprised how quickly you improve.
Roberta Hollis, Fashion Assistant
Barry's makes you do the things that you can do but you'll never push yourself to do. It's actually a great bonus that you work out in a dark room - there's no need to feel self conscious and if you really push yourself you'll come out swearing you can already feel your six-pack.
The ELLE FiT team are Forever Faster after attending an exclusive @PUMATraining class hosted by PUMA Trainer, Jay Copley. Shop the PUMA Women's Training collection at Very.co.uk #NoMatterWhat
