Barry’s Bootcamp – San Francisco, CA

What: Barry’s Bootcamp

Where: San Francisco, CA – SOMA

Instructor: Paul W.

When: Mon – Fri : 5:30am – 9:30pm / Sat : 6:30am – 2:30pm / Sun : 7:45am – 6:00pm

Why: Barry’s Bootcamp has pioneered its way through the group fitness scene. From opening the very first studio in 1998 out of West Hollywood, to now having over 40k members including celebrities like Ellie Goulding, David Beckham, and Harry Styles all over the world.

The class combines both cardio and strength training to give you the most effective results in the shortest amount of time. Classes are designed to up your cardio game and elevate your heart-rate by incorporating intervals, hill climbs, and endurance runs! When you couple cardio with strength, there is no better equation that equals results.

On the benches, you go through a series of exercises that focus on specific muscle groups while using free-hand weights, bands, or even your own body weight.

The key to these classes is the quick transitions and keeping your body MOVING! When you go to the gym, you typically either do some form of cardio OR strength but never both. Even if you do, it’s not nearly as thrilling or adrenaline pumping as a Barry’s class. The instructors guide you through the workout, curate amazing pump up playlists, and get you HYPED!

The class: This was my first time to ever take a Barry’s Bootcamp class and let me tell you, I was so eager to get in there! You either start on a treadmill or a bench (depending on how full the class is) and that number is yours for the rest of class. It makes transitions smooth and helps you keep track of your miles. My favorite part of the workout was probably how well thought out both the treadmill and bench workouts were. Being in the fitness scene for a while and a trainer myself, I can get real picky about class formats. Paul, the trainer, was great at cuing you into each different speed of running and made you feel confident to take that next step (literally). On the floor, the moves flowed together and never once was I lost or felt like I didn’t know what was going on.

The Fuel Bar: In every studio, Barry’s has what they call a “Fuel Bar” or smoothie bar, where you can place an order before your class and afterwards, have one ready for you to grab-and-go! Now, you may be thinking that’s silly when I can go grab a quick bite anywhere, but let me tell you, this was probably one of the best smoothies I’ve had to date. I’m not kidding. Plus they give you the option to customize by adding in shots for energy, focus, slim down, etc. as well as vegan and non-vegan options of protein.

If you go, you absolutely, 100% MUST get a smoothie of theirs otherwise you’ll regret it and feel left out when the other people in class all grab theirs from the counter. Avoid FOMO and get the gosh darn smoothie!

Recap: Overall, I was a huge fan of the workout and the studio. The employee’s were all extremely nice (even though I was that girl running in late) and made me feel at ease. Paul was such a fun instructor to take from and extremely personable that I would recommend him to anyone in the San Francisco area!

All San Francisco Locations: Marina, SoMa, FiDi

Make sure to follow me on Instagram @spinsyddy and keep up with all the behind the fit scenes on my Instagram stories!

PS. If you’re in Austin, TX and are wanting a workout similar format to Barry’s, come try out Crush Fitness! I’m a trainer there and want to see you in class! See my review of Crush Fitness here.