FitnessWorkouts

12 buzzy NYC workout studio openings you need to know about

Spring 2017 is going to be a sweaty workout season in the Big Apple, with buzzy new fitness studios and gyms opening, from Bar Method and SoulCycle to F45.

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Photo: SweatShed by Crunch
Published Apr 11, 2017

Written by 

Lisa Elaine Held

Spring is—mostly—here! And like daffodils and crocuses, brand-new workout studios and gyms are popping up in neighborhoods across Manhattan and Brooklyn, while major boutique fitness players (ahem, yellow bikes) continue to add more New York City locations.

With everything from dance cardio and indoor cycling to boxing and HIIT starring on our hot list of the most exciting spring fitness debuts, it’s going to be a sweaty, endorphin-filled season.

Here are NYC’s 11 buzziest new fitness openings you need to know about, listed in alphabetical order.

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Photo: Bar Method Brooklyn

Bar Method Williamsburg

Opens: Late May/early June

This second Brooklyn Bar Method studio is opening in an old iron foundry (that also used to be home to Vice Media) and is from the same owners as the Cobble Hill location. The studio will have two barre rooms, a large lobby and retail area, and locker rooms with amenities, including three showers. Bar Method now has more than 100 studios nationwide. 97 N. 10th St., Brooklyn, williamsburg.barmethod.com

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Photo: DanceBody

DanceBody

Opens: Mid-summer

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Katia Pryce’s feel-good dance cardio method is already crazy popular for its serious choreography, but she’ll finally get a home of her own with the opening of her first studio. The massive, three-story space in Tribeca will have two studios for classes and a live-streaming setup for classes everywhere else. The brand is also debuting equipment (like wrist weights that never get soggy with sweat) and showers—which will make it way easier for New Yorkers to perfect your post-workout hair game. 51 Warren St., Tribeca, www.dancebody.com

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Photo: Instagram/@F45_training_flatiron

F45

Now open

F45 might’ve started Down Under, but the circuit-training concept’s got global appeal—thanks to 750 locations in a whopping 26 countries. The Flatiron District studio marks the franchise’s entrance onto New York City’s fitness scene, but F45 is already poised to take the city by storm (and by sweat), with more locations in the works and a new designation as the “official training partner” of the Brooklyn Nets. You know, NBD.

Class formats vary to focus on strength, cardio, or endurance with props like rowing machines, kettlebells, battle ropes, and medicine balls. During class you’ll see interval countdowns and exercise how-to’s on studio flat screens. The vibe feels reminiscent of high school sports—but with nicer locker rooms and showers. 123 West 20th St., Flatiron, www.F45training.com

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Photo: Flywheel Sports

Flywheel Williamsburg

Opens: April 18

Never one to coast, Flywheel Sports—which just celebrated its seventh anniversary last month—officially opens its first space in Brooklyn on Tuesday, April 18. The indoor cycling studio seems to constantly be looking for new ways to, ahem, re-invent the wheel, and its Williamsburg location is shaping up to be its most innovative one yet. Even ride-or-die devotees will want to consider crossing the East River for a class in order to check out all the new technology that you can’t find at any other Flywheel studios for the time being. Upgrades include a self-service check-in and performance-enhancing cleats that’ll make riders feel like they’re “floating” in the saddle. 173 N. 3rd St., Williamsburg, www.flywheelsports.com

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Photo: Instagram/@cycfitness

New York Sports Club and Cyc Astor Place

Opens: May

DavidBartonGym went bankrupt last December, leaving behind many a dark weight room. But New York Sports Club swooped in quickly to snatch up its iconic disco ball and DJ booth-outfitted Astor Place gym—which it will soon reopen as one of its new “Elite membership” clubs. NYSC says it’ll honor the space’s history by “retaining many of the club’s original finishes and signature touches, while bringing in a fresh new wave of equipment, facilities, amenities, and class offerings.” The opening will also mean the reopening of Cyc’s shuttered cycling studio, located on the club’s basement level. 4 Astor Place, East Village, www.newyorksportsclubs.com, www.cycfitness.com

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Photo: Poe Yoga

Poe Yoga

Opens: April

The hot yoga chainlet known for its obsession with cleanliness (both literal and in design) is headed to Brooklyn. This will be its first Big Apple location—housed inside the new 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge—and it’ll have FAR infrared heating panels, a long list of yoga styles on the schedule, and its signature brag-worthy feature: no sweaty-Bikram-carpet smell. 60 Furman St., Brooklyn Heights, poeyoga.com

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Photo: Jason Rappaport for Equinox

Project by Equinox

Now open

Equinox’s fitness “think tank” is the luxe gym’s first foray into the world of pay-per-class boutique fitness. The studio was envisioned as a creative space for forward-thinking trainers (think: Kirsty Godso, Traci Copeland, and Patrick McGrath) and their innovative classes, from HIIT and “Dance Vibes” to Pilates. Plan to go after, not before, work though, since the location is currently missing one of its signature product-stocked locker rooms. 267 Mulberry St., Nolita, www.projectbyequinox.com

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Photo: Instagram/rumble_boxing

Rumble Noho

Opens: Mid-June

Rumble hit the city’s workout scene in January with a serious one-two punch. Now, its second studio is set to open in Noho, a neighborhood that’s become a contender for Flatiron’s title as NYC’s fitness district given how much has opened there—other newcomers include Orangetheory Fitness and Flywheel. The new outpost of Rumble promises a few “unique twists,” like different colored gloves and updated artwork, but the overall concept of punches paired with strength training will be just as friendly to your endorphins. 700 Broadway, Noho, www.rumble-boxing.com

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Photo: SoulCycle

SoulCycle Park Slope

Opens: June

The cycling super-power will expand its Brooklyn pedalprint with a Park Slope location, adding to its studios in Williamsburg and Brooklyn Heights. It’s a win for the neighborhood, where boutique fitness options have been seriously lacking. (Alas, brownstones don’t make the best workout studios.) This location will be on a stretch of Flatbush Avenue that’s close to Grand Army Plaza and a new Union Market. And bonus: It will stock Brooklyn-made beauty products (artisanal, of course) in the locker room.  342 Flatbush Ave., Park Slope, www.soul-cycle.com

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Photo: SweatShed by Crunch

The SweatShed by Crunch

Now open

Crunch is trying its hand at a boutique fitness pay-per-class model with The SweatShed. It’s located inside the 59th Street gym, but its classes are open to non-members, and you get the benefits of the big gym locker room after. Classes are 50 minutes and start with a few rounds of HIIT followed by functional strength-training circuits. Think box jumps, rowing, TRX work, and compound movements with dumbbells. It’s an effective class model that’s executed really well—that is, you’ll leave feeling strong and sweaty-happy. That is if you can find it tucked behind the rows of cardio equipment below Second Avenue. 1109 Second Ave., Midtown East, www.sweatshed.com

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Photo: Switch Playground

Switch Playground Soho

Opens: May

Steve Uria’s South African crazy fitness disco party arrived in NYC just south of Union Square last fall, bringing fog machines and blacklights along with trampolines, stairmills, and basically every other workout tool you could imagine. The clubby (but seriously challenging) circuit training classes will now be offered in an even bigger studio in West Soho, too. Maybe wear your sports bra that glows in the dark? 1 Vandam St., Soho, switchplaygroundusa.com

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Photo: Zev Starr-Tambor

Tracy Anderson Midtown

Now open

The godmother of dance cardio’s new studio at the foot of the 59th Street Bridge in Midtown is in an old movie theater, so the first thing you’ll notice is the marquee outside listing the schedule. Inside, the main attractions are her signature sculpting workout and an organic cafe that’s a collab with her BFF and business partner Gwyneth Paltrow. And just FYI: there’s also a selfie station. 239 E. 59th Street, Midtown East, tracyanderson.com

Wait! Before you sign up for any of these new studios, you might want to perfect your push-up and your stretching skills first. 

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FitnessWorkouts

6 Lateral Exercises You Need to be Doing ASAP for Longevity

Time to train smarter.

Cropped image of woman doing lunge yoga pose
Stocksy / Photo Credit By Studio Firma
Published Feb 21, 2025

Written by 

Jaime Osnato

Want to stay strong, steady, and mobile for life? It’s time to stop thinking only about forward and backward movements and start training side to side. 

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Lateral exercises boost your ability to move and stabilize in the frontal plane—a genuine game-changer for longevity. Developing this kind of strength helps prevent falls, improves balance, and keeps your joints healthy as you age (more on this later). 

Whether you’re climbing stairs, getting in and out of a car, or just want to feel more confident in your body, adding lateral exercises to your routine can keep you moving with ease for years to come. Here’s your bulletproof guide.

How lateral exercises boost strength

Lateral strength is your ability to move side to side—think stepping sideways, lifting your arms, side-bending at the waist, or balancing on one leg, says certified strength coach Maggie Fazeli Fard. 

These movements, known as frontal-plane motions, rely on small but crucial muscles like the gluteus medius (outer hip), adductors (inner thighs), and quadratus lumborum (a lower-back muscle that helps lift your hips).

Neglecting these muscles can lead to poor balance, lower-back pain, and even knee issues, says Fard.

Why does lateral strength matter for longevity?

Incorporating more lateral exercises into your routine isn’t just about moving better—it’s about aging better. Stronger lateral muscles improve balance, coordination, and lower-body stability, helping you stay active and independent as you age, says Fard.

Want to carry groceries, chase grandkids, or swing a golf club with ease? Here’s why lateral strength matters:

  • Balance: Falls are the leading cause of injury and death in seniors, with 1 in 4 older adults taking a spill every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Strong lateral muscles help keep you steady.
  • Lower-body mobility: Weak lateral muscles lead to stiff joints and poor mobility. Since most workouts focus on forward-backward movement (like running and lunging), skipping lateral work can leave you prone to injuries, says Fard.
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6 Best Lateral Exercises

Lateral strength is essential for balance, mobility, and injury prevention. But Fard says it’s best to think of these lateral exercises as accessory moves—not the core of your routine. 

Sprinkle these moves into your workouts a few times a week (they’re great for warm-ups, pairing with bigger lifts, or conditioning workouts), and you’ll move stronger, smoother, and pain-free in no time.

1. Figure Eights

This low-impact move improves balance, coordination, and control—a perfect warm-up or daily brain-body booster, Fard says.

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    Stand on your right foot, lifting your left knee to hip height.
  2. 2.
    Extend your right arm forward.
  3. 3.
    Gently move your left foot and right hand in small figure eight patterns (think: a sideways “8”) concurrently. 
  4. 4.
    Do 20 reps, then switch sides.

2. Side-Traveling Ape

This primal “animal flow” exercise engages “your lateral system from head to toe,” says Fard. Do it in warm-ups or pair it with heavy lower-body lifts.

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees bent.
  2. 2.
    Keeping your back flat, lean forward to place your hands on the floor shoulder-width apart, with your left hand directly in front of your right foot.
  3. 3.
    Press your hands into the floor and hop your feet to the right, landing softly with feet hip-width apart.
  4. 4.
    Bring your hands to the starting position and repeat for six steps, then switch directions.
  5. 5.
    Perform three sets.

3. Side Plank March

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This move strengthens your hips, inner thighs, lower back, and shoulders while improving overall balance and full-body lateral stability, says Fard.

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    Lie on your left side with your feet right foot directly in front of your left and your left elbow under your left shoulder, forearm along the floor.
  2. 2.
    Press through your left forearm and lift your body so that you're balancing on your left forearm.
  3. 3.
    Keeping your hips lifted, bend your right knee toward your chest, then return to start. Bend your left knee toward your chest; return to start.
  4. 4.
    Continue “marching” for 8 total reps, then switch sides and repeat.

4. Banded Lateral Walks

This exercise strengthens the small stabilizing muscles around the hips (which are key for lateral strength), says Fard. Control is key here—no bouncing. 

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    Place a resistance band around your ankles.
  2. 2.
    Stand with your feet hip-width apart and clasp your hands in front of your chest.
  3. 3.
    Bend your knees slightly, and step to the left. 
  4. 4.
    Bring your right foot back to hip-width slowly, resisting the band's pull.
  5. 5.
    Repeat on the right side (returning to start); continue alternating for 10 reps per side.

5. Lateral Lunge

Stronger hips, knees, back? This move can help you achieve all three, targeting the outer hips and inner thighs for improved hip stability and lower-body control, says Fard. (Make it harder by holding a pair of dumbbells.) 

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    Stand with your feet at hip-width distance, toes facing forward. Clasp your hands in front of your chest. 
  2. 2.
    Shift your weight to the right and step to your right with your right foot.
  3. 3.
    With a flat back, bend your right knee and shift your hips back, keeping your left leg straight.
  4. 4.
    Keep your toes pointed forward on both feet.
  5. 5.
    Press into your right heel to return to standing.
  6. 6.
    Complete 8–10 reps, then switch sides and repeat. Do 2–3 total sets.

6. Lateral Step-up

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This lateral step-up variation strengthens the outer hips, inner thighs, and lower back, making it a great prehab move for injury prevention, says Fard.

How to do it:

  1. 1.
    You’ll need a bench or box to complete this exercise.
  2. 2.
    Stand next to your bench and place your left foot on the bench, so that your left knee is bent round 90 degrees.
  3. 3.
    Keeping your torso upright, press your weight into your left foot and push through your quads and glutes to straighten your left leg and stand on top of the bench. 
  4. 4.
    Reverse the move, lowering your right foot to the floor with control. Step your left foot down to the floor next to your right. 
  5. 5.
    Complete 8–10 reps, then switch sides and repeat. Do 2–3 total sets.

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Doing This Type of Breathing as Part of Your Pilates Practice Can Help Strengthen Your Pelvic Floor

Here's how hypopressive breathing, a deep breathing exercise, can help you with your Pilates practice and other forms of movement.

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Photo: Stocksy/Atolas
Published Jan 29, 2025

Written by 

Kelsey Kloss

If you’re obsessed with all things Pilates, you already know about the best athleisure, accessories, and self-care moments to incorporate into your practice. However, you may be less familiar with a type of breathwork that can improve your practice — and help you feel more grounded.

Experts in This Article

Anouska Shenn

certified Pilates instructor and founder of The Office Yoga Company

Blair Mauri

a pelvic floor therapist and owner of Blair Mauri Pelvic Health

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Enter hypopressive breathing, a deep breathing exercise that involves emptying your lungs completely. It’s similar to the uddiyana bandha in yoga (or an “abdominal lock”).

“It involves breathing in a way that creates a vacuum-like effect in your thoracic, abdominal, and pelvic cavities by decreasing the pressure, causing a lift and toning of the pelvic floor,” says Anouska Shenn, a certified Pilates instructor and founder of The Office Yoga Company.

But before we get into how to do it, let us clear up one thing: Don’t try any breath-holding exercises during your practice, since Pilates focuses on breathing through movements.

That said, practicing hypopressive breathing before, after, or separate from your Pilates workouts can help support your practice in a number of ways.

What is hypopressive breathing?

Hypopressive breathing is a technique that involves completely emptying your lungs and holding that breath to create a vacuum. It serves as a core exercise that can benefit your pelvic floor health.

Think of it this way: Your abdomen is a closed pressure system. That means that when the pressure changes—like with a cough, deep breath, or force like a lift—your abdominal structures need to be able to manage that pressure properly. That’s where pelvic floor exercises, like hypopressive breathing, come in.

“When we’re not managing that pressure properly, gravity takes it and sends it down into the pelvic floor,” says Blair Mauri, MS, OTR/L, a pelvic floor therapist and owner of Blair Mauri Pelvic Health. “Repeated downward pressure not only weakens the pelvic floor, but can also cause it to become extremely tense.”

That tension may lead to symptoms such as incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, painful sex, low back pain, or chronic constipation. “Hypopressive breathing is an excellent way to optimize pelvic floor function, as it provides a natural lift to these tissues without increasing the tension,” says Mauri.

Improving your pelvic floor function can relieve pelvic pain or low back pain, improve your oxygen and energy levels, promote digestion, and support your movement throughout your Pilates practice.

In fact, an eight-week program of hypopressive exercises improved pelvic floor muscle strength and urinary incontinence symptoms in women ages 18 to 60 with pelvic floor dysfunction and urinary incontinence symptoms, per a 2022 study1 in Neurourology and Urodynamics.

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Plus, hypopressive breathing can work your lungs in a way that benefits your Pilates practice. “Optimizing your rib mobility is also important for diaphragm function and getting the most out of your breaths,” adds Mauri.

How do you do it?

First, take a few deep breaths and see where you notice that pressure (in this case, your breath):

  • Is it focused in your chest or belly?
  • Are your ribs moving apart as you breathe in?

You should feel some mobility in all of these areas, not just one. “Rib mobility is especially important for proper hypopressive technique, so you may need to start here,” says Mauri. “Take some time to retrain your breathing so that everything expands on the inhale and comes back together on the exhale.”

Once you’ve honed in on that, you can move on to your hypopressive breathing exercises, following Mauri’s instructions:

  1. 1.
    Gently exhale as if you are fogging a window. Don’t send any pressure or force down into your lower belly or pelvic floor.
  2. 2.
    After you exhale, hold your nose and close your mouth and “pretend” to inhale without actually taking in any air. Think about widening those ribs, which will make your stomach begin to look concave.
  3. 3.
    Hold this for 3-5 seconds and then inhale.

How does it benefit your Pilates practice?

This breathing technique shines as an add-on to your Pilates practice. You don’t want to hold your breath during Pilates moves (after all, Pilates is all about coordinating movement with breath), but hypopressive breathing exercises can serve as bumpers for an effective workout.

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“Hypopressive breathing is designed to stand alone, but you can use it as part of your warm-up or to close your Pilates practice,” Shenn says.

Pelvic floor strengthening is already often a key element of Pilates. In fact, a 12-week Pilates program focused on pelvic floor strengthening significantly improved stress urinary incontinence symptoms in women ages 45 to 70, with the results lasting even six months after the program, per a small 2020 study2 in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

“Hypopressive breathing complements a Pilates routine, as it also retrains and strengthens the deep core along with your pelvic floor,” says Mauri.

A strong and coordinated deep core and pelvic floor gives you more stability as you move your body throughout your Pilates practice—and throughout the rest of your day.

“Our pelvic floor muscles work together with our deep core muscles to stabilize the spine—supporting our posture and providing a solid foundation for all of our movements,” says Shenn.

Tips to get started

As you integrate hypopressive breathing into your Pilates routine, Shenn recommends keeping these tips in mind:

  • Start with 1-3 sets of 3 repetitions, resting between sets.
  • If you’re a beginner, practice your breathing lying down or seated, before progressing to more challenging positions like side-lying or quadruped (a four-point kneeling position).
  • Do your hypopressive breathwork on an empty stomach (it’s recommended to not eat at least two hours beforehand, since this type of breathing involves suctioning the abdomen inward and upward).
  • Avoid wearing clothes that are too tight—including collars, waistbands, and belts—as they can impede your breath.

Very little research has been done on the effect of breathwork on babies in the womb, so avoid hypopressive breathing if you’re pregnant.

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One more thing to note: Certain preexisting health conditions like high blood pressure can also be contraindications for breathwork, so always check with your doctor first and consider working with a trained provider to make sure your form is correct.

  1. Molina-Torres G, Moreno-Muñoz M, Rebullido TR, Castellote-Caballero Y, Bergamin M, Gobbo S, Hita-Contreras F, Cruz-Diaz D. The effects of an 8-week hypopressive exercise training program on urinary incontinence and pelvic floor muscle activation: A randomized controlled trial. Neurourol Urodyn. 2023 Feb;42(2):500-509. doi: 10.1002/nau.25110. Epub 2022 Dec 8. PMID: 36482844; PMCID: PMC10107869.

    ↩︎

  2. Hein JT, Rieck TM, Dunfee HA, Johnson DP, Ferguson JA, Rhodes DJ. Effect of a 12-Week Pilates Pelvic Floor-Strengthening Program on Short-Term Measures of Stress Urinary Incontinence in Women: A Pilot Study. J Altern Complement Med. 2020 Feb;26(2):158-161. doi: 10.1089/acm.2019.0330. Epub 2020 Jan 9. PMID: 31916840; PMCID: PMC7044776.

    ↩︎

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