Fit-Pic: The Bar to Barre Transformation

How's this for a Saturday morning workout? Temperatures edging on the side of cold (but perfect for minimizing the sweat) plus the Park Hyatt's garden bar area turned fitness floor equals a rooftop workout. Add in Equinox 900 N. Michigan's group fitness manager Jenn Hogg and you get a dose of Barre Burn, a 45-minute sculpting workout that made our body parts burn with and without weights. Or maybe it was just my body, especially my legs, that screamed in pain? It started with the first round of Pilates hundreds and didn't ease up until our final push-up.

No complaints from this Barre Burner. I'm never up early on a Saturday morning (and the few times it does happen, I either crawl back in bed or I nap in the car), but this was exactly what I needed to start off the day. Who can complain when the sun is shining and the breakfast buffeters from The Peninsula across the street are totally watching in wonderment? Yeah, I worked out and you didn't--and my glutes are going to hurt tomorrow. As if they don't already.

Burn Baby Burn

Working out with these tools is tough stuff!

Summer's no longer the season. The calendar says it, the leaves show it and the weather feels it. It's OK to start sobbing, I nearly did--summer is my favorite time of year. And I'm far from ready to take all of my workouts indoors.

The swimming and biking may have already gone that route--I blame it on a cold Lake Michigan and lack of ride-able bike at the moment (it's getting some TLC at the bike shop)--but I'm not going to surrender everything. Apparently Equinox must have read my mind (and maybe yours too) because they're taking their Barre Burn class outside.

Sculpt your hips while enjoying spectacular views from the rooftop of the NoMI Garden on the seventh floor of the Park Hyatt on Saturday, September 29, at 8 a.m. They couldn't have selected a better Saturday--according to weather.com, the temperatures sound ideal for outdoor exercise. And there's no rain in the forecast unlike when I tried this class in July (and we were redirected indoors to Equinox).

A One-of-a-Kind Rooftop Workout

That move would hurt! Credit: quinn.anya

It’s hot. It’s humid. It’s drought season, and we’re practically begging for rain just to get some relief from the heat. But if I had to beg Mother Nature and the Rain Gods to hold off on letting the skies open up to downpour, drizzle or thunderstorm, I’d want it to happen on Tuesday, July 24, because I’m not about to miss a rooftop workout on account of bad weather. Even if I can’t do a plié to save my life.

Forget sweating on the gym floor or feeling like you’re stuck in the studio rooms for hours on end. Equinox is offering an outdoor workout that’ll wake you up and work you out. And it’s on the rooftop garden of one of Chicago’s most craveable restaurants and most spectacular hotels. The fitness club is taking its Barre Burn class outdoors at the NoMI Garden on the seventh floor of the Park Hyatt Hotel on Michigan Avenue on July 24, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Space is limited but if you RSVP to Sarah.Roberts@Equinox.com, you could still score a spot for this rooftop rendezvous for dancers, fitness fanatics and anyone looking for a good total body workout.