Healthy Balance NYC

I’ve been working with Nicole since I first arrived in NYC in 2010. For me, working outside is preferable to sweating it out in a gym. Riverside Park is a beautiful location and a refreshing change from being indoors. The vibe of the workout is not like the ‘army’ style bootcamp (yelling and militaristic), but more like an ever-​changing free-​form body workout, without many props. Nicole is a dancer and has great body awareness and brings this knowledge into her sessions. Her manner is friendly and supportive, as is the attitude of the other participants. In some sessions there is the option of using free weights in the workout, which I’m doing at the moment. Using weights has added another dimension to my exercise and after just a few weeks I can already feel the benefits. Her group classes are generally quite small, so you feel like you’re getting one on one attention rather than being lost in the crowd. I can heartily recommend Healthy Balance as a great way to get and keep fit, blow off some stressful NYC steam and chill out in one of New York’s hidden gems — Riverside Park.

I found Healthy Balance and Nicole about 2 ½ years ago through a Google search and the only reasons I’d stopped going here and there were just because of work schedules. She does offer a couple different times, but I most enjoy the early morning class. We were joking earlier about it changing my life, but it truthfully has. I was fortunate enough to gain a great instructor and a really good friend. But regardless of our friendship, she remains the ultimate professional. She pushes me as hard as anyone else.
There are so many reasons to love this workout. First, there’s the beauty of the park itself, but the rest is all about Nicole. She gets to know you and your strengths and weaknesses. She will work with you if you have an injury or condition so that you still push yourself without causing further damage. She’s also really great at keeping the workout fresh and different so that you don’t get bored or under-​challenged. She’s got a great energy and she will keep you motivated and interested without resorting to yelling at or berating you. There is good reason why some of the women have been steady members for 3+ years. She has my stamp of approval and I would recommend her to anyone.

I found this bootcamp when I was searching for an alternative to a gym. I already had a gym membership, but I just wasn’t motivated to go because I realized that I can’t force myself to be a gym rat. Treadmills, weight machines, even the group classes are just too robotic and «clinical» for me. I had had 2 knee surgeries and needed to keep the supporting muscles strong to prevent future issues. I used to swim regularly but hadn’t done anything for about 3 months.
When I started the bootcamp, Nicole (the owner and instructor) asked for two goals, so I aimed to do overall toning and to be able to do a pull-​up. I’m not a morning person, but I was shocked that I actually woke up at 6AM three days each week to go work out. Nicole is cheerful, funny, and lively, and I felt a wonderful camaraderie with the other ladies in the group. We started each workout with a short (~¼ mile with stairs) jog around the park, which was torture for me the first time. By the 2^nd week, the warmup jog became a treat — I zipped around the path and felt energized instead of winded. Nicole suggested that I buy 5 pound hand weights because she noticed my 3 pound weights had become too easy for me. We had varying fitness levels in the group, but Nicole had us doing moves that could be tailored to be challenging for everyone. I really loved that aspect of her workouts. As I got stronger, I was doing harder pushups, harder balancing exercises (one legged squats with your eyes closed!), more situps. I’m a bit of a masochist when it comes to working out; I feel rewarded when I’m sore the next day. I wanted a challenge, but nothing inhuman of course. But everyone is different! That’s what makes Nicole such a great instructor. She somehow manages to make sure the workouts weren’t too easy or too hard for ANYONE; we all felt the burn at every workout. We groaned through the hour, but left smiling and uplifted. AND I eventually managed to do a pull-​up on my husband’s pull-​up bar in the middle of my 2^nd month! I lost weight, earned a flat tummy, and definitely toned overall. Thank you SO MUCH Nicole!
The other unparalleled aspect of the Healthy Balance bootcamp is the setting — working out in Riverside Park, by the river, with the breeze cooling you down. Amazing. Totally worth every penny. Healthy Balance is way more personalized and congenial than any other bootcamp you’ll find. How can you ever work out in a gym again?