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the other,” but you catch on fairly quickly
after the first few moves, and all it takes
is a glance at the person next to you or
some attention from the instructor to get
yourself into the right place.
Lagree is a high-intensity, low-impact
workout created by former bodybuilder
Sebastien Lagree. In his youth, Lagree
spent 40 hours a week exercising using
a variety of different workouts, from
weightlifting to aerobics to swimming.
And, besides just ruining his back and not
getting enough nutrients, he spent basically
all his time in the gym. That’s when
he invented the Megaformer, a “springbased
resistance trainer,” and the Lagree
Method.
The Lagree Method uses the Megaformer
to “effectively combine resistance,
endurance, core and cardio training to
safely stimulate strength, flexibility and
balance.” Squats, lunges, planks and
pushups get a whole new life on the
Megaformer and impact your muscles in
different ways, allowing you to get the
same workout as five different classes (or
more) in one.
Laurie Benenati brought this method to
Astoria when she opened her licensed Lagree
fitness studio, Lagree NY, in the neighborhood
in October 2017. Benenati had
been an active person her whole life, but
formally worked in accounting after graduating
from college. After a life-changing trip
to Bali when she realized she just “couldn’t
do it anymore,” she pursued her true passion
of fitness full time.
She took Lagree classes with her friend
in California, and saw the true difference
it made in her body — improving her core,
FIT
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