Originally from San Antonio, Catherine Roe says movement has been always been a part of her life. After studying ballet at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, she now instructs at both Studio of MoveMINT and Smart Barre Camp Bowie and Cityview, and she sees it as an honor to guide women through workouts every week. And don’t worry folks, the best thing in her fridge right now is Blue Bell ice cream. A true Texan at heart.
What is your WHY? Why do you teach?
Movement has been so impactful in my own life, so I’m pretty passionate about encouraging other people to move too. I have the honor/responsibility of wearing a microphone a few times a week with groups of women who pay me to guide them through a workout, and I don’t take it lightly. I’m essentially in the business of giving hour long motivational and informational speeches, so in a fitness world that can be sometimes hyper-focused on weight-loss goals, body shape ideals, and longer and harder workouts, I feel a particular responsibility to focus our clients on functional, efficient movement that’s good for every body, educating them about what they’re doing and how they’re doing it, and making each class a fun, community-building experience.
How did you first get into fitness?
I studied ballet at TCU, and movement has always been a part of my life. I discovered Smart Barre in San Antonio and went through teacher training in Fort Worth during my senior year of college. I thought it would just be a temporary part time job, but here I am five years later!
What’s the best health/wellness advice you’ve ever received that has actually helped?
I danced in college and professionally after I graduated. If I’m honest, my first couple of years in the group fitness world were about cross-training and conditioning my body to move and look a certain way. It wasn’t necessarily the stereotypical dancer mindset of maintaining a certain weight, I was just very results focused. When I stopped dancing full time, that mindset toward fitness lingered. As time in group fitness classes slowly replaced my time in ballet class, I heard more and more instructors encourage me to focus on how I felt after I worked out, not about how I looked or how “well” I completed the workout. It took a while, but I can now say that working out is now about keeping my body healthy and moving just because I love to! It’s changed my teaching as well – I really try to focus my language more on fitness for wellness instead of fitness for only weight loss or calorie burn.
What’s your favorite workout to do when you’re not teaching?
Ironically, you can still find me at Smart Barre! I also really love yoga and Pilates reformer classes. In Fort Worth, I’ll visit CorePower Yoga and in Dallas, Uptown Yoga, The Ballet Burn, and Session Pilates are a few of my favorites.
What’s the last song you listened to on Spotify (or iTunes, Pandora, etc.)?
This one’s kind of a trick question. Don’t Phunk with my Heart by The Black Eyed Peas last played while planning a playlist (I’m on a throwback kick), but for non-teaching purposes, the last song played by choice was Millionaire by Chris Stapleton. I’m a big country music fan.
Best thing in your fridge right now?
Blue Bell Cookie Two Step ice cream
Go-to pre or post-workout snack?
I normally workout in the evenings, so I’ll just usually eat something small pre-workout and then plan to eat dinner afterward.
Go-to morning beverage(s)?
Admittedly, I’m not a morning person, so if I can I’ll pre-make a smoothie for the next morning so I can grab it and go. If not, I’ll have coffee from my trusty Keurig.
Favorite splurge meal/dessert?
I’m from San Antonio and I love anywhere with good tacos and margaritas. I’m known to order a marg and a breakfast taco – it’s the best combo!
Where do you get your health/wellness information? (blog, website, podcast, etc.)
As far as websites, Amanda Wilson (A Wilson Wellness) and The Defined Dish are two that come to mind. I also have quite a few friends in the health and fitness industry across the country, so if they make a recommendation, I’ll take their word for it!
If this wasn’t your job, what would be your job?
I teach fitness part-time, so my day job as Community Enrichment Coordinator at Texas Ballet Theater is exactly what I’d be doing! TBT is the professional ballet company for the DFW area – we perform in Fort Worth and Dallas and have schools in both cities as well. I coordinate our CityDance Outreach Program that brings dance into elementary schools, student performances, and partnerships with other DFW arts and service organizations. We office in the same building that the dancers rehearse in, so I’m surrounded by dance every day! It’s quite literally the best job ever.
Favorite way to unwind after a long day/week?
I love trying restaurants that I’ve never been to here in Fort Worth. A new Mexican place called Bartaco just opened here and it gets a 10/10 rating from me!