A pioneer in bringing the Lagree Method to the Valley, Rebecca Costa is the owner of BURN Total Body Conditioning, one of Phoenix’s most sought-after fitness destinations. The studio’s signature 45-minute, high-intensity, low-impact classes challenge both body and mind while inspiring a strong sense of community. With studios in Old Town and Midtown—and a new South Tempe location on the horizon—Costa shares what makes the Lagree experience so addictive and why BURN is more than just a workout.
AZF: What inspired you to open BURN and bring the Lagree method to Phoenix?
RC: BURN was founded by my husband, Michael, and me nine years ago, and at the time, the Lagree Method wasn’t quite as explosive as it has become in the last decade. Bringing the Lagree Method to Old Town was a result of a perfect storm. Soon after, Midtown Phoenix followed.
We were living in San Francisco and navigating a crossroads searching for a new venture. Simultaneously, I was teaching yoga and found myself looking for a more intense, effective strength training routine to complement my yoga practice. Lagree came into the mix and I immediately realized its potential: efficient, less time-consuming, but high-intensity, focused. The method demands intense mind-body focus and delivers a full-body engagement. We wanted to introduce a life-changing workout to a new market and build a solid, loyal community around a fitness method I was truly passionate about.
AZF: For someone new to Lagree, how would you describe a BURN workout and what makes it unique?
RC: A BURN class is a 45-minute, full-body workout performed on a spring-based machine called the Megaformer. It is designed to be high-intensity but low-impact. Think of it as combining the core strengthening of Pilates, the muscle fatigue of traditional strength training and the elevated heart rate of cardio—all in one session.
Its uniqueness is the balance of incredible strength and low impact on the joints. The use of variable spring resistance ensures there is no pounding or pressure on your joints (making it safe), yet the slow pace and maintaining constant tension in the body through precise, slow and controlled movements make the workout incredibly challenging.
You hear about the Lagree shakes all the time. That’s the result of keeping your muscles in a state of constant engagement. This sustained, low-impact tension fully fatigues your slow-twitch muscle fibers—the ones responsible for endurance and tone. The shaking is your muscle fibers rapidly firing in protest because they have been pushed to their limit (muscle failure).
The shake is confirmation that you have hit your threshold of intensity, which creates physical change and rapid results. At BURN, we don’t fear the shake—we chase it!
AZF: What sets BURN apart from other fitness studios in the Valley?
RC: It’s pretty simple—product, people and culture. The Lagree Method is truly a transformative workout for both mind and body. Our classes are impactful and effective. My biggest focus with instructors is to ensure expert delivery of consistent, high-quality and challenging experiences every single time. We’re all consistent in delivering the same caliber of intense classes, but with our own flair and style. We support and rely on each other, whether it’s to vent, to ask for help or just to gab, and our clients often comment that it shows how congruous we all are. Our community blooms from accountability, connection and loyalty. We get to know clients and cultivate a welcoming, non-judgmental atmosphere where the focus is solely on personal growth and overcoming the challenge of the workout. This combination of intense, results-driven training and strong personal support is what creates our loyal community.
AZF: How do you help first-timers feel confident stepping onto the Megaformer?
RC: We do what we can to make newbies feel successful on their first visit. We require early arrival so we have time to give them a thorough introduction to the Megaformer and to ease any intimidation, which is common. I mean, it looks like a torture device. We explain that “the shake” is the goal (a sign of success, not weakness), so they know exactly what to expect.
During class, instructors offer constant, specific, encouraging cues and emphasize form over speed. We’ll always offer modifications for new clients and, with their consent, hands-on adjustments to give a little extra help when needed. We do want them to start to find that mind-body connection, though, so we try not to get in their space unless it looks like they need us.
AZF: Beyond physical results, what kind of benefits do your clients experience from BURN classes?
RC: This is fundamentally a mental endurance workout that builds mental strength and mind-body mastery. It’s forced mindfulness because you are forced to focus on your form, your breath and the slow tempo, so you can’t let your mind wander, and that serves as a mental break from daily stressors. That mental resilience required to push past the discomfort of the “burn” in a challenging class shows you that you can do hard things and conquer them. You feel better. You sleep better. Your posture and confidence improve.
AZF: BURN is expanding into South Tempe soon. What excites you most about this new location and when is it set to open?
RC: In short, it’s a prime high-demand residential area with a gap in what we offer at BURN. We have the opportunity to quickly cultivate our signature loyal and supportive BURN community and create a new hub for fitness and connection, also to the surrounding areas like Chandler, Mesa and Ahwatukee. We’ll be in a brand new modern build and hopefully should open in Spring 2026.
AZF: Beyond the workout, community is central to BURN’s culture. How has that community grown and shaped the studio?
RC: The community at BURN is a powerful feedback loop. As we have developed and built new relationships, often those connections have brought to life something that resonates with us.
We support each other through collabs or pop ups, or fundraisers. For example, we have supported several women-owned (many clients) small businesses by either selling their products in the studio or having them host a pop up. Philanthropy is also an important quality of our mission. One of BURN’s instructors is a breast cancer survivor and after being involved in her journey, we decided to continue to support a local organization, Check For A Lump, to keep pushing awareness for something that has invariably affected all of us in one degree or another. On a lighter note, we have another fundraiser in the Spring for mama dogs and puppies, because, well, we all love them. That is always a cherished and fun day where Almost There Rescue brings puppies to the studio to hang out for a morning of classes.
Clients’ shared experience builds personal bonds with each other and with us, those bonds inspire collective action (like our annual fundraisers), and the collective action reinforces the studio’s core values of resilience, care and unity.
AZF: Do you have a favorite (or most challenging) move on the Megaformer?
RC: I LOVE a good skater with tons a variations. That booty burn is like no other. It’s fighting gravity and the resistance of the springs to stabilize your entire body.
AZF: Feel free to add anything else you’d like to share!
RC: After nearly a decade in the fitness space of Pilates-inspired workouts, we’re still actively learning and growing. This experience means the Lagree Method paved the way, and it isn’t stagnant; it’s proven, refined and constantly innovated by our instructors to deliver the most effective workout possible on the Megaformer.
Learn more at burntbc.com and follow along on Instagram @burnlagreeaz.
Photos courtesy BURN Total Body Conditioning—A Lagree Studio
