Do you think Yoga is NOT for you?

IMG_6488So did I.    I thought yoga was people sitting still with their eyes shut and chanting or something. Are you nervous about trying a Yoga class?   I certainly was.   I even wrote a blog about my first yoga class.    I’m going thru recovery now after a medical procedure, but I will definitely be attending more yoga classes when I have the doctor clearance to do so.   Why?   I think it helps with my Pilates practice (see Carey’s blog about this) and with the things that are happening in my life right now, I need all the mindful movement I can get!    I did some research about starting a yoga practice, and I thought maybe it would help others who might share the stereotypes I had.  I found these three tips written by Brooke on YogaTravelTree.com, and I wish someone had told me these before my first yoga class!

  • Be gentle with yourself. Like anything new, you’re not likely to be a master the first several times you attempt a posture or a class. Yoga is not a one-time experience; it’s a path, a journey. You’ll grow and improve as you keep going back for more.
  • Yoga is not a competition. Do not compare yourself to other people in the room. That girl who can put her foot behind her head while balancing her entire body on her forearms is not your competition. You have no idea if she was a gymnast back in the day, if she’s been practicing for 25 years, and/or just blessed with insanely flexible hips. You only need to focus on where you are on your mat in that moment.
  • Yoga is an individual experience. While a class might have 10 people in it all breathing in unison, it’s still just you and your mat. It’s probably the one hour where it’s not only acceptable, but EXPECTED, that you be completely focused on yourself. Indulge in that.

IMG_6498Don’t be like me.   I had judged the benefits of yoga based on one class that I had taken 10 years ago. I have no idea if I went into that class open to learning yoga or not.   I know, I had a completely different experience when I tried a yoga class at Rivercity Pilates.   Get out there and give yoga a try!

Meet the Instructor: Shaina

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Happy Monday!     It’s Meet the Instructor Monday, and today we’d like to introduce you to Shaina, who recently moved to the corridor.

10922646_3212700633473_6873223768443032675_nWe heard you are moving from New York City to Iowa — can you tell us a little bit about why you are moving?  Moving from Queens, New York to North Liberty, Iowa.   BIG CHANGE.    Making the move to be with my boyfriend who I met through mutual friends who also live in North Liberty.

How long have you been practicing Pilates?  I am relatively new to Pilates.   I took my very first class in June 2013 and fell in love immediately.   I practiced for about a year before starting my certification program.

What made you decide to be a Pilates Instructor?  I became a Pilates instructor for a number of reasons.

  • It helped me SO much with my own spinal injuries that I wanted to be able to pass that on and help others.
  • I was an athlete all my life and played volleyball in college so exercise was always part of my day to day life.   I struggled finding a form of exercise that I enjoyed and that was safe for my spinal injuries in my adult life and Pilates was definitely the answer.
  • It seemed like the perfect time in my life to start something new and it gave me a sense of freedom that I could go anywhere in the world and be able to teach.
  • The extra cash doesn’t hurt!  :)

What was your favorite part about living in New York City?   It would be impossible to pick just one thing.    First of all I have lots of family in NY so it has been reallly nice having everyone so close.   The city itself provides an energy that is indescribable.   Not to mention you can do, see, and order anything you want at any time you want.   It truly is the city that never sleeps and I feel very lucky and proud to have lived there and made it my own for 5 years.

Favorite Food?     Like a true New Yorker:   Pizza and Bagels.   I’m a sucker for a good carb!

shainapuppyHobbies?  I work in digital marketing so Pilates is my hobby!  Outside of the office or studio you can find me hanging out with family and friends, playing with my new puppy Samantha, or binge watching tv shows!

Hometown?   I moved around my whole life so I don’t really have a “hometown”.    I have lived in Michigan, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Ohio, Vancouver, Phoenix, Illinois, Wisconsin, New York and now Iowa in my short 27 years!

Twitter Handle?    Not very active on Twitter but you can follow me on Instagram @shaybo6.

Favorite Pilates Exercise?   Probably a tie between Short Spine and Semi-Circle

Do you have a favorite Pilates teaching moment?     Not too long ago I had a woman come in for her first sessions at my NYC studio.   She had done Pilates years ago and she was trying to get herself back into shape.    I could tell she was uncomfortable with herself and a little overwhelmed by everything.   We took the session slow and when we started doing planks on the Reformer she was very tense and was using her traps to do the work rather than her lats and serratus muscles. We stuck with the exercise and on the last rep she finally made that lat/palm connection and her whole face lit up!   She felt exactly what I was saying and she was so excited and proud of herself.   After that she was so much more relaxed and confident.   The rest of our session was fun, upbeat and productive.   Every time I see a client have an ‘ah-ha’ moment it motivavtes and inspires me to continue teaching and pushing my students!

You’ll probably suck at Pilates at first!

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I am often amazed at how many clients come into a session and expect to be able to do everything we teach them perfectly on the first try and then beat themselves up when they can’t do it!  It doesn’t matter if you danced for 20 years, are an elite athlete, run marathons, lift weights, did Yoga or if you are in the best shape of your life!  If you are brand new to Pilates you are brand new to Pilates and it will take some time to learn!

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I often hear a client say, but you just did that exercise perfectly.  My response is usually something like:  Let me tell you how many times over the last 15 years I have done that exercise…(hundreds…even thousands)  and I’m still working on it too!

The only way to learn something is to practice it!  That’s why it’s called a Pilates practice.  Pilates is not a quick fix exercise program.  Pilates is a method and system of exercises designed to teach you how to move better (more efficiently) by balancing out your body’s strengths and weaknesses.  It’s designed to become part of your life and something you continue to work on every time you get on your mat.

If you are contemplating starting a Pilates practice or may be you’ve just recently started please know that we don’t expect you do get everything perfect on your first try (or even your 50th).  As instructors we love helping you learn and we love to be part of the process!

It’s OK to suck at Pilates when you start!!  Just think of the progress you’ll make every time you do it!

We’ll be super supportive and we’ll give you lots of chances to try things out in a safe, non-intimidating atmosphere.  Click here to learn about scheduling a complimentary Pilates session at Rivercity Pilates.

I have to do a performance test??

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As part of our instructor training programs participants complete a performance test.  I always tell everyone there is no failing this test!  The purpose of this test is that you can do the Pilates work in your body.  I don’t care if it’s not perfect or the most super advanced version – I want to know that you know your body and have an established practice that you can adjust to your body!  After the test(which is really just you practicing Pilates) we may talk about why you did an exercise a certain way or how what you did was different from the traditional exercise as Joseph Pilates taught it.

Like all the tests in our program this test is designed to be a learning experience.  It is designed to encourage you to keep up with your own personal practice so you can continue learning and growing and progressing!!

[tweetthis remove_hidden_hashtags=”true”]Does a #test to become a #Pilates #Instructor Scare You? It Shouldn’t! [/tweetthis]

The video above highlights Cassie Cumings-Peterson doing her full Pilates Mat work as she completed our comprehensive training program.  After Cassie completed our comprehensive program she went on to take the Pilates Method Alliance Certifying test to become a certified Pilates instructor!

You can find Cassie at Northwoods Pilates and Wellness in Ankeny, Iowa sharing her love of Pilates!!

What’s in a Name?

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Pay attention to the names of those exercises when you’re in a Pilates class at the studio.   Why?   It may give you a clue to whether you’re doing the exercise correctly.

Case in point.   Me.

When I began doing Pilates, I hadn’t worked out in 2 years.    I was out of shape, and I had aches and pains most everywhere.    I started Pilates because it was low impact, and because when I took equipment classes, the equipment helped me with movements that were really hard for me during mat class.   If you’ve tried to do crunches and experienced back & neck pain — then I know you know what I mean.    16 months later, I am still learning exercises.   Every time I think I have one figured out, I hear the instructor saying words I’ve heard hundreds of times, I make an adjustment, and the exercise feels new to me.

picture by MarchMatness.com
picture by MarchMatness.com

Most recently – it happened with Spine Stretch.    I take one or two mat classes a week (if you count my private sessions when Carey makes me do mat), so I’ve done spine stretch in a class over 100 times.     Suddenly a few weeks ago, I actually felt my spine stretch!   Let me be clear.   I’ve always felt some stretch.   Usually, I felt a hamstring stretch during that exercise.    I’ve felt my shoulders stretch.   But when I focused on breathing as Carey coached me, when I tried to take note of every cue she gave – I felt my spine stretch.   Now it’s becoming one of my favorite reward exercises because it feels so good.   You know what a reward exercise is — right?   The exercises between the really hard ones that you really enjoy?   When I concentrate on the cues I’m given, I feel that spine stretch in my spine, in my hamstrings and in my neck and shoulders.

[tweetthis remove_hidden_hashtags=”true”]Do you wonder why a #PIlates exercise is named because you feel it somewhere else? [/tweetthis]

The lesson for other students?    The names aren’t just for the instructors!    The names help us understand the exercise.    Joseph Pilates must have been pretty incredible.    He came up with all the exercises that we do in classical pilates and all the equipment that we use.   If he decided to name something spine stretch, the name is probably a clue that the student would feel something in their spine!      Pilates is a journey, and there’s a lot of learning and thinking along the way.

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I follow pilates hashtags on twitter now, because I learn a lot.   There are stories about Joseph Pilates, the benefits of Pilates, and videos of many professionals doing the various exercises.  I saw a tweet last night where a student had posted a Tumbler photo of herself doing backstretch (I think), and she called it elephant.   I would tell her, what I wrote here.    Pay attention to the name of the exercise, because Mr. Pilates knew what he was doing.    Whether it’s an exercise like spine stretch or long spine, to the animal exercises like seal or elephant, there’s always something in the name and an elephant just didn’t have triceps to work!

Becky
Rivercity Pilates student, and part time blogger!

For those of you that might want to perfect that spine stretch — here’s a video from the RivercityPilates YouTube channel.

Addicted to Handbags

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Photo credit: Pilates Fitness Institue Facebook Page

Photo credit: Pilates Fitness Institute Facebook Page

Some people have a problem with alcohol.    Some people have a problem with cocaine.   I have a problem with handbags.    It used to be Coach. Then it was Dooney.    Then it was Kate Spade.   Oh to have that cash back!!!!    However as my taste in handbags went from $50 to $100, to $200 to, you have to be kidding if you think I’m going to admit my most expensive handbag — somewhere I figured out that I was investing in things that brought me limited joy.     I love some of those handbags.    I have a drawer (and a plastic bin or two), full of handbags which have brought me joy at one time or another.     Those handbags didn’t help with my body image.     Those handbags didn’t make me feel better when I looked in the mirror.

A few years ago, I decided I was going to invest in myself.    That’s a complete lie, what was happening was I was going to a wedding, and I wanted to look good.     I went on Jenny Craig, I did aerobics, and I paid for private pilates sessions.     I lost weight, and no one recognized me at the wedding.   It wasn’t exactly what I was going for.    I struggled.    After I went back to eating “regular” food, I gained weight, and went through some things that are a part of life:  stress, losing a parent, things that I just wasn’t prepared for.    So much for that investment.    Here came the L-Bs (pounds) right back.  And more.

[tweetthis]Are you addicted to #handbags or #shoes? Read my story![/tweetthis]

Now I had to worry about my health as well as the mirror.    They were both screaming at me that I needed to get off the couch.    I googled.   I actually joined a gym.    It cost $38 per month.   I went 5 times the first month, and then I didn’t go for 14 months.   That didn’t work out so well.  I could have spent $532 on another expensive handbag, but I was “investing” in my health!

I started Pilates at Rivercity Pilates for 2 reasons.   1) They offered a complimentary session so that I could see if I was able to do the exercises and 2) I knew the pilates equipment would assist me in doing things that my overweight body simply couldn’t do.    Here I am, 18 months later. I am clearly a Pilates-aholic.   I have started a mindful movement practice, and it brings me a peace I didn’t know was possible.   I am not going to tell you I haven’t purchased an expensive handbag in 18 months, but I can tell you, that I purchased that handbag after I had purchased my Pilates packages!    That unlimited Pilates classes package may be expensive, but like the picture says,  your body will be around a lot longer than that expensive handbag!

Becky
Pilates Student Blogger