It’s summer and if you are like us you have been getting outside more than ever to plant your garden, pull weeds (can I hear some groans…), mow the lawn and water those beautiful flowers! In this month’s client inspired video we give you some tips on how you can incorporate your Pilates practice into your outdoor time. Everyone likes to multi task right?
![google2](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/google2.png")
Like many fitness fads, if you google Pilates teacher training you’ll find hundreds of options. You can find online courses, 2 hour courses and programs that take a year or more!! If you are considering wanting to teach Pilates you might wonder what the difference is and how do you find a program right for you? P.S. – Many of these programs claim to “certify” you but don’t be fooled! Here’s a few facts about Pilates teacher training you should know:
There aren’t a lot of “rules” in the fitness industry as far as certifications. Pretty much anyone can take a 3 hour course, print off a certification and can claim to teach Pilates. I can tell you from having experience in the gym and fitness world that most people hiring Pilates instructors at the gym don’t have a clue what the Pilates Method is or if you have legitimate training as a teacher. This is great news for those who don’t want to spend a lot of money, simply want to be able to say they are a Pilates teacher and have no desire to actually have a Pilates practice and teach the method to others. Unfortunately it’s often these teachers who give Pilates a bad name and turn off clients because they get injured or simply can’t do it because it’s too hard (ie the teacher doesn’t know how to teach it to their body!)
I’m assuming you are not one of the above people and you are one of the people who wants to have an in depth learning experience about how to use the Pilates Method and movement itself to help others empower their body. This is why you should consider training with a PMA certified instructor in a training program that is approved by the PMA and allows you to work toward PMA certification. The PMA Pilates Certification Program offers the only third party certification in the Pilates field and is truly the gold standard of Pilates teacher training. To learn more about PMA approved programs and the importance of getting certified check out the Pilates Method Alliance website. To learn more about Body Precision Pilates teacher training programs offered at Rivercity Pilates contact us today to set up a complimentary consultation time to learn more!!
This weekend I’ll be teaching the Body Precision Instructor Training Chair Module, which means I’ve been prepping for the workshops all week long( and last week too…). My favorite way to prep for teaching is to start by re-reading through the training ![IMG_6953](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/IMG_6953.jpg")
manual and then doing each exercise along the way. At this same time I always dig out my original notes from when I went through the training program and read through them as well. And for Chair one of my favorite reference pieces is the Chair book from the Pilates Center that features pictures of Joe doing all the exercises himself. My manuals and notebooks are covered with notes and nuggets of wisdom that I’ve learned over the years.
This process of prepping for the workshops is almost as much fun as teaching the workshops for me. And it never fails I always learn something and re-remember somethings I haven’t taught or used in awhile. I also rediscover exercises in my personal practice that I really should be doing on a more regular basis and start adding them in!! I find myself taking notes as I go through the exercises for clients( things like this would be good for this client, great for balance work, try this with client so and so this week..). If you are a client of mine and we’ve been doing a little more chair than normal this week….this might be why!!
The act of preparing to teach this material to other students of the Pilates method really re-lights my passion for what the Chair can help someone do in their body as well as my own. It reminds me of my love of not only the Pilates method, but of teaching movement in general. I’m pretty thankful that my work time and my Pilates practice time this week included playing on the Chair!!
I was studying up on some business marketing the other day ago and one of the ideas that was presented was to make sure to not only let people know who would be a good fit for your business but also to let people know who is not a good fit for your business so that you are not wasting their time. This got me thinking about who might not be a good fit for Rivercity Pilates and I came up with my top 5 reasons why Rivercity Pilates might not be a good fit for you:
![IMG_6591](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/IMG_6591.jpg")
1. If the only reason you exercise is to lose weight or shred inches off your waist. At Rivercity Pilates we know that exercise and movement are an important part of maintaining a healthy body, but we’re not so concerned about a number on a scale or a dress size. We believe an exercise program should be fun, help you relieve stress, be safe and give you results like feeling better in your body, gaining strength and flexibility, and allowing you to do anything and everything you want to do with your body.
2. If your workout clothes are just as important as your workout. Don’t get us wrong…we love to feel good in our workout clothes and love them as much as the next person but we know that more important than over priced Yoga pants is you feeling comfortable in what you are moving in. You’ll find our clients wearing a wide variety of comfortable active wear and you’ll never feel like you don’t fit in because of what you’re wearing.
3. You only want to “feel the burn” when you workout! There is definitely nothing wrong with feeling your workout but our instructors know that you don’t need to be miserable to get a great effective workout. We give lots of variations for different body types and encourage clients to work at an appropriate level for their body. Often times clients find that by slowing down, paying attention to their body and focusing on using the correct muscles they get a much better workout than if they had just muscled through the workout pushing as hard as they could!
4. You are not looking for an instructor to learn from. Some people just want to workout and are truly not interested in learning more about how their body moves and how they could do a movement better to get the most benefit in their body. Our instructors are passionate about not only helping you get in a good workout but educating our clients so they can continue to progress safely and get the most out of their workouts. They love to get to know each client and nothing makes them happier than to help you fine tune your movement through individual tips and cuing.
![IMG_1441](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/IMG_1441.jpg")
5. You don’t want to talk with anyone before or after your workout. Not everyone enjoys being social or “having everyone know your name” like Cheers and if this is the case Rivercity Pilates might not be the place for you. From our front desk staff to our instructors, our staff members love to connect with our clients so that we can better serve you. Our clients seem to really enjoy this casual friendly atmosphere and also enjoy getting to know each other.
If you read through our list and still think Rivercity Pilates might be a good fit for you I encourage you to schedule a complimentary session with one of our instructors so you can get to know us more!
![IMG_3509](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/IMG_3509-e1463873212409.jpg")
Hi! My name is Max. One week ago, my new Mom and Dad picked me up and drove a long ways in the car to North Liberty. I wasn’t sure about these people, but after hours and hours in the car, we got to North Liberty and I met my new brothers and my sister. They only have 2 legs, but they seemed to like me a lot. I think I have a pretty cool family. My human Mom is a certified Pilates Instructor. I’m not sure what that is but it must be a big deal because she goes to work every day and stays a long time. My human brothers and sister go to school every day, but my Dad has been home with me most every day since I got here.
On Friday, my Mom told me that she would teach me what she does, and that I could be a Pilates Puppy. I’m not sure I want to be a Pilates Puppy but I love my Mom and she gives good snuggles so I decided to go. When I found out what time we had to leave to go to Mom’s studio (Rivercity Pilates) I wasn’t sure I wanted to go anymore. Mom goes to work just after light comes thru the windows. Usually she throws me back in bed with someone in my family when she goes to work, but today, I got in the car with her. I’m not sure if I like the car either. It makes my stomach do flip flops.
![max3](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/max3.jpg")
We didn’t have to go very far, and then we got to the studio. What a place!! First I saw the retail space. There was a couch and a beanbag chair, I could learn to like them.
Mom had to turn on all the lights so we went in another room. My feet slid all over the place in that room. Mom told me to be careful, but my feet kept sliding out from under me. I’m not sure I like wood floors. Mom put my bed in that room. There were a bunch of black things on the floor — Mom called them mats. I jumped on one to see what would happen. It was really soft. I liked it. I posed really pretty and Mom took my picture. Maybe this won’t be so bad.
![Max](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Max.jpg")
Then the door started opening and people started coming in. They stared at me, and some of them petted me a little. When they got on the things my Mom called reformers, I decided to take a little nap. What they were doing didn’t look that fun to me. On and on my day went. It seemed like I would just get into a good sleep, and then people were moving around the studio and some would leave, and more would come in. People who do Pilates seem to come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them scared me when they wanted to hold me. Don’t they understand that I’m like 9 inches tall and they are like giants? Sometimes I’m scared. No two sessions were the same though, so I really haven’t figured out any of the Pilates exercises yet. There were never more than 4-5 people there at a time, but they were doing some things that I have never seen humans do! Mom had a few minutes of breaks to snuggle and take me outside, but since she was busy, I tried to catch up on sleep so I could go out in the back yard when we went home.
![IMG_3516](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/IMG_3516.jpg")
I try to have my naps taken by the time my human brothers and sister get home from school. I started waking up, but Mom said we had one more student. Really Mom??? I’ve been good all day! Pretty soon the person came. She talked with me before she got on the Pilates machine, and I thought she seemed ok. I had to stretch my legs, so I ran around the studio a bit. I fell down a few times, and those black mats tripped me a couple of times too. Mom put me on the mat with her student. Wow, this lady lets me try to chew her hair! She was laying on the mat, so I had to get a better look. I walked around her, and on top of her and she sneaked some petting in. I might learn to like Pilates.
I walked back to the end of the mat, and when I did I saw another dog in the mirror. I have to find out about this dog. I jumped down — and when I did, the dog went away! I stood on the black mat, and if I jumped a little I could see the dog. I woofed and woofed, but it looked right back at me. I grrrrrrrd. The dog wasn’t scared. Mom came and got me and put me in my bed. Doesn’t she know I slept all day? I jumped around some more, and the lady on that mat figured out I wanted to go home! She told my Mom that she’d have to leave so Mom could take me home. In my next blog, I’ll show you my favorite Pilates exercises!
“The question is: Did you know you can practice a little bit of #Pilates everyday and really change the way you feel? #JustSayin‘” ~ Gina Jackson
![pilates4fitness](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/pilates4fitness.png")
My Pilates friend Gina Jackson posted this quote on her Facebook page this week and it really spoke to me. Probably because it had been one of those weeks that just kind of flew by and even though I was doing Pilates every day it wasn’t ever a full 30 minute or more workout.
It was a sneak in 5 or 10 minutes before my next client, stretch and play on the floor while I watched my daughter dancing in the living room kind of week.
![carey](https://rivercitypilates.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/carey.jpg")
One of the best things about this kind of week is that the little bits of Pilates I did throughout my days really did change the way I felt. I always felt better after I moved both physically and mentally!
The reminder this week from Gina was just what I needed to change my attitude from I wish I had time to fit more in to…wow, I’m grateful to have a consistent Pilates practice in my life that makes a difference even when it’s just a little bit each day.
The idea of incorporating Pilates into your life and making it part of your daily routines is something I talk to clients about all the time so when I have those a-ha moments in my own life about how amazingly effective and helpful it is… it just makes me smile! #Practicewhatyouteach