What can the Pilates Reformer do for you?

A Pilates Reformer session at Rivercity Pilates in North Liberty, Iowa

Ever wonder what is the Pilates Reformer and why people are always raving about it?

The Pilates Reformer was designed by Joseph Pilates as an all in one piece of exercise equipment that could be used to train the entire body creating balanced strength and flexibility.

The magic of the reformer happens when you mindfully practice exercises on the equipment that are specifically designed to help you train your body. 

The spring based Reformer gives the user the perfect amount of assist and resistance and allows the user to get more out of each exercise they practice. Since there are various spring tensions you can use for each exercise it is extremely important to have an experienced teacher who can adjust the spring tension for your body and teach you how to get the most out of each exercise!

Tuesdays at 6 pm Shannon teaches a small group session that focuses on practicing Pilates on the Reformer. Our small group sessions are always all levels. Our teachers are experts at teaching sessions that are appropriate for all levels (yes even brand new beginners who want to join).  

If you are interested in trying out a weekly Reformer Session and Tuesdays at 6 pm work for you…contact us today! We are offering a special deal to the first two people who contact us.  Purchase a 10 package of sessions and you’ll receive an 11th session for free ( $46 value!!)

Need a quick core workout?

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Me doing some counter push ups

I have had 4 or 5 conversations with clients this week that all revolved around us talking about how great it is that adding in regular very simple movement into your life can make a profound difference in how your body feels.  As I noticed this I thought maybe it’s something I should write about this week, because maybe you need to be reminded of this idea…simple works!

  • Do you find yourself not getting movement time in because you overthink what you need to do?
  • Do you tell yourself that if you can’t squeeze in a 30 or 50 minute class today that you just won’t be able to “exercise” today?  

I can tell you for myself and for all the clients I see who are successful at using movement as a health tool in their life…. they don’t believe this myth!

Adding in a 10 minute daily walk, 5 minutes of stretching at the beginning of your day or even just wearing your toe separators for 15 minutes a day can effect how your whole body feels! Getting regular classes and sessions in will absolutely help you feel better in your body, but so will 3 minutes of counter push ups when you are making dinner or practicing your one leg balance while you brush your teeth.

Take a little time today to start thinking about how you can add more movement into your life and when you start doing it…appreciate how effective it can be!

Adding in small amounts of movement throughout your day can seem so trivial and so simple, which is why I think most people don’t do it!  Don’t believe that just because something is not excruciating hard for you that it won’t make a difference!

If you’re coming into the studio you’ve probably “caught me” at some time sneaking in a little movement time in between clients! A few of my favorite ways to add movement in through out my day are hanging, standing on our rock mat behind the front desk when waiting for clients and counter push-ups!

If you need a quick workout to fit into a very busy day — here’s a 4 minute core workout for you!

Do virtual Pilates classes even work?

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I got this note from a client who does our virtual classes this week:   

“Happy to report I just got done doing the recording of class! At the end I was going to turn on my microphone to thank you and then realized it’s a recording!!” 😂

This client had a great workout and the session felt to her like she was live and even in person with her instructor during class! How great is that?!

I had to share because I think there are so many people that don’t give virtual classes a chance because they have told themselves things like: I can’t trust myself to take a class at home, taking class on a screen just isn’t as effective as in person classes, I need a teacher in person pushing me to actually do the workout…

Our clients have found that virtual classes can be a super effective way to keep themselves consistent in their Pilates and Yoga practices!

  • They have found that even though the classes are virtual, the connections they have to their teachers helps them stay accountable and get results in their life.
  • And they have found that often taking a recorded class feels like they were taking class live or in the studio!

If you are wanting to add more movement time into your life and haven’t tried consistently adding virtual classes into your routine I would highly suggest it!

Try grabbing a band and practicing with the short video below as a test to see if you could feel better in your body by simply practicing movement at home, watching a video!

Please let us know if it helped you by sending me a quick email!

This short series is less than 10 minutes long and can be so effective for releasing tightness in your back, hips and legs.  All you need is a resistance band!

What can you learn from my dog Sadie?

Sadie

If you haven’t met Sadie, she’s my adorable, lovable and oh so sweet Goldendoodle! (I may be a little biased!) Sadie is the ultimate example of what I am talking about today and so I thought it was a great excuse to share a cute picture of her with you!

Have you ever noticed how animals rarely stop moving? Have you ever noticed how even if they have an injury or even an ache or pain they have a natural drive to keep moving? It’s hard to slow them down! I like to call it their “moving mindset”!

Do you have a “moving mindset”? As a movement teacher for 23 plus years I have had the opportunity to work with a lot of people over the years and I’ve been lucky enough to get to observe people’s movement and exercise time over long spans of time (5, 10, 15, even 20 years).   And when I look at the movement practices of those who have been successful at consistently adding movement time into their life long term as a health tool, there is one thing that stands out to me…their “moving mindset”.

First let me say I just made up the term “moving mindset”. Here’s my definition of it:

“Moving Mindset” : realizing that movement is a necessary component of health and wellness that keeps the body and mind happy.  Those with a moving mindset keep moving no matter what is happening in their life and their bodies.  Those with a moving mindset accept that some movement is better than than no movement. Those with a moving mindset know that having pain or an injury aren’t reasons to stop moving…these things just motivate them to get creative and move what they can.

Here’s an example:

I think that a lot of people believe that the biggest benefit of taking Pilates at a studio with a trained instructor is the knowledge the teacher has of each exercise, or maybe it’s the individualized adjustments the teacher gives you on exercises or even the inspiration you get from having a teacher encouraging you as you move.

Of course all of those things are great benefits and are fabulous…but I think probably the most important benefit you’ll get from your Pilates teacher is the gift of a “moving mindset”. 

The “moving mindset” is something that will stay with you forever where ever you are.Here’s how our Rivercity Pilates community keeps moving:

I don’t know about you, but reading about what others are doing helps motivate me and keep me inspired! Check out a few of the responses we got last week if you are looking for a little motivation!

Do you have low back pain?

If you have low back pain and tightness — this might be the answer you’ve been looking for! We’re going to use our massage therapy balls, but you can also use any balls you have at home.

WARNING: Don’t judge until you’ve tried rolling for relief. It’s seriously AMAZING!

Want to learn more? You may want to try our 30 minute virtual Rolling for Relief class on Mondays at 11 central! Email us for more info!

Do you argue for your limitations?

As a Pilates teacher and a trainer I have heard a lot of people over the years who “argue for their limitations” and most people don’t even realize they are doing it.  Have you heard that term before? “Argue for your limitations”?  

Let me give you an example.  I introduce an exercise to someone and before they have even tried the exercise they say something like:  My body is too big to do something like that. Or…I’m too old to move like that.  Or… I have never been good at that type of thing.   Often times even during the exercise they continue to repeat similar stories either out loud or in their head.

Before they’ve even attempted to practice the exercise they are “arguing” for why they can’t do it.   If you’ve worked with me at all you know I usually just straight up ignore these comments as I know they are not true. I know that me bringing my attention to the comment will only bring the clients attention more to these things and then they’ll spend more time thinking about and believing something that is not true.    

So why am I telling you about “arguing for your limitations”?     I have 2 reasons…

One is that I’m hopeful that just hearing about this will make you aware of when you are doing this in your life.  I mean…if you could choose how you thought about something before you did it…would you choose to think…

1. Oh this is an interesting exercise, I bet that there are some great benefits from practicing it in my body.

or would you choose to think

2. I think something is wrong with me that is not going to let me do this type of thing?     

Which thoughts do you think would make practicing the exercise more fun and effective?    Kind of a no brainer…right?  Try to catch yourself arguing for your limitations….and stop it! Decide to think something more encouraging instead!

P.S.  Clearly this idea applies to more areas of your life than just exercise…maybe notice if you “argue for your limitations” in other places in your life!

2.  My second reason for sharing this is that I had a great example of how one of my clients did the complete opposite of “arguing for her limitations”  that I thought might inspire you and maybe make you laugh.

After this week’s virtual Roll and Release Class, Cyndi was chatting with me afterwards. She mentioned she had to improvise a little because she didn’t have any of her massage balls with her, but she made it work and she felt better after doing it! She just rolled up a blanket and a towel and also used this thing in the picture that she had found in her dog’s toy box, as a substitute for balls!   

She used a Pokemon dog toy to roll and release tight muscles!!
I LOVE this so much!!

Cyndi travels a lot and has learned that if she wants to keep her body feeling good she needs to keep moving and take care of herself no matter where she is or what she has available to her as far as props!

Cyndi knew she would feel better if she practiced some roll and release techniques.  Instead of arguing for her limitations (not having a single ball with her for a class that was focused on using balls to roll and release tight muscles) ….she did what she could with what she had available! The end result was she felt better in her body and she had fun doing it! 

After you read Cyndi’s inspiring story it’s hard to ever convince yourself that you can’t take a specific class because you don’t have the right prop, right??!! I’m hoping maybe you’ll stop and question yourself when you find yourself creating reasons why something isn’t working for you and you’ll think of Cyndi rolling and massaging her back muscles on the Pokemon toy.  Definitely it’s inspiring!