Keeping Pilates Fresh

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IMG_6149I’ve been teaching Pilates for 15 plus years and the whole journey has been filled with learning and growing (which is part of what I love so much about the profession).   People often ask me how I remain passionate about Pilates or if Pilates gets monotonous for me.

I’ve taken endless hours of continuing education, workshops, conferences and online training.  I’ve taken lessons and classes with a variety of instructors and master instructors.   As much as I love all of those learning opportunities I think the most important teaching tool I use in my teaching is what I like to call “playtime”.

Playtime for me is what some might call my own personal workout time, yet I see it a little differently.  Playtime is where I get to experience the work I teach day in and day out in my own body on any given day.  It’s a time when I get to explore the exercises deeper.  I get to try a variety of different adjustments to the exercise and find which one feels best in my body.

If a client has struggled with an exercise, my playtime is a time where I put myself into my client’s body and imagine what an exercise might feel like in their body.  I call it playtime because its fun and just like a kid playing times flies by and I barely realize that I’m actually “working my body”.

[tweetthis hidden_urls=”http://pic.twitter.com/nXPprcm21N” remove_hidden_hashtags=”true”]#Pilates #workouts should be #FUN! Love what you do! [/tweetthis]

For me having daily “playtime” is essential to my teaching.  It keeps my own body healthy, its refreshes my spirit and inspires my teaching!!  I often start my day with my movement practice but you’ll also catch me playing if I have some time between clients or classes at the studio.

Is Pilates too expensive?

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dollarsIf you’ve checked in to Pilates or Yoga studio prices you know they are not exactly cheap. $16 to $32 for a class might seem pretty ridiculous when you can get a monthly gym pass for $40 a month. I like to remind everyone though, like most things in life, you get what you pay for. How many of us have paid for that yearly gym membership and maybe only gone in 4 or 5 times in an ENTIRE YEAR!

Taking a full body exercise class like Pilates or Yoga with a qualified instructor in a small studio setting is definitely more expensive but most people find it’s worth every penny. First of all the class experience is NOTHING like that at the gym. The classes are personal, your instructor knows you and workouts are tailored to you! What this means for most people is that you actually enjoy coming and make it a priority to schedule it into your life.

What's missing in this picture? FITNESS!

What’s missing in this picture? FITNESS!

The payment system at our studio almost forces you to get rid of the excuses. At Rivercity Pilates we have a 24 hour cancellation policy for pre-scheduled classes. If you want to be guaranteed a spot in your favorite class you have to schedule ahead. And unless there is a major emergency, you pay for that class whether you come or not unless you cancel  24 hours before class. Many of our clients comment on how this enhances benefit because it forces them to be accountable and maybe come in and workout on a day when they don’t quite feel like it or could very easily just skipped their workout.

Some people think that taking classes at the studio is just for those who are wealthy, but I can tell you that is not the case. We have many clients who have very average incomes who make getting their Pilates and Yoga in a priority in their budgets. How do they do it?  They budget and make their health a priority!

 

[tweetthis remove_hidden_hashtags=”true”]Do your $$ run out before you purchase your #Pilates/#yoga? Coupon for #budget classes here![/tweetthis]

At Rivercity we offers some great deals for clients such as discounted class prices for buying more classes up front, we offer a monthly $5 account credit if you schedule at least 4 classes per month (Schedule Ahead Rewards!), we give clients $15 account credit every time they refer a friend to the studio, and we often give away classes and discounts on our social media pages just for commenting or participating! Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn as you never know when you could have a chance to win!

design (23)We believe your health and well being are very important and well worth being a priority in your life.   We also know that budgeting for your health is sometimes stressful.  If you are new to budgeting, we have a great resource for you!  Brooke Pettengill is a local accountant who specializes in family budgeting and she’s pretty amazing.  She offers budgeting classes and one on one sessions that will teach you how to budget for everything important in your life (including your health) and still save you money!

Mention this blog to Brooke and receive 15% any class, service or workshop she offers!

Do you think you need to stretch more?

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Something I hear often from people when they know I own a Pilates and Yoga studio is,” I am soooooo unflexible, I really need to take Yoga.”  It is true that that many people could use more flexibilty in their bodies and a mind body practice like Yoga may help, but I find that most people don’t understand the process of how to gain that flexibility.  I get the impression that many people believe they need to sit around and stretch more and that would do the trick.  That if they just sat on the floor with their legs in a V and leaned forward into a stretch on a regular basis that would make them more flexible (and it might help a little!)

Just stretching is often not the answer.  In the Pilates method of exercise we work on creating uniform development in the body.  In simple terms this means we create balance in the body around our joints by not only stretching what is tight but also strengthening what is weak.  Joseph Pilates knew that the best way to create this balance in our body was not by isolating a stretch or a single strength training exercise (like a bicep curl), but ideally we teach our body to move as a whole while using our mind to fine tune our alignment and keep our body in balance.  You see this is how our body works on a day to day basis.

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We don’t stop and think about picking up a bag of groceries and what muscles we are going to use, we just do it.  If we are healthy and our body is pretty balanced this movement happens easily and with not too much effort (which is ideal) and truly engages the whole body.  The Pilates method of exercise is designed to teach you how to move your body through various planes of movement with ease, balance and proper alignment so that you can re-create those patterns of movement in your life.   By practicing your alignment and balancing your body in your Pilates practice you will find that your muscles naturally lengthen, your spine moves with ease, and you’ll have flexibility you never dreamed of (without having to sit and stretch for hours.)

Not sure if you believe me yet?  We’ve included below a short Pilates workout that is easy enough to do every day.  Take our challenge and simply add this mini workout in 3 times a week for the next month and let us know what happens…

Inspiration of the Month Pam Ballard

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When did you start coming to Rivercity Pilates and what inspired you to start?

When my good friend, Patti Lounsbury, asked last November if I would like to join her for a session at Rivercity Pilates, I accepted without hesitation.  I had heard of Pilates, but not a clue as to what it was, already working with a personal trainer….and the rest is history.  I’ve loved it since day one, and I’ve never looked back.

How often do you practice Pilates and what type of sessions or classes have you been doing?

I typically go twice a week, and I have found the Tower classes to be best for my strength, flexibility and pesky back that needs to be accommodated.

[tweetthis remove_hidden_hashtags=”true”]Pam’s #Pilates story. A friends invitation turns into a habit. [/tweetthis]

What benefits or improvements have you noticed in your body and life from doing Pilates?

I always feel energized during and following each class.  We work hard, but have fun, laugh, and feel challenged.  To me, the most important thing is to maintain full mobility, and Pilates is the answer.  Also, the atmosphere at Rivercity Pilates is unbelievably welcoming and friendly.

Do you have a favorite exercise or piece of equipment (or both)?

As mentioned above, my favorite is the Tower, with a full series of exercises that are ideal for me, as well as Carey, who modifies any exercise to fit personal ability OR disability.

What would you say to someone who is thinking about coming to Rivercity Pilates?

No one should hesitate to try Pilates.  The classes are purposely small, but the participants are varied, with all levels of age, strength, experience, and body size.  Honestly, everyone can benefit!

How my bike rides are improving my Pilates practice!

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IMG_0718It’s summer and I’m finding my weekly long bike ride is really improving not only my overall health but also my movement patterns and the balance in my body!  The last few weeks I’ve noticed a few things going on in my body.  The first was that my left quad muscles were very very sore after my long bike ride(and not my right) and second was that my right side waist has been overly tight(maybe a combination of a tight psoas and  QL for those of you who love anatomy).

On my ride this week I realized when I got to one of my first hills that I was hiking up my right hip to try to get more power to get up the hill.  So I focused on anchoring my right sitting bone(ischial tuberosity) to my seat and immediately noticed a huge difference.  First of all my right quads and leg muscles had to work more and my right side felt lengthened.  It definitely took some concentration throughout my ride to keep my right sitting bone on the saddle- I obviously had created a habit of trying to pedal with my hip! It was amazing though how much more balanced I was and how much better my body felt during and after my ride.

Having discovered this pattern I have been paying close attention to my hip alignment in my Pilates practice and have felt some exciting changes just from shifting my focus and being aware of it! I definitely can feel that I am working more evenly and I haven’t had the soreness that was more predominant on one side versus the other.

Are you a cyclist or runner looking to cross train?  A regular Pilates practice can not only create more strength, flexibility and balance in your body, it will teach you how optimize your movement patterns so you can train most efficiently!!

 

Futile Fatty?

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Public Weight Loss, Private Weight Loss, Is There an In-Between?

imageThe psychology of weight loss is very…weird. And frustrating. And personal. And eccentric. I’m overweight, and I have trouble making myself work out in public, because my mind says – and this is asinine, I know – that people are judging me as a ‘futile fatty’: someone who is acting like she wants to lose weight, but is probably drinking soda on the side.

Obvious solution? Work out in the privacy of my home. Problem is, that can get boring in a hurry. And there is always some housework to do. And there is always that call that ought to get made. And the email to check. And those bills to be paid…

Is there an in-between space? Someplace where my mind just gets on with its work, and doesn’t wander off to speculate on other opinions or other tasks? Some place that is, actually, you know…HEALTHY for me?

I found one! I did not expect to! I came to Rivercity Pilates because I knew I needed more muscle to burn away fat. I had done my homework, and I knew that Pilates was not the end-all-be-all for weight loss, but that it would make big calorie-burner activities doable and safer. Which was true, just as I’d read. I even lost my first twelve pounds on Pilates.

What I did not expect was to find that headspace. That “in-between”, happily on-task, HEALTHY, headspace!

It caught me so by surprise that it’s taken me awhile to find out how it is made. It is made of several things. It is built into classical Pilates, with the progression of the exercises, and the attention to individual details – that is the part that keeps the mind engaged during the workout. But the other elements?  Those are part of Carey’s studio. It is being surrounded and taught by a variety of body types, not just ‘ballerina’ types. It is being encouraged to “strengthen and stretch” yourself, never to “lose” or to “burn away” anything. It is the fellow clients and students who invest in an atmosphere of fun and delight. And it is the absolute confidence that all can “Become What You Wish”, never “you need to match this”.

Kimberly
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