Tag Archive for: Pilates Iowa City

NEW: 30 Minute Roll & Release Class

Our new 30 Minute Roll and Release Class might just be the best 30 minutes of your week!

This 30 minute virtual class will explore a variety of ways you can use massage therapy balls to release tight muscles, improve circulation and create a sense of ease in your body. You can attend live on Mondays at 11 am, or just sign up for the class and we’ll send you the recording.

Props used during class will include Yoga Tune up balls, Massage Therapy Plus balls, the Alpha Ball, a grippy playground size ball, and a yoga block.  We do have all of these available at the studio for purchase.

Different balls provide a different sensation and surface area and everyone will be encouraged to use whatever balls they have to explore variations in their body.  

If you’d like to see what this class will be like — grab your massage balls (or tennis balls, or anything you have at home – and watch this video!

What does movement do for you?

I’m guessing if you are reading this blog you are interested in growth.  You probably are part of our community because like me you enjoy learning and you enjoy the process of empowering yourself through knowledge and understanding. 

You enjoy learning techniques that help you feel better in your body and in your life. Have you ever specifically thought about your growth in your life when it comes to exercise and movement?

Growth when it comes to how you use movement in your life can come in a lot of different ways but here’s just a short list of ways I’ve seen growth in my own life and in the lives of so many of our community:

  • Just plain moving more daily,   This includes more steps, more stretches, more movement breaks throughout your day.
  • Exercise has become a habit that you don’t even question in your life, not a fad that you start and stop.
  • Exercise is not punishment or something you do because you feel like you ate too much of something or that you ate the wrong thing
  • Being mindful of your alignment and posture in your daily life
  • Increased mobility (things like tying your shoes and reaching for things on a high shelf are easier!)
  • Increased strength
  • Knowing how to use movement and even self massage techniques to help your body feel better when you have achiness or tightness
  • You actually miss your “exercise time” if you don’t do it

Challenge for you!

When you are done, look at the list and celebrate how far you’ve come!

Need help? One of our students shared her list!

One of my favorite things…

I wish a had a dollar for every time a client says to me…”you know you were in my head the other day ago!”

I love hearing stories from clients about how they were going about their life and suddenly they heard my words in their head encouraging them to do things like pay attention to their foot and leg alignment, notice their posture or even just to move more throughout their day!

I think I love it because when I hear them say things like that I know that not only am I helping these clients stay motivated to move their bodies regularly so they feel better, I’m also teaching them how to navigate life in a different way, in a way that helps them feel empowered about their health and inspired to continuing working on it, even if I’m not around.

I also love it because I know that most of us have way too many negative, non encouraging thoughts run through our mind on a regular basis and I do believe that adding people into your life who encourage you, who inspire you to be a better person and who really believe in you can be life changing.

Empower your body ~ Inspire your life

This is our studio mission and something that all of our instructors focus on.  At Rivercity Pilates we take time to get to know you, to learn your goals, and to tailor each of our semi private or private sessions to help you reach those goals!    I remember a client telling me that she didn’t like the “big box gym” down the road, because although the memberships were less expensive, she never knew if she was doing things right, or what she needed to do to help her reach her goals!   

If you are needing someone to help you set and reach movement goals, then you really should get to know Rachel and Shannon a little better and snag one of their open session spots.  

Our teachers are highly educated in teaching movement, but in my opinion that is not their biggest gift.  

Beyond being able to teach movement these women are the kindest, most encouraging people I know!   

If you’re thinking about starting a movement program, fill out this form, and let’s chat!

Are the results of Pilates like wearing a corset?

What can Pilates do for me?  Can it get rid of my stomach, tighten my butt, slim my thighs?

When you are in the movement, fitness, Pilates business these types of questions can always be expected.  So expected that I, like many teachers have some standard responses where I tell potential new students,  “of course it can”, followed by professional explanations of how the exercise method if done regularly can produce just the results they are looking for.  But I have to tell you…the longer I teach the harder it is for me to stomach saying these lines. Not because they are wrong, but because I really don’t believe the value in learning a movement practice like Pilates is in the results they are asking about.

I’ve been where these women who are asking me these questions have been…looking for the next best thing to help them get into a smaller pair of jeans or look how you think society wants you to look.  I quit obsessing about weight, worrying about what size I am or trying to fit into society’s ideals a long time ago. I do think my career as a movement instructor was instrumental in that process in my life and I’m forever grateful for that.  I have an eight year old daughter and even though I try to be a great positive body image role model for her, I already am finding that I can’t shield her from thinking she needs to be “skinnier”, go on a diet, or even “lose her stomach” (yes she’s 8 and actually mentioned to me she just wanted to lose a little bit of her stomach???!) and it drives me crazy! What I really want more than anything is for her to appreciate the amazing body she has, stay active and healthy by moving in ways she loves and not fall into feeling like she is always trying to “fix herself” to meet other people’s standards.

So when someone asks me one of those questions about losing an inch from their waist….my heart kind of aches because I can tell that they are still in that place of “trying to fix themselves” or get their body to some “ideal place” that doesn’t exist. Here’s what I want to say when someone asks me about losing their stomach, tightening their butt, or slimming their thighs:

The answer of course is yes — any regular movement program combined with healthy eating can accomplish those things…but is that really what you want?  You are beautiful and have a body that lets you live life.  It might not be perfect or what you see as ideal, but the reality is it is amazing!

If you make it a priority to take care of it by moving in ways you enjoy you will be happier, healthier, and you’ll learn to love yourself for the wonderful you that you are! 

You will feel better in your body and I think that’s what most people are really looking for.  What if you looked at learning Pilates as a way to do something good for your body, a way to grow yourself as a person as you learn more about how your body moves, and a health tool that helps you feel better in your body and happier in your life?

My back hurts!

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I hear it all the time. “Can you just give me a few exercises I can do to make my back feel better?”

If you are looking for a quick fix I’m here to tell you there isn’t one! If you want to make changes in how your body feels you need to learn to change how you are moving your body (or not moving it).  This doesn’t happen overnight and there definitely are not magic exercises that will cure your aches and pains.

One of the biggest reasons that Pilates as an exercise method is so effective for helping people get rid of back pain is that by practicing Pilates on a regular basis you start creating a habit of paying attention to how your body moves and you start learning how you could be moving better and more efficiently.  Better movement means less pain in your body.

The good news is that a regular Pilates practice does not need to be complicated or even take a ton of time, but to really get the benefits you need to stick with it on a regular basis.  

How often should you do Pilates to relieve your back pain?
  • 2-3 Pilates classes or sessions a week
  • 1 private a month to fine tune your at home practice which consists of 10-15 exercises you can do 2-3 times at home
  • 1 Pilates class a week plus incorporating the Pilates principles into other workouts

The possibilities are endless!  Ready to get started on changing how your body moves and feels?  Contact us today to schedule a complimentary first session to learn more!!

Traction isn’t always a bad thing!

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traction2

What do you think of when you think of traction?  The first thing that immediately pops in my head is someone lying in a hospital bed with their legs being held up in the air in traction.  Traction can be used in a variety of medical conditions usually to take pressure off a joint or area of the body so it can heal properly.  By gently pulling on the body using a force the muscles are lengthened and the joints effected are decompressed. Did you know that the Pilates method uses the idea of traction to help students align their body and decompress their joints?

Lengthening and decompressing the spine and body as a whole is one of the main goals of the Pilates work.  By learning how to engage your core muscles you can learn how to create a support system for your bones that actually decompresses your skeletal system and leaves your body feeling long, tall, and working most efficiently.  An easy example of this is to think of your seated posture. 

In the Pilates work we often focus on how you can use your muscles to get out of that slouchy, rounded forward posture (that many of us do day in and day out!)  Many exercises will teach you how to sit tall on your sitting bones, use your core muscles to align your rib cage over your pelvis and lengthen your neck muscles to bring your head in line over your shoulders.

There are times when the Pilates equipment acts as a force that can help you create more traction and decompression in your body.  One of my favorite exercises on the Cadillac is something called the half hang.  The half hang consists of carefully putting your feet into straps that hang from the Cadillac so that you hips are slightly suspended over the mat.  This is an amazing way to allow the muscles in your legs, hip and back relax while letting the joints of the legs, hips and spine decompress.

Another favorite “traction” exercise of mine is called Long Spine on the reformer.  You put your feet into straps that are attached to the carriage and springs and use the resistance to create a pull or traction that helps you find articulation through your spine while also decompressing the space in between each vertabrae.  The design of the equipment allows you to find a sense of support and traction while still working your body in a balanced uniform way. (it feels amazing!)

The idea of decompressing your body during your exercises is one of the reason Pilates leaves you feeling so amazing! Even though the exercises can seem like a lot of work, they are done in a way that leaves your body feeling better when it gets done working versus worse.

Want to learn more about Pilates as an exercise program and how you can lengthen and decompress your body?  Contact us today (email us at rcpilates1@gmail.com) to schedule a complimentary private session to try it out!!