Tag Archive for: Rivercity Pilates North Liberty Iowa

Inspiration of the Month: Danielle

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Danielle Wilbanks
January 2018
Inspiration of the Month 
 
When did you start Pilates and what inspired you to start?
I started doing Pilates in October 2017. I was having a lot of hip, back and shoulder pain and couldn’t even sit on the floor with my kids to play for longer than 5 minutes. I knew I needed to do something, but I just didn’t want to do anything high impact. My friend Sarah Shonrock kept telling me about Rivercity Pilates and how much she enjoyed it, so I decided to give it a try. I’m so glad that I did! It has been the most welcoming place and not intimidating at all. I hadn’t done Pilates or Yoga to any extent before and was a little nervous about not knowing what to do, but all of the instructors are super helpful and patient.
 
How often do you practice Pilates and what type of sessions or classes have you been doing?    
I try to make it to the studio three times a week. I haven’t been to a class that I didn’t enjoy. I regularly attend Nancy’s Barre, Pilates & Fun classes and Shelley’s Every Body Mat classes. My schedule changes week to week, so I can’t make a lot of evening classes, but when I can, I really like to go to  Carey’s and Shaina’s Pilates Mat classes. I like going to a variety of instructors because they each seem to challenge your body in different ways.
 
What benefits or improvements have you noticed in your body and life from doing Pilates?
Physically, the chronic hip, back and shoulder pain that I was having has gone away. I feel more open and stronger and for the first time in my adult life I can feel my core muscles. I’ve also lost inches and weight and let’s face it, being able to get back into a favorite pair of pants is a huge benefit! Mentally, it has given me a chance to unplug and focus on nothing else but me in those hour classes. It energizes me and gets me going. Even when I’m not in class, I’ll do some stretches and breathing to get me through those long days at work. I’ve also discovered the Rivercity Pilates You Tube channel that helps me on days that I can’t get to the studio or when I’m traveling.
 
Do you have a favorite exercise or piece of equipment (or both)?  
I like the balance balls, both the big ones and medium sized ones. It really helps me to engage and strengthen my core. The balls add an extra challenge and you have to focus more on what you are doing.
 
What would you say to someone who is thinking about doing Pilates?
DO IT! :) Really, just give it a try. You may or may not like it, but you never know if you don’t try. Rivercity Pilates is a great place! I appreciate all of the staff and other members because everyone is welcoming and helpful. There is no expectation for you to be at the same level as someone else,  just positive encouragement to go at your own pace and do the things that you can do.

 

Are you ready to take Joe’s Challenge?

Are you ready to add some more movement into your life? Do you need a little help getting motivated to stay committed to your movement and fitness program?  Join Rivercity Pilates in 2018 for Joe’s Challenge.  One our favorite quotes about the Pilates method from Pilates inventor Joseph Pilates himself goes like this:

“In 10 sessions you’ll feel a difference, in 20 sessions you’ll see a difference and in 30 sessions you’ll have a whole new body.”

What we love most about this statement is that it emphasizes the importance of sticking with it!  So often we see people kick off the new year with some great intentions to workout 3,4,5 times a week and it never fails that by week 3 of the year most of those people have already given up.    At Rivercity Pilates we are pretty passionate about helping people create a movement practice that becomes part of their life….not just a January workout!

Our 2018 challenge for you is to take Joe’s 30 session challenge. We’re challenging you to commit to 3 movement sessions per week for 10 weeks (and we’re giving you a few extra weeks to get those 30 sessions in because we know even when you are committed to being consistent…life happens.

Ready for the extra motivation??…. Get all 30 classes or sessions in before March 31 and you earn a our newly designed RCP Shirt.  Document by journaling or videoing yourself talking about how your are feeling when you reach 10, 20 and then 30 sessions and turn it into us at the end to be entered into our drawing to win 3 months of unlimited classes ($800 value!!)

Track your classes at the studio on your very own tracker sheet!

Nominate a Breast Cancer Survivor for a Pilates “Scholarship”

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Nominate a Cancer Survivor and give them the gift of strength, inspiration, empowerment and encouragement… 


One of my passions as a movement teacher is helping people use movement to improve the quality of their life.  I truly believe that whatever is going on in your physical body, movement can be used as a tool to help you feel better in your body.  I’m so excited to be part of the nonprofit organization called Core Compassion.

Core Compassion Project is a non­profit organization dedicated to offering Pilates scholarships to cancer patients in order to reduce the side effects of cancer treatment. Specialized Pilates fitness training helps to restore physical strength and mental well­ being.
Click here to learn more about Core Compassion.  Click on Scholarships and be sure to read some of the amazing stories of those who have earned Pilates scholarships through Core Compassion!  On that same page you can apply for a scholarship or help a friend or loved one you know apply.  (It’s a really easy process!!)
Send us an email to learn more or if you need any help with the application process!!
P.S.  This is an ongoing program and scholarships can be applied for at any time! 

Do You Practice Pilates with Precision?

 
This month’s studio focus is the idea of “Precision” in your movement practice. For me, precision is simply fine tuning.  Precision is the challenge of continuing to practice a movement so that each time I do it, it gets a little better and I get a little bit “more” out of the exercise.  Precision is what keeps my mind occupied when I’m doing an exercise that I’ve done thousands of times.  Precision is also what creates movements that are controlled and refined.
Precision is one of the qualities of a Pilates practice that I believe really sets it apart from other movement modalities.  Our focus is rarely how many reps can we get in, or how fast can we move.  Our focus is on how we can move in a way that coordinates our breath and movement and use our muscles in a balanced way to move with ease.
As a Pilates teacher I am talking about precision in relationship to my Pilates practice, but the great thing about this idea of precision is that you can apply it to practically any movement practice.  If you are flowing through a Yoga pose or lifting a weight I think you’ll find that just changing your mindset to think about precision takes any movement you are doing to another level.  It makes it a little more challenging, it helps you move with more ease, with more balance and it helps you move better!

Inspiration of the Month – Kathleen

Kathleen Knutson IOM
Inspiration of the Month
Kathleen Knutson

When did you start Pilates and what inspired you to start?
I starting taking Pilates classes at Rivercity a little over a year ago. I had sporadically taken large group mat classes over the years at various gyms but was looking for a smaller studio to get better instruction on the proper form of Pilates.
How often do you practice Pilates and what type of sessions or classes have you been doing?  
I usually take 2 classes a week, one equipment and one mat. I would like to fit in one more this fall/winter per week as my schedule allows.
What benefits or improvements have you noticed in your body and life from doing Pilates? 

I’ve really noticed positive differences in my balance, range of motion and strength. Especially in my neck and core.  Core strength is important to me because I have moderate scoliosis.

Do you have a favorite exercise or piece of equipment (or both)?    
Any exercise that involves stretching my spine one way and then the other are my favorites. Feels great!
What would you say to someone who is thinking about doing Pilates?
Pilates is a great alternative to traditional strength training such as cross fit or HIIT.  There’s less risk of injury.  Cardio is also very important.  I very much enjoy taking Jazzercize classes in Cedar Rapids too.

Centering

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 This month’s studio focus is the idea of centering in your movement practice and in your life, and I think it’s pretty relevant to this time of year.
For me centering represents focusing on the important stuff first, because I find when I take care of what matters most first everything else falls into place.  When I’m practicing Pilates this means giving myself time to take care of myself and simply focus on myself even though life is crazy busy and I could be doing 100 other things other than Pilates.  It also means focusing on moving from my center first, because all the other details of the exercises often fall into place when I come back to practicing initiating movement from my center.
What does centering mean to you? We’re hoping you’ll take some time this month and explore how a little focus on centering might improve your movement practice!