By request - here is a short workout video that I do and say the Powerhouse Cues as I move! This video is the best way to start your Pilates practice - enjoy!
Basic Mat 3 Rep Drill
Three repetitions of the Basic mat order wth transitions.
Top Three Tips to Conquer your Teaser on the Reformer
Move the carriage out with your arms, move it back in with your butt.
There is a rhythm to the Teaser on the Reformer, and if you cannot find it, it is next to impossible to perform. Press into your arms to get the carriage moving, If you use the muscles of your upper back to get the carriage moving you will have the support to work with the resistance of the swings to lift. This will actually help and make the exercise easier. Next, make sure your eyes are in line with your toes as you lift. If you legs start to spend ahead of your eyes, you will start to tip backwards. So if you cannot come up because you are stuck back, use more upper back strength to move the carriage, and it you’re coming up too fast and fall out of the Teaser when you lift, slow down and make sure your legs are at eye level.
It’s also super important to move your carriage back in with your butt. Using a pelvic curl to close the carriage, try to keep the carriage still until your waistband is on the carriage. People often focus on coming up into Teaser, but if you don’t focus on slowing down the carriage on your return, you won’t build the strength to come up into Teaser.
2. Plan your exit strategy.
Teaser on the Reformer is scary. I kept my knees bent for a long time in this exercise, and at one point, my Master Instructor asked me why (as my legs were straight when I did Teaser on the Mat). I replied that I was scared. “Why?” she asked. “This is lower than your car.” Yikes. So true. But I was scared. A lot of Pilates is scary, maybe we don’t like to be upside down, or balancing on our tailbone on a moving carriage. So plan your exit strategy. What if you start to fall? What do you do? You put your feet down. You stand. So if fear is making you pull back and not try your best, plan what to do if you start to fall, so you can try Teaser on the Reformer with confidence. If we’re scared, we won't really try. Maybe it’s the mind part of the mind/body exercise that you need to conquer.
3. Do Teaser III on the Mat.
In this age of Instagram, it’s easy to see videos of exercises and we want to try them, maybe before we’re ready. Pilates is visual, and fun, and we can sometimes feel like a kid on a playground. But don’t skip the steps that lead up to the fancy stuff. Can you do Teaser III on the Mat? Backstroke on the Box? Jumping into a new exercise before you’re ready can lead not only to frustration, but to injury.
So be safe, be confident, and enjoy the rhythm of the Teaser on Reformer!
How to be Friends with your Client's Physical Therapist
Many of my teacher trainers have mentioned to me that sometimes they feel nervous when their clients start appointments with a physical therapist. They feel like their client might prefer the physical therapy to Pilates and eventually drop their Pilates classes. In my experience, the opposite is true. A talented physical therapist can effectively communicate the unique needs your client has so you can personalize their workouts. With subtle adjustments, based on feedback from the physical therapist, you can help your client get stronger and avoid injury. But how do you do this?
#1 Understand your Role
Unless you have additional training, Pilates instructors are not physical therapists. We work in studios, not clinics. (Even when my husband asks me a question about a nagging injury, I preface my response with “I’m not a doctor.” “I know you’re not a doctor,” he says, “I would know if we’re paying back loans to medical school!”) So yeah, I have a habit of letting my clients know the limit of my knowledge. I’ll say things like “In the past, I’ve worked with (fill in the blank injury or condition)” or “in my experience, that can indicate a (tight muscle or condition), but a doctor would know for sure.” Lying or misleading a client to make them think you have experience you don’t have is never a good idea. Googling a condition does not mean you have experience with a medial condition. I’ve found the more upfront I am with what I know, the more a client with respect and want to work with you. Your reputation is your calling card, and being honest with your certification is of the upmost importance.
#2 Use the Physical Therapist’s Secret Power to your Advantage
Physical therapist have a secret power that Pilates instructors don't have: They have training in diagnosis of injuries. If I have a client with pain in their ankle, I’m not sure it it’s coming from ankle instability or hip tightness (I’ll look at both). But a physical therapist, with the medical training they have, will be able to correctly diagnosis what is causing the pain. I can then use that information to help the client get better.
#3 Know the only question you’ll ever have to ask a Physical Therapist
Physical therapists are busy people. They see people everyday like Pilates instructors, but also have to dedicate time to charting as well. All physical therapists I’ve reached out to have taken the time to help me make sure what we’re doing at the Pilates studio also follows their protocols and recommendations, and I try to make sure they know I value their time by only asking one question: “What muscles do we stretch and what muscles do we strengthen?” It’s so simple, and will only take them a few minutes to jot down a few notes or send quick email. Sometimes I tell my clients to ask that question and have the physical therapist write the answer down. I’ve found this is often how a physical therapist will plan a client’s protocol, and if you know the answer to this question, you can easily work their recommendations into a session (even following the traditional order). For example, for knee injuries, it is commonly recommended to strengthen the lateral muscles of the hip and stretch the IT band and Hamstrings. I now know a basic Reformer Class would be:
Footwork (with the O-ring in parallel or the Power Circle on the outside of the legs to work the lateral muscles)
100 (Keep the ring)
Front and Leg Circles (add IT band and Hamstring stretches)
Stomach Massage (add band or ring)
Short box (cue lateral muscles to hold the strap, add IT and Hamstring stretches after Tree)
Long Stretch Series (no contraindications)
Kneeling Knee Stretches (cue lateral muscles)
Running in Place (band works here, Power Circle not so much)
Pelvic Lift (could narrow foot stance to add band or circle)
****Recommendations only, I am not a doctor :)
****Notice I also used my super power as a Pilates instructor: I worked the entire body, not just the injury.
That specialized lesson for my client took no time at all. I didn’t google exercises I’m not trained to teach. I didn’t pretend to have knowledge I didn’t. I simply took the Physical Therapist recommendations and translated it into my existing base of knowledge. The client will make more progress, work out safer, and make more progress. Meet my new best friend: the physical therapist! We’re part of the same village, making our client stronger!
Why You Should Take an Advanced Training (Even if you Don't have Advanced Students)
Look at those lovely ladies!! Trainings are so much fun!! But something I often hear is “I don’t have any advanced clients. So I don’t need to take the Advanced training.” (And don’t even get me started on “I don’t need to take the Advanced Training. I can just learn the exercises from a video.” That’s another blog post).
So, why should you take an advanced training if you have clients that mainly do beginning work?
Your personal practice. Our work as instructors is our commitment to our practice. That does not mean that we judge ourselves or our self worth by how we look or compare ourselves as to who is doing Snake and who is not. It means that to teach Pilates we need to be challenging ourselves to progress to the most challenging exercises for us. Taking a training at a higher level will push you to learn new exercises (and probably practice for assessment). I haven’t taught an advanced training without seeing new exercises open for people that they thought were too difficult or even impossible to open up for their bodies. I find we are often overly focused on one exercise (like Snake) but are skipping all the exercises that lead up to Snake. Taking a training will help break that exercise you’ve been working toward down to it’s mini pieces and pre-exercises so that you can add more exercises to what you’re already doing with confidence.
You need to know the whole system. If you know the entire system, it’s easier to teach it. Many of the questions I get from beginner teachers are because they don’t know the entire system, and when you know the entire system, the beauty of it begins to unfold. For example, many people ask why we’re so picky about transitions, but if you’re not trying to get the advanced work done “in and hour and in the shower,” the transitions may not make sense. If you don’t know the entire order on Reformer, it doesn’t make sense why Spine Stretch moves in the order. When you see how all the exercises work in the complete system, you are able to see the overarching organization and am better able to choose which exercises to teach as your client progresses.
It will make you a better teacher. When you know the full expression of Joe’s work, you know where the journey takes your clients. Maybe Snake is something that will never be the best choice for your clients’ bodies, but if you know the purpose and goal of that exercise, you may know a pre-exercise or mini exercise that will meet that same goal (maybe on anther apparatus). If you know the fluidity and strength that the advanced work requires, you will teach your clients to that higher level, even if they never learn the more challenging exercises.
Working with your peers will inspire you. Sometimes it’s the little conversations that happen on breaks that will help solve a problem you’re having, a business issue, or a client issue. I always learn something from a training, especially from the more advanced trainings since the teachers have all been teaching for a longer time so they have so much to share. New ideas and solutions to problems and more peer help happens the more you advance in the system. These friendships and teaching moments will then continue to inspire you. It’s so important to help share in each other’s accomplishments, frustrations, and creative solutions. We carry this work together. Before I was an educational training center, I worked by myself and without advancing in the system, I could have easily started to teach “Jessilates.” Seeing the work of the Master instructor and my peers always helped to keep me working not only within the system, but also to it’s highest potential.
Feeling inspired yourself to level up? Check out our next Trainings here.
Posture Exercises for Standing
I was a guest blogger at GetCorrectPosture! My clients often tell me that they have standing desks (because sitting is the new smoking) but standing with bad posture isn't that much better for you than sitting. Check out my tips and why I love the Power Circle so much at the link above.
And if you want more Power Circle, check out my abs and glutes video here.
P.S. credit to my son for the photo :)
Top Five Differences Between Pilates and Yoga
So what is better? Yoga or Pilates? That is a difficult question to answer, and it does depend on your workout goals. Keep in mind, too, that there are many different types of yoga and even different styles of Pilates, so these are general guidelines.
The goal of yoga is spiritual enlightenment. That does not mean that Pilates cannot be a spiritual practice, and it does not mean that yoga is not a workout. It does mean that at the heart of a yoga practice is a spiritual component, and that usually involves mediation or other techniques to quiet your mind. I consider my Pilates practice a moving meditation, but I don’t spend time meditating as a component of my practice. I do meditate, but it is separate from my Pilates work.
The goal of all Pilates exercises is the strengthening of the Powerhouse. This is true no matter what style of Pilates you practice. The Powerhouse is a centering concept, but it is also a physical place. It is the two inch band that runs above and below your navel. Every exercise in Pilates is trying to connect you to this part of your body and tone and strengthen this area. This does not mean that yoga does not work your core or that Pilates does not work and tone other parts of your body. It means that Pilates exercises are always focused on this area, no matter what else is working.
Pilates was made for the modern body. Joseph Pilates created his system of exercises between 1912-1967, and moved to New York City in approximately 1933. That means he knew what concrete was, and cars, and buses and chairs. His work cannot help but be influenced by the wear and tear and stress these modern conveniences place on our bodies. The development of yoga is over 5,000 years old. It was not made for a mainly sedentary population. Most people 5,000 years ago walked everywhere, much more than we do now and sat on the floor. They got more movement preparing their food than some of us get in an entire day. That is a different body than Joseph designed his work around. This does not mean that yoga has never been updated or that Pilates does not tap into ancient wisdom. It means that Pilates was created for people who live in the modern world because it is a modern invention itself.
Pilates was not made for a yoga mat. Hey, even yoga wasn’t made for a yoga mat (see the 5,000 year old practice mentioned above). But Mr. Pilates made his own mats, and they are way thicker than your average yoga mat. They usually were a raised platform with much more cushioning for your spine. They had extra boxes at the sides to place your legs wider than a yoga mat. They had straps for your feet to help keep your feet stationary as you rolled and poles to help stabilize your shoulder girdle for inversions or open your chest for extensions. If you’re doing Pilates, you should at least double your mat to cushion your spine. Pilates has more spinal articulation and rolling (see the focus on the Powerhouse listed above) so if you’re doing Pilates at a health club, please find a thicker mat or hack one yourself to protect your spine.
Pilates has equipment. I’m not talking props like bands or bolsters. I’m talking about the Reformer, Cadillac, Barrels, Chairs…. Mr. Pilates saw the mat as the foundation to his work, but without the support and aid of the equipment, it’s really hard to progress in your Pilates practice. Equipment and mat really are meant to go together (see also Mat vs. Equipment Pilates). The Reformer and the mat are the cornerstones to the Pilates work, and Mr. Pilates always intended for his students to do both. The stretch, support, and resistance work on the Pilates equipment with the springs really has no equal in any exercise format. It combines open and closed chain work, tempo variations, and deep stretches you cannot find if you only have a mat alone.
What are your thoughts? Do you teach yoga and Pilates? How do you think they compare?
New Training Offerings for 2019
Do you need CECs or are you looking to up your skills? Join one of our Continuing Education Courses. These are open to all certification programs and levels and Pilates enthusiasts. We will be offering the Prop Shop Workshop and MVe Chair Course this winter at JSP.
Are you looking to jump start your Pilates career? Then our Peak Pilates Comprehensive Level I Training is what you are searching for. This is the foundational course to the full Comprehensive Certification, and covers all beginning exercises on Mat, Reformer, Tower, Small Barrel, Ladder Barrel, High Chair, Low Chair, Power Circle, and Wall. It’s the best way to expand on your knowledge as a Pilates practitioner and take it to the next level.
Check out all the details here.
Pain, Pilates, and a Tool to Help
One of the things I love about Pilates is how it gives us permission - permission to listen to our bodies. I feel like when I was younger I was all about pushing myself and pushing my body to perform. In order to do that, I had to ignore signs of fatigue and pain.
Then I found Pilates, and my teacher would ask me questions like "Where do you feel that?" Nobody had ever asked me that before. As long as I was performing well, nobody cared. Now that I've found Pilates, I use my workout time to not only improve the performance of my body, but to also check in. It's one of the things I love about traditional Pilates that follows Joe's order. If you repeat the order of the exercises each day, they become a barometer to check in and see how your body is doing. The consistency acts as a guide to see how my body is feeling each day. If the 100 is always first, then if it feels different, better, or worse, I know I need to adjust. I need to listen. So if I feel a twinge or a pain, it matters.
The other thing that Pilates taught me is the difference between good pain and bad pain. Discomfort that lasts during an exercise but goes away when I'm done? Good. Discomfort that lasts hours later? Bad. Muscle pain? Good. Joint pain? Bad.
And that joint pain leads me to that little bottle above (housed in front of my manuals and research and general to-dos).
I was sent a sample of the Banja Balm by Khroma Herbal Products, so if I was working out and felt a twinge or pain, I would apply the balm to the area after I worked out. I would massage it in and I always felt better. So better, in fact, that applying the balm is now part of my ritual after my Pilates practice. Usually, I workout at 8 or 9pm after the kids are in bed, so I use Pilates as a way to unwind and check in after a long day. After my workout, I'll apply the balm, and really massage it in. I've found it also helps relieve the over-stimulation that nighttime workouts can give me as well. It smells super good, and is full of vegan and organic yummy ingredients. I've been recommending it to my clients who want a sore muscle rub without camphor because some of them are adverse to the smell. It is a little grainy, which concerned me the first time I used it, but the balm melts on contact and absorbs well.
So how about a little self-massage after your Pilates session? Don't mind if I do.
Disclaimer: I was given a free bottle of the Banja Balm, but all opinions expressed above are my own.
Donation Mat for Hurricane Relief - and get a CEC
Join us at The Pilates Barre Portland October 21, 2017 at 10:00am for a Donation Mat Class taught by Master Instructor Jessica Schultz. Donate what you can. Every dollar will be given to the American Red Cross to aid continuing hurricane relief efforts. Any Peak instructor attending will receive 1 CEC no matter what they donate. This class is open to the public. Love wins!!! Let's do this people!
Chair and Barrel CEC Workshop
Want to advance your Pilates practice in the new year? Keep your certification current? Lean 73 exercises and how to integrate them into a session? Check out our latest Instructor Newsletter to learn more about our Workshop January 30-31st.
The Top Three Reasons to Choose the Peak Pilates Training Program
I often get asked what makes Peak Pilates unique. After years of owning my own studio and hiring teachers of many different backgrounds, here is what I can say for sure.
1. We teach Pilates by honoring the past
Peak Pilates teaches Pilates as a movement system, honoring the work of Joseph Pilates. We don't feel his work needs to be changed, but we work hard to understand it in today's language with some minor adjustments to reflect the advancements of science and what we know about the body and mind. You certainly wouldn't want a doctor with medical knowledge limited to the last century. So as a Pilates instructor, it's important to understand advancements that have been backed up by science so that you have the latest knowledge to safely teach your clients and help them meet their workout goals.
2. It's all included.
At Peak Pilates, our training is integrated. After successful completion of PPC-I, you will know all the beginning exercises on Mat, Reformer, Cadillac/Tower, Chair, Small Barrel, Ladder Barrel, and Power Circle. You will not pay additional money to assess. You will pay for the four modules and material fees (and shipping). That's it. You will understand how to modify exercises to keep people safe with general back, knee, wrist, ankle, shoulder or neck problems, as well as how to modify a class for a healthy older client. Everything to understand the system is included. You don't need pre-anatomy courses. Anatomy is included.
3. We teach not just WHAT to teach, but HOW to teach.
There are a number of reputable companies that can teach you what the 100 is, but at Peak we teach you how to teach your clients to perform the 100. That means how to spot, how to communicate, how to use imagery and touch...all the amazing things that will set you apart as a Pilates instructor. Our Five-Part Formula for Success is unique in that it sets up people who have little to no teaching experience to achieve excellent results. Even if you have taught before, the Five-Part Formula will expand and deepen your teaching skills.
Without this system unique to Peak, it's easy for beginning instructors to get overwhelmed. Imagine, you've spent thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours taking exercises apart and discussing the nuances of movement. So what do you do when you get that first new client in front of you? If you share everything you know about an exercise, they will very quickly be overwhelmed. How do you know what to say and when to say it? How do you cue a body in motion to stay in motion without music? How do you safely progress clients? As a graduate of a Peak Pilates training program, you will know how to do all these things. And because you have this knowledge, you will stand out, and you will get excellent results.
So start your Pilates journey will all the information necessary to succeed - check out our latest trainings and get started today!
The Best Pilates Exercise for your Lats
So, that title was total click bait. Sorry, there are no Pilates exercises for your lats...not that Pilates doesn't work your lats...let me explain...
Someone asked me the other day for an exercise to work their lats. And I was stumped for a little bit. What should I give them? The arm weight series? Row Series on Reformer? Pull Up on Chair? And then it hit me why I didn't have a quick answer. All Pilates exercises work your lats. And more importantly, in Pilates, we don't break the body down into segments.
Your lats (or latissimus dorsi) are a major posture muscle and connect your trunk to your pelvis. They also help to rotate your scapula (shoulder blades) downward, which is important since most people are becoming kyphotic due to smart phone or computer use, or overworking their chest muscles. If you have a kyphotic posture, your shoulders generally rotate inward.
But in Pilates, we don't isolate the lats and then work them separately from the rest of the body for 10 minutes, or have a "back" day and a "leg" day. We are continually trying to depress the shoulders for good posture and alignment (not the entire way, but only say, 80%). So, the 100 becomes a lat exercise. Even a "leg" exercise like Footwork on the Chair uses your lats to help keep your trunk elevated and stable. See those ladies working above on the ladder barrel? They're working their lats, too, to help keep their balance.
And that brings me to the bigger realization I had when I was asked this question. In Pilates, we don't think of the body as separate parts. We think of the body as a whole. We want to strengthen our lats so they can help us stabilize our trunk, not just to have strong lats, or to have a good-looking back. It's important to see how all the muscles connect, not to just work them in isolation. It's this connection that makes Pilates so functional. That way, your lats help you lift your child, lift weights, and execute the Pull Up on Chair. We don't want to separate your muscles from the movement your body needs to perform, and that's what makes Pilates a movement system.
So, go ahead and work your lats. Every exercise, all the time. Your posture will thank you for it, and you'll be stronger and more supported in all you do.
Mat Vs. Equipment Pilates - Which is Better?
People often ask me which is better - mat or equipment Pilates. Or people will tell me, "I hate mat" or "I only do mat." So which is better? Well, let's start by looking at what makes each unique. As I say to my children when they complain that someone got a bigger piece of something or a longer whatever, "You are not equal, you're unique."
Some things that make mat unique:
1. It's portable. You can do it just about anywhere with very little equipment. See Keeping Up Your Workout While Traveling.
2. It's affordable. You'll probably pay $10-15 for a mat class, while equipment classes will run you about $25-60, depending on how many people are in a class.
3. It's what Joseph created first. It's the beginning of the work. It connects you to the largest equipment available - the earth. It's is the foundation to everything.
4. It's done using your own body for stability and is more open-chain (exercises where the hand or foot is free to move). This means that you will have to work in your core a lot to hold your body still or mobilize it during an exercise.
5. Mat has more flow. Since you're not getting up to move a box, change a spring, or attach a bar, you can just keep moving from one exercise into the next.
So how is Equipment Unique?
1. It uses more resistance. Most equipment (outside of the barrels) have springs. These springs give resistance in both directions to every exercise. So, if you're looking to strength train and up your metabolism, the equipment will help.
2. If you need more support and alignment cues, equipment has the edge as well. On reformer alone, you have a head rest, shoulder blocks, and a foot bar so your teacher can easily see exactly how your body is moving. I call my Reformer the diagnostic piece of equipment.
3. There are more exercises on equipment. There's about 50 mat exercises, and on reformer 250, chair even more than that. So it's great to help keep variety in your Pilates routine.
So which is better? It's important to understand that Pilates is best as a system. If you've always done the hundred on the mat, imagine pumping your arms with resistance (that's Reformer). If you've always done Short Spine with springs to help you, imagine doing it without them and you'll really build up your Powerhouse and train it how to lift your pelvis while performing the Roll Over on the mat.
I've seen it time and time again, clients who only like one or the other, and they don't progress as much as clients who perform the entire system. What you learn on one informs your body on the other. You'll build newer connections faster and deeper if you do both.
And sadly, whichever one you "don't like" is probably the one you have to do. Sometimes tighter people don't like mat - it's a lot of sitting or straight legs extended in the air if your hamstrings are tight. But guess how you help lengthen your hamstrings? By performing mat. People who don't like equipment because it's too much stopping and starting probably have a hard time connecting their mind and body without distraction. But guess what helps with that? Unlocking the rhythm sections on Reformer.
So, yes, I love my two children equally. Does one get on my nerves sometimes? Do I feel more connected to another at points in my life? Certainly. But that doesn't mean I stop loving one or the other. So challenge yourself to explore new exercises on the mat, or try an equipment class. You may just find that it helps push your body in a new way help you go deeper into the work.
Keeping Up Your Workout While you Travel
I once had a conversation with a client and I told him that I figured out my body could go three days, four tops without Pilates or I would start to feel some tightening in my SI joint. His reply to me was, "It sounds like you're addicted. It's like Pilates is your crack." I do think my body does go into withdrawal when I don't do Pilates, so whenever I travel, I have a plan. Here are some simple ways to keep up your workout while you're away from your favorite studio.
1. Did you see those cool note pads from Pilates Nerd? It has the classical mat order, power circle, wall, toe work, and space to write more notes! It's perfect! I write out my client's workouts on these papers, and it saves time since I only need to fill in reps or modifications for them. Some of my clients even take a picture with their smart phone so they don't even have to travel with the piece of paper.
2. Have you made friends with classical Pilates yet? All you need is a mat and your brain. You barely need much space at all. You can even travel with a Power Circle easily to do a Power Circle Mat. Or what about Reformer on Mat? This very challenging workout will take your Pilates to a whole new level. Have a certified Pilates instructor teach you it before your trip. If you know the Classical Reformer order, it won't be hard for you to remember how to practice Reformer on the Mat.
3. Did you know I have workouts here? All free, all fun, and a great way to take me with you on the road! They're all listed here. You can also find the JSP youtube channel here.
4. Other options that cost money include: a skype lesson with your teacher, or drop in on a Pilates class where you are traveling. Find a list of Peak Pilates certified instructors here.
In Defense of Pilates as Movement System
So I read this on a blog the other day, and, well, it kinda made me sad:
"One casualty was Lisa Brinkworth. Lisa is a resident of Buckinghamshire, England and the mother of three small sons. Last year, she started taking Pilates at a local studio and was inspired by a fellow student to sign up for a twice weekly “planking” competition. Initially she was excited by the planking event and did her best to hold the pose longer and longer. Around Christmas, Lisa began suffering what she describes as an “excruciating pain in the left side of my chest.” The pain was so bad that she feared she was having a heart attack or had developed breast cancer. Doctors finally diagnosed her condition as “costochondritis,” an inflammation of the cartilage that joins the ribs to the breastbone. “How many of us,” she wondered, “are putting ourselves at risk of such a painful unnecessary injury?”
Now, I want to be very clear. I do not want to start to compare Pilates with barre classes. I take barre workouts and enjoy them. The first class I was ever certified to teach was the New York City Ballet Workout, which could easily be described as a barre workout (without the barre, it's all done standing in center). So let's not go there. This is not about what is better or worse.
For me, this is about Pilates and how we teach it. Did you see the pictures of the planking on the blog? It's bodies piled on top of each other. How is this Pilates? What part of Pilates should involve a competition?
I believe that Pilates should be taught as a movement system. I believe Joe taught it that way. It's one of the things that makes Pilates, well, Pilates. So what is a movement system? It's process-oriented, non-competitive, and non-intimidating. A movement system should stimulate the senses, the mind, and motor skill development. It should focus on breathing and regeneration of energy. I think you could ask any of my clients and they would say this is how we teach Pilates at JSP. But I teach it that way because I think it honors the way Joe taught it. Contrast Joseph Pilates' quotes below with the experience that poor woman had:
"Contrology (Pilates) is complete coordination of body, mind, and spirit. Through Contrology (Pilates), you first purposefully acquire complete control of your own body and then, through proper repetition of its exercises, you gradually and progressively acquire that natural rhythm and coordination associated with all your subconscious activities."
"Beginning with the introductory series, each succeeding exercise should be mastered before proceeding progressively with the following exercises."
or my favorite:
"A few well-designed movements, properly performed in a balanced sequence, are worth hours of doing sloppy calisthenics or forced contortion."
If we honor Joseph's work, we must teach Pilates as a movement system. Even if we cannot agree on imprinting or order or neutral pelvis, can we at least agree on this? I don't want to ever see Pilates mentioned in an article entitled "The Good and Bad of Extreme Workouts." Really. If you're teaching something that extreme that you are putting bodies on top of one another, working people past the point of exhaustion, and competing one person against another, can you please just not call it Pilates? Because it really isn't.
The saddest thing about the blog post? I agree with the author's point. She writes, "The best way to transform your body remains training under the guidance of a knowledgeable teacher and committing yourself to regular, focused practice." I couldn't agree more, I just would call that "Pilates."
The Top 3 Reasons Why Men Should Do Pilates
I know Pilates has gotten a girly reputation, but Joseph Pilates was not a dancer - he was a boxer! How more manly can you get? But I can't tell you how many times people have asked me if I have any male clients. Yes, and do, and here's why.
You get to stretch without taking a yoga class with a bunch of hyper-flexible women. Many of my guy clients know they need to stretch (and did you know that a tight psoas can lead to erectile dysfunction?) but they don't want to be surrounded by super flexible women (women tend to be more flexible than men) with their feet touching their heads while they struggle with straps and blocks to approximate the same position. In every exercise in Pilates, there is a stretch and a strength. So in Spine Stretch Forward, you're working your abs but at the same time you're stretching your hamstrings, but you get to move and flow in the position. You don't have to sit and hold something that may feel intense for 3 minutes.
It helps to open your chest. Many men focus on developing the muscles of their chest, but that can lead to overly tight chest muscles, even kyphosis (and hey, staring at that smart phone all day isn't helping!). Without stretching the chest, over developed chest muscles can cause lower back pain, and tight hips (see reason #1 above for a sneaky way to stretch without forcing yourself into Cobra). Pilates extension for the upper back focuses on opening the thoracic spine without loading the low back - it's more of a sternum lift than an arch of the mid-back. If you're really tight in your chest, deep back bends will only cause more pain. The smaller, more strategic extension in Pilates will help deeper postural changes take effect.
You'll perform better at your favorite sport. Many of my clients (male or female, for that matter) remark on how much more lung capacity they experience after starting a regular Pilates practice. The lateral opening of the side body coupled with the lift of the rib cage in forward flexion is unlike any other exercise system. This means that in your Pilates lesson, you are lengthening your ribs off your pelvis in two directions - to the side (which is easier and will give your body more stretch) and when you round forward (which is much more challenging). But if you can master that, you are training your internal, deepest abdominal muscles to support the carriage of your rib cage. If you can do that, you'll make more space to breathe, helping you increase your endurance for whatever sport you do.
By now, we all know that King James does Pilates.
Are you ready to join him? Or are you already a male student of Pilates? Share your story in the comments!
More Powerhouse Cues
100 - Box heavy like cement
Roll Up - String of pearls
One Leg Circle - Stir leg w/in hip socket, hips heavy into floor
Rolling Like a Ball - Keep chin to chest like a laser, Eyes focused on pelvis
Single Leg Stretch - Don't rock the boat
Double Leg Stretch - Scoop to reach out, Wrap your hips and scoop belly, Hold an orange between your thighs
Scissors - Scoop out belly with ice cream scoop
More Cues Here
Why I Don't Workout with my Clients
I can't tell you how many times I have had this conversation.
Someone: What do you do?
Me: I teach Pilates.
S: Wow, you must be in such good shape! You get to workout for your job!
M: Actually, I don't workout with my clients. I lead them through a workout.
S: Oh.
That's right, I do not get paid to workout. As a Pilates instructor, that is not my job. It's not about my workout, it's about my client's.
Here are some other compelling reasons why I continue to teach this way:
Head and Neck Issues. Most of Pilates is done on your back. If I'm demonstrating, you have to crane your neck, most likely to one side, to see me perform an exercise. That's really unsafe for your neck. A majority of the mat work is done on your back with your head lifted, and it's just not safe for my clients to try to look to see me while they workout.
Range of Motion. When I was teaching the New York City Ballet Workout, the instructor I was training under told us not to use our longest leg extension when taking class with our students. She said that it would lead the people in our classes to try to match the height of our leg. For most people in the general population, it's really hard to toss your leg up high in the air without crunching your back or rounding your spine. If your clients are watching you and you are really flexible, your clients may try to match your range of motion. Range of motion in Pilates is determined by form. But that means everyone's range is different, and a high leg may not be better, especially if you're using your quad to lift it instead of your Powerhouse. So it's better not to look around a room and compare yourself to anyone during a Pilates class, not even your instructor. It's better to stay in your body and make sure you are in the exercise, not performing the exercise.
Pilates Is Mind/Body Work. Many of us are visual learners, and rely on that part of our brains to learn movement. When we turn that off and really listen to our instructor's words, it forces us to go internal for movement correction, instead of external. This is the essence of mind/body work. I don't want to cheat my clients of that experience. It may take them longer to learn an exercise, but it will be better for them to take the time to figure it out than to just mimic my movements.
I Want to be Safe, Too. As an instructor, even if I'm demonstrating, part of me is watching the class and thinking about them. How do I stay connected in my body during my Pilates work if my brain is concentrating on myself and my clients? I'm more likely to injure myself if I'm not concentrating on my body, or worse yet, just jumping in and out of exercises to demonstrate. I'm not aware of my own limitations or flexibility or strength that day to be safe in my own practice.
It Makes Us Human. I have not discovered some secret to being in shape. I have to juggle my workouts like any other mother, teacher, woman, or student around work, life, love, children, school.... Making time to workout helps me empathize with my clients when they fall behind in their homework to keep up with their Pilates practice on their own. It also helps me help them brainstorm ideas as to how to stay fit and healthy in this world where we are all so busy. As a Pilates instructor, I don't have eight hours a day to think about my body and workout, but I do have eight hours a day to devote to the work of Joseph Pilates. For that, I consider myself lucky. That's what inspires me to pull out my mat at the end of the day, sometimes at 11pm, to do the mat work. That's what devotion to Pilates is. That's what I teach, and that is my job.
The Best Advice I Ever Got
Follow the link below to check out my latest post for Peak Pilates, a must read if you are considering becoming a Pilates instructor!
http://peakpilates.com/en/community/the-best-advice-i-ever-got