Joe Pilates-Lover or Fighter?

I was never a good athlete; always the last one picked on the kickball team, an urban kid with no real exposure to sports. And unlike most other Pilates Instructors, I never had what it took to be a contender in Ballet. But when a friend asked me to accompany her to a free class teaching women Jiu-Jitsu, Wrestling and Self Defense some years back, I discovered I had all the skills I needed to be a great fighter. Why? Pilates. A strong core, strong legs, a flexible spine, the ability to breathe through physical challenge, balance, did I mention a strong core? In Jiu-Jitsu this is referred to as “Hara,” in Kung Fu it is the Dian-tian. No matter what you call it, it is the center of all strength and power necessary for fighting. Pilates was a fighter. He was a boxer and he wrestled. In this you tube link you can see him pole fighting, head butting and practicing one of my favorite Martial Arts, “Push Hands.” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6z7FBufu3Y&feature=related)

He designed the ideal exercise program for a fighter. Once I became more serious about Martial Arts, and started training with Renzo Gracie in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, (http://www.renzogracie.com) I would tell the guys (they were mostly guys) that I sparred with to try Pilates. They would look at me like I suggested they eat brussel sprouts and say, “Yea, I know it would be good for all these injuries…I did do yoga for a while.” That is not what I meant! I meant it would be good for your game. It would make you a much better fighter! Have you ever seen Fedor Emelianenko slide himself out of a hold? His back is so supple it is like it is made of jell-o. I don’t know if he actually does Pilates but he sure moves like he does. I recently had this conversation with Chris Robinson, a two-time Muay Thai kickboxing champion, Jiu-Jitsu Player and an outstanding Pilates Instructor here in San Diego. (http://www.corecoach.net/) He said he is finally getting his Jiu-Jitsu teammates to try Pilates and it is changing their game entirely. I was also happy to find a couple of people marrying Pilates and fighting in their practice. Amelia Sheftall, for example founded Karate Pilates in New York. (http://www.karatepilates.com) This trend is exciting and I know it will continue as people get more exposure to what goes on in a real Pilates session. So while we continue to enjoy Pilates for its healing properties, let us not forget about the fight.

Playing well with others-Advantages of working in a semi-private or small class

I am now teaching group classes at Club Pilates on Morena Blvd. in San Diego

http://clubpilatessandiego.com/

I happen to love working with small groups and besides making Pilates much more affordable in this economic climate, I think there are some distinct advantages to this kind of training.

I discovered the beauty of the mat tower class while working at Real Pilates in New York. (www.realpilatesnyc.com) Owner, Alycea Ungaro has mastered the form, creating extremely challenging yet safe and diverse workouts on the mat using arm and leg springs, push though bar, weights and the roll back bar. While teaching there, I had the good fortune to take weekly “Teacher’s Only” classes with Alycea. I would then, shamelessly steal her ideas and bring them to my own classes each week. I am excited to bring these ideas to San Diego!

While there are obvious advantages to working in a private session with the instructor paying close attention to alignment and form, here are some things that are unique to a small group session. First, it can be very beneficial to see different bodies executing moves. I think there is absolutely no place for competition in Pilates. We strive to push ourselves as much as we can within the confines of our own unique structure, age, level of conditioning and flexibility and experience. That said, there is something very motivating about seeing someone next to you fly into a position that might feel impossible and there is something satisfying about seeing someone struggle with something you have mastered. This can be a reminder of the progress you have made and a glimmer of hope for progress to come. The beautiful thing about Pilates, is that if you show up, you will make progress. This is not true of everything in life. Within this one structured world of controlled movements, we can strive towards mastery and achieve –not perfection- but significant improvement. It is useful to see where others are on this path. There is also the benefit of flow. Flow is one of the key principles of Pilates and when in a group setting, the class takes on a rhythm; the flow becomes central to the workout. Finally, there is energy. Energy feeds energy. You may have none; your neighbor may have a lot. The group dynamic is such that there is always, somehow, energy in the room to feed off of. So, bring what you have to a semi-private and leave the rest to your fellow students and me. To quote Woody Allen, “80% of success, is showing up.”

Pilates for Scoliosis management

I was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was 13. I still remember looking down at the doctor’s reddish brown patent leather shoes as he told me the news that I would have to wear a brace for the better part of my teenage years. I dissolved into a puddle of tears. He told my father to calm me down and left the room. The brace, it turned out, did nothing for me but ruin any chances of getting a date. At age 17, I went in for spinal fusion and had a Herrington rod put in my thoracic spine. Flash forward, age 28, I discover Pilates. At the end of my certification, which involved almost 2 years of doing Pilates for hours every day, my scoliosis had dramatically improved. I didn’t take any kind of measurements so I cannot give you numbers, but I can say that the rib cage that protrudes on the left front and right back of my body went down about an inch on each side. The lifted right shoulder became less lifted and I gained so much mobility in the rest of my spine that it makes up for the fused vertebrae. Most people who watch me do Pilates have no idea that there is a rod there. If all that change could happen in my late 20s, imagine what Pilates could have accomplished while I was still growing. I truly believe if I had discovered it earlier I could have avoided the brace and the surgery. Lately some insurance companies are starting to recognize the medical benefits of Pilates and I have had the pleasure of working with a handful of clients who were referred by a doctor and were able to have a large percentage of the session covered by insurance, but this is still rare. I am not saying that Pilates can cure scoliosis, but clearly it has powerful benefits and could perhaps in some cases, control scoliosis to the point where surgery is no longer necessary. So I am taking this opportunity to advocate that the medical community continues to analyze these benefits and consider Pilates a viable option for scoliosis management.

Studio web site

Come find me in San Diego at

http://www.pilatesmindandbody.com

How many sessions does it take?

In the ten years I have taught Pilates, I have seen bodies change. They become stronger, they become leaner, they move differently, and they become more agile. These are obvious goals of Pilates and I am thrilled to see them met. But the change that I find most interesting to watch is to see how people's relationships with their own bodies change after doing this work. People begin to feel differently about their bodies. They begin to love them, to appreciate their own strengths even within their limitations, and as a result they carry themselves differently and send a different message to the world. How long does it take for this to happen? The predictable answer would be to quote Joe himself who said, "In 10 sessions you will feel the difference, in 20 you will see it and in 3o you will have a whole new body." For the most part I agree with this but to be honest, I have seen it happen in one session. In your first session you begin to understand the principle of initiating movement from your powerhouse, this changes the way you stand and move in the world and this simply makes you look different. In one session, if you work with someone like me who means business, you will work really hard. I mean hard in a way that you are not used to working, no matter what your level of conditioning. Simply by working deeply, intensely, pushing yourself to do physical things you didn't know you could do, and finding the deeper muscles that support your body you will change your relationship with your body. You will begin to appreciate it in a different way; you will want to do more for it (because it actually feels GOOD after you push it in those ways) and you will start to see your own potential to take pride in your own body. It is yours it is the only one you have! Love it! It may take more than one session for this transformation to take place and it often does but I am going to go out on a limb here and challenge you to see if you can get all that the first time.