In my 15+ years of teaching and owning a studio, I have been advised over and over that if I want to be successful in this industry, I should avoid using the word Pilates in describing or promoting my business. This advice, of course, comes from those who do not understand Pilates or the philosophy …
Mind-Body or Mind(minus)Body
As a child, I learned that one must not speak of politics and religion in polite company. The weather was always a safe choice. The past year has been a challenging time both in the US and around the World, and I am finding myself in unfamiliar territory. I realized early on in my career …
Is there still room for biomechanics in Pilates?
We have been hearing about Biomechanics everywhere these days, it seems like it’s the latest buzzword. In the fitness and health industry, we tend to latch onto one word, muscle or concept then use it, correctly or incorrectly, in every single situation, relevant or not. Let’s step back in time even before Pilates was known …
Between the Cues: The Magical Sound of Silence
Whether you are teaching a private session or group class, there are so many moving parts to observe, assess, and instruct. As teachers, we all have different strategies to manage this, whether through the use of cueing, hands-on adjustments, or breaking down movements into incremental parts. It is easy to get caught up in the …
Cueing the Breath: A Blessing and a Curse
One of the quintessential Pilates Principles is Breathing. Seems like an obvious task, but amazingly a significant challenge for many, especially with the amount of focus asked of them in a typical Pilates session. Joseph Pilates himself explains in his manifesto, Return to Life Through Contrology that to breathe properly we should “SQUEEZE EVERY ATOM …