Pilates Starts With P! By Allie Greene April 25, 2018 * * * * * * Warning: one of my close friends read this and said it sounded a little preachy. When I read it again, there are parts that may have that tone. I wrote this as a […]
You’ve Gotta Get Your “Joe” On! – by Amy Taylor Alpers
You’ve Gotta Get Your “Joe” On! – by Amy Taylor Alpers April 18, 2018 As we all know, bodies come in many shapes and sizes and are often categorized in certain ways. In fruit metaphors such as apple-, banana-, or pear-shaped; geometric forms such as rectangles, triangles, or circles; and […]
Going Archival – by Reiner Grootenhuis
Going Archival by Reiner Grootenhuis April 11, 2018 Becoming a Pilates teacher in today’s world often means enrolling in one of the big Pilates schools and learning, in their opinion, what they think Pilates is. As we discover from this experience, many of us find out that the Pilates described […]
Footwork: “Standing” on the Reformer – by Karena Thek
Footwork: “Standing” on the reformer – by Karena Thek March 28, 2018 My clients tend to really look forward to footwork on the reformer. They’ve been working hard through the series I’ve given them for the first 15-20 minutes and they are ready for a break. And take a break […]
Point / Counterpoint – Appreciating Different Points of View (with Amy Alpers and Wendy Arbuckle-LeBlanc)
A Rebuttal to James Crader’s Article By Amy Alpers “What is the Pilates method?” Most of us in the field of Pilates have tried to answer this question many times but have often fallen short. As one who has committed to a deep exploration of Joseph Pilates’ work for over 30 […]
Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should – by Sunni Almond
Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should By Sunni Almond March 21, 2018 In the Pilates world, there’s lots of ‘going the distance’. There are bendy people who can stretch all over the place and there are tighter folks who have no stretch whatsoever. Stretching further may look fancier […]
Fearless Swan – Is It Possible?: An Upside-Down Approach (I) – by Chantill Lopez
Fearless Swan – Is It Possible? Part 1: Fearless Extension – An Upside-Down Approach By Chantill Lopez As I discussed in my previous article (“A Question of Potential”), there’s no moment more susceptible to holding our students to a very low ceiling of potential than when we’re tackling extension. Great […]
PILATES ESP: A System to Successfully Teach the Fundamentals – by Sabrina Svard
~ From Wikipedia: Extrasensory perception, ESP, also called sixth sense, includes claimed reception of information not gained through the recognized physical senses but sensed with the mind. As instructors, we know that Pilates is magical. But at first, Pilates is anything but magical. In fact, some of it is just […]
The Short Box Series Deconstructed – by Clare Dunphy Hemani
The Short Box Series Deconstructed by Clare Dunphy Hemani Feb 28, 2018 “You are only as old as your spine is flexible” captures a key feature of the Pilates Method, speaking to the importance of a mobile spine as we get older. In our current work culture many people spend […]
Form Or Philosophy: That Old Question – by James Crader
Form Or Philosophy: That Old Question by James Crader Feb 21, 2018 Let’s be frank – we teach movement not magic. It’s an old (and by old I mean so old that it’s hard to believe it’s not dead yet) conversation: Is what I’m doing Pilates or not? If we […]
Red Thread of Pilates: The Mat – Study Guide – by Tracy Maurstad
Red Thread of Pilates: The Mat – Study Guide By Tracy Maurstad Feb 14, 2018 There’s a mythical creature I call Nicc. Nicc is short for No Injuries, Compensations or Challenges. Nicc walks into your studio and wants to learn the traditional Pilates mat work. How and in what order […]
Growing as a Pilates Instructor – Advice from Three Experts by Holly Nava
Growing as a Pilates Instructor – Advice from Three Experts by Holly Nava Feb 7, 2018 In January 2017, I made a big change. I quit my career of 15 years to become a Pilates teacher. I’d been feeling like my soul was slowly dying as I sat behind my […]
Brett Interviews the ‘Great’ Bob Liekens
January 31, 2018 Brett Interviews the ‘Great’ Bob Liekens Brett: Let’s talk about your school. Please give a little history about your school and tell us how it is different from other schools. Bob: Our school is called The Pilates Standard and it is not so different from other schools. […]
Training a Dancer in Pilates – by ‘Swami’ Doug Bentz
Jan 24, 2018 Training a Dancer in Pilates by ‘Swami’ Doug Bentz After 49 years in professional dance (and 40 years teaching dancers in the Conservatory of Performing Arts at Point Park University), I can honestly say my entire working life has been spent either dancing or working with dancers. […]
A Question of Potential – by Chantill Lopez
January 17, 2018 A Question of Potential By Chantill Lopez The scene: Halfway through class, bodies warm and faces flush, you’re ready to take it up a notch, venture into an area that’s sometimes tricky to teach and often difficult for students to “find”. Swan. You’ve been practicing Rocking Swan […]
My Pilates is Better Than Your Pilates – by Mike Perry
December 20, 2017 My Pilates is Better Than Your Pilates by Mike Perry It’s clear that within the Pilates teaching industry, the issue of authenticity remains at the heart of many discussions. I do my best not to interact with people I don’t know on social media these days (apologies […]
We Owe the World Our Experience – by Trent McEntire
December 13, 2017 We Owe the World Our Experience by Trent McEntire, Director of McEntire Pilates Imagine getting to a busy crossroad. The light tells you that you are able to walk across safely, however the voice in your head reminds you that it’s not safe. You can’t possibly make […]
Is Pilates a spiritual path? – Part 2 by Reiner Grootenhuis
November 29, 2017 Is Pilates a spiritual path? – Part 2 by Reiner Grootenhuis Last week, we began to examine Joseph Pilates’ claims about the Pilates method being a “complete coordination of body, mind, and spirit” but we stopped short of any final conclusion as to it being a spiritual […]
Is Pilates a spiritual path? – Part 1 by Reiner Grootenhuis
November 22, 2017 Is Pilates a spiritual path? – Part 1 by Reiner Grootenhuis The power of the mind has fascinated me since my early youth. My first contact as a teenager was autogenic training, which I taught myself with two books I had found on our bookshelf at […]
How to Prepare a Lunge – by Anna Schrefl
November 15, 2017 How to Prepare a Lunge by Anna Schrefl There are many different lunge variations in the Pilates programme, on the Wundachair, Reformer, Cadillac or Mat. The lunge is a great exercise to lengthen tight muscles such as the m. iliopsoas and the m. rectus femoris. We all […]
Pilates in the Hospitals: Back Where it All Began – by Karena Thek
Noveber 8, 2017 Pilates in the hospitals: Back where it all began Scolio-Pilates® works with Dayton Children’s Hospital By Karena Thek In the early phases of his work, Joseph Pilates did a lot more than provide fitness instruction and athletic training. He was on the cutting edge of rehabilitation. Physical […]
In Health and in Sickness – My Life Long Pilates Friendship – by Rachel Lotspeich
“Avoid It, If There’s Pain” Does This Pilates Maxim Do Our Clients More Harm Than Good? by Marie Wittman I am in the midst of relocating from California to Minnesota and part of this move has involved placing my clients in another trusted teacher’s hands. While I have gone through […]
What would happen if …? by Sunni Almond
October 25, 2017 What would happen if …? By Sunni Almond What would happen if … you dropped your risers (you know, the things that stick up at the back end of your reformer that hold the ropes that attach to your handles or loops) or you did your […]
You’re the Expert: Be Brilliant Every Day! – by Clare Dunphy Hemani
October 18, 2017 You’re the Expert: Be Brilliant Every Day! By Clare Dunphy Hemani In every profession, Pilates included, the most effective teachers are the ones who can communicate in simple terms, so the subject matter easy to understand, appropriate to the level of the learner. Elegant simplicity is an […]
Pilates: What is ‘it’? by Gary Calderone
Pilates: What is ‘it’? By Gary Calderone “As Pilates teachers – because we first had to experience ‘it’ in our bodies, and now wish to transfer that knowledge to others – we recognize that the expression of ourselves now is not the same as when we started then. Since then, we have […]
The Challenges of Teaching with Clear Intent by Peter Roël
Oct 4, 2017 The Challenges of Teaching with Clear Intent By Peter Roël CAN YOU MAKE MAYONNAISE? 3 egg yolks 3 – 5 tablespoons wine vinegar or lemon juice 1 ½ – 2 ¼ cups olive oil or salad oil or a mixture of each oil ½ teaspoon salt […]
OUT OF ORDER: Battling My Internal Pilates Police – Part 2 – by Sabrina Ellen Svard
Sept 27, 2017 OUT OF ORDER: Battling My Internal Pilates Police – Part 2 by Sabrina Ellen Svard OUT OF ORDER: Battling My Internal Pilates Police – Part 2 Last week, in Part 1, we learned about Sabrina’s Internal Pilates Police and left her in handcuffs. Will she escape? Read on […]
OUT OF ORDER: Battling My Internal Pilates Police – Part 1 – by Sabrina Ellen Svard
Sept 20, 2017 OUT OF ORDER: Battling My Internal Pilates Police – Part 1 by Sabrina Ellen Svard “Lie down on the carriage with your arches on the bar a fist distance apart. Headrest is down. Roll your shoulders back and widen your collar bones. Take a couple of breaths […]
Help Your Clients To Help Themselves – by Stephanie Behrendt PMA-CPT and Theo St. Francis
September 13, 2017 Help Your Clients To Help Themselves Sharing Session Responsibility with Spinal Cord Injury Clients This post is a collaboration by a trainer, Stephanie Behrendt, and a client, Theo St. Francis. In Pilates Intel style, we thought we’d shed some light on an aspect of training that […]
I am not just a Pilates instructor; I am an Entrepreneur – by Holly Furgason
Sept 6, 2017 I am not just a Pilates instructor; I am an Entrepreneur by Holly Furgason Walk the streets of the San Francisco Financial District for five minutes and you’ll hear people drop startup terms right and left. You’ll hear them talk about building their business from the ground […]
Hey! She Took My Ball! by Jenna Zaffino
Hey! She took my ball! By Jenna Zaffino August 23, 2017 It’s a moment of innocence. You’re scrolling through posts, liking pictures of your friends, checking out the latest Pilates happenings, and catching up on the news of the world through your online community. Then everything screeches to a violent […]
You Don’t Have to Reinvent the Wheel … If You Know How to Use It by Aubrey Johnson
You Don’t Have to Reinvent the Wheel … If You Know How to Use It by Aubrey Johnson Aug 30 2017 If someone told you they reinvented the wheel because it didn’t do a good enough job, how would you respond? My response would be “I’m curious…how did the wheel […]
Pullups!! – (an answer to Mike Perry ) – by Carol Robbins
Pullups!! – (an answer to Mike Perry ) – by Carol Robbins Aug 9, 2017 I was very interested to read Mike Perry’s recent Pilates Intel article on pullups. I have to say that I agree – not that you should have to perform a pullup or a deep squat […]
Continuing Education: Fast Track or Transformational Track? – by Madeline Black
Continuing Education: Fast Track or Transformational Track? by Madeline Black August 2, 2017 Every year, we all participate in workshops to elevate our work to better serve our clients, to be inspired, and (hopefully) to increase our value. Continuing our education brings us up to date on new research and […]
Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall?
Mirror, Mirror, Off The Wall by Carrie Pages Mirrors and movement disciplines have always gone hand in hand. I was a dancer and, for dancers, mirrors are intended to help perfect form and improve technique. I, however, used them to focus on every little imperfection I observed, which ultimately led […]
Are you Motivated – by Anna Schrefl
June 21 2017 Are you Motivated – by Anna Schrefl Motivation – everything changes with or without it. How easy a class can flow when we are training fully motivated; how fun it can be when our clients are enthusiastic about their workout. On the other hand, life can get very […]
Muscle Imbalances and Scoliosis – by Karena Thek author of Scolio-Pilates
June 14 2017 Muscle Imbalances and Scoliosis – by Karena Thek author of Scolio-Pilates Scoliosis is a beautiful study in how muscles adapt to the situation they are given. But it’s fair to ask questions of this adaptation … Are the adapted muscles strong? Are they weak? Or are there […]
Isle of Man – by Jonathan Grubb
June 7 2017 Isle of Man – by Jonathon Grubb I am very fortunate to live on a wonderful, scenic and peaceful island called the Isle of Man. However, when Joseph Pilates spent 3½ years on the island from late 1915 to early 1919, he was strictly confined within the […]
CoreAlign and Human Harmony: Standing Pilates? by Jonathan Hoffman
May 31, 2017 CoreAlign and Human Harmony: Standing Pilates? by Jonathan Hoffman To various degrees, Joseph Pilates has been in my mind for the last 30 years. I will never forget the first time we “met”, back in the in the mid-eighties when I was an ambitious undergraduate PT student. […]
PERSPECTIVE, PART 2: “DEPTH OF PERCEPTION” – by Amy Havens
May 24, 2017 PERSPECTIVE, PART 2: “DEPTH OF PERCEPTION” by Amy Havens In part 1 of this article, I spoke about perspective – our points of view. We each have our own. Some of us share similar opinions but, at the end of the day, we individuate with our […]