05/30/2022
IT'S NOT ABOUT THE EXERCISES, BUT YOU STILL HAVE TO DO THEM.
In my heart of hearts, I want to see people understanding and embodying bodily autonomy. This reaches far beyond a Pilates class, but for the sake of simplicity, let’s look at it through a movement lens.
Five years ago I created a self-practice studio model. My intention was to dial it in so well that I could teach the model to other teachers and studio owners. My thinking was that practitioners wouldn’t be held hostage to the cost of Pilates AND it would increase income while decreasing output for the teacher. If you teach movement you’re likely familiar with burnout, it’s a real thing.
I held a utopian vision of people coming to the studio after doing ten or so private sessions with me and using the space and equipment to work out, explore, reach their personal potential, and hopefully surprise themselves. I, of course, would be there to answer questions and engage with them while they took ownership of their practice.
If you’re not already familiar with Pilates, I’ll share with you that the original repertoire, created by Joseph Pilates, is more than five hundred exercises put together in a specific order to help you “heal thyself.” Then, considering all the Pilates teachers who’ve taken the original method and given themselves creative freedom to teach the principles without adhering to the exercises and order (this is a point of contention within the Pilates community, but completely uninteresting to me, so I won’t go into it), we’re really talking about an unlimited number of exercises/movements to choose from.
When I ask people (clients/students/willing participants) if they’re practicing at home, the two most common reasons they aren’t are: they were afraid they’d hurt themselves AND/OR they were afraid they’d do it wrong.
In the last five years, while I have not opened a self-practice studio, I have continued to hold this concept near to my heart and continued to learn about how the brain learns, how the nervous system keeps us safe, and how at times, limits us.
In my original model, I created some basic exercises to start with on each of the pieces of equipment. This was supposed to take the guesswork out of it.
It did not come together the way I envisioned.
Failure.
Or was it?
In hindsight, it’s a good thing I didn’t throw all my time and dollars at this project because I still lacked the whole picture.
Yes, you have to do the exercises if you want to gain strength and flexibility. But trying to “go in” through the exercises is a fool's errand.
You need adequate co-regulation FIRST. This is something that happens when your nervous system feels safe with someone else’s nervous system. This is not something we decide or think our way through, it’s something that’s happening regardless of our awareness.
The way I support good co-regulation is through my own embodiment. While this does not mean I’m everyone’s cup of tea, it does mean that I trust myself and you to understand what we’re learning, and understand whole-person potential. It means that I’m feeling my way through just as much as thinking, if not more.
If you’ve been considering beginning or returning to a Pilates practice, now’s the time. Yes, you’ll do the exercises, no they’re not what you're ultimately learning.
It’s not about the exercises, but you still have to do them. I’ll help you. I’ll hold your hand without holding you hostage.
BOOK TODAY!
P.S. If you're a Pilates teacher interested in learning how to foster more autonomy in your clientele, let's play!
