PILATAY

What makes Pilates, Pilates?

I hear from Pilates teachers EVERY DAY who are on the struggle bus because they didn’t learn the method.

Clients come into my studio CONSTANTLY telling me how hard it was to find a teacher who teaches it.

Classical Pilates is great. Contemporary Pilates is great. I’ve done certs in both, and I have had a full contemporary and classical studio.

But they are different approaches.

I fell in love with Pilates on an Allegro. My comprehensive contemporary tt taught me anatomy and contraindications and how to teach to the individual from a muscle/body part specific protocol that merged therapy with Pilates. I still use it today.

But I didn’t learn the method or the system or how to make it all connect. And when I did, it was like the heavens opening up - it worked SO WELL for me and my clients.

And that was my story, but I have so much respect for those who have gone the contemporary route. I have heard from many Pilates lovers who have learned to love movement through the franchises. I don’t want to minimize anyone’s experience.

I would like to effectively communicate and yes, market, so that people including myself aren’t so confused about what they’re doing. That’s the whole point.

Sure, a lot of what we see out there is simply not Pilates. But how do you effectively communicate that to the public who doesn’t understand what was going on in the 1990s and frankly doesn’t care.

And how do we do that without making it weird? “That’s not Pilates,” certainly isn’t helpful… or maybe it is.

I would love to hear your thoughts!

Happy weekend, Pilates lovers.

I know some of you can relate to this. 😬🤭🤣

Shoutout to Emily ❤️ for remembering this clip.

Love you. Mean it.

You can do Pilates on ANY equipment and even with no equipment.

And, as we all learned during Covid, even household items like skateboards and rolled up towels can convert into Pilates equipment. It ain’t that deep!

But it’s still soooo hard, especially for bridgers, to take that leap.🙋🏼‍♀️🙈 We LOVE our contemporary training and equipment! 😭 Plus…

➡️ “What will my clients think?” (…clients care about results, not comfort.)

➡️ “How can I afford it? (…you sell-buy piece by piece.)

➡️ “But I LOVE my equipment!” (…so keep it. MANY people do classical on contemporary and vice versa.)

HOWEVER. The fact is, classical Pilates equipment was designed for classical Pilates and contemporary Pilates equipment was designed for contemporary Pilates.

You can’t do those big Feet-In-Straps Leg Circles on a reformer without risers. In fact, they aren’t even a thing in the classical system. Sure, the classical system has frogs and circles, but they’re not for mobility alone… for that, you’d build using the system: ballet stretches on the Ladder Barrel or Cadillac, perhaps?

And that locked footbar on a contemporary reformer is KEY for safety in reformer Pilates classes… but it ain’t gonna let you transition swiftly from footwork into the hundred in the classical sequence. 🤷🏼‍♀️❌

“So I’ll just put classical springs on my contemporary reformer,” you say. Wrong.

But here’s a thing… that classical “feel” is not just about spring tension. It’s the whole package. In fact, (love her) recently did an experiment where she tested the tension of Gratz and Balanced Body springs and found the classical spring was most similar to a red Balanced Body spring…

“Impossible!” you say. “It FEELS so much heavier!”

Well, yes. B/c it’s not just about the springs. It’s the whole shebang: the wheels, the weight, the foot bar, the friction, the dimensions, the leather… it all contributes!!!

If you want the feel of the classical equipment, honestly, just take the leap.

That’s my advice. What do you guys think?

If Pilates isn’t your answer, you’re doing it wrong. 🤭

But for real. It does seem like other pieces in life fall into place a bit more smoothly when the Pilates practice is consistent.

I’ve gone through life chasing hacks and fads like everyone else, but it’s always left me feeling further behind when I inevitably fall off the wagon. Like crashing out of a fever dream… all-in to complete paralysis. Boom. Frozen. And this perimenopausal stage of my life is not helping matters.

You know what is? Pilates. Pilates is helping.

Because Pilates, true Pilates, isn’t a fad.

I like big picture. Reality. Common sense. Context. Sustainable consistency. Flexibility. I need it.

I don’t need to beat myself up when the high of chasing optimization crashes back down.

What I need, is to keep it moving. Figuratively AND literally.

But that’s the thing about Pilates. It’s why I was drawn to it and why I stick with it - it meets you wherever you are. In the moment. Whether I’m nailing it at 110% … or 10% is 100% of what I have to give. 🫶🏼❤️

It’s not *just* a fitness class or *just* a workout. It’s not a competitive aesthetic sport you train for. You don’t need to hit every “note” perfectly, every time.

You just need to show up and let it work for you. Wherever you are today. Full stop. 🛑🤷🏼‍♀️