As a Gyrotonic® and Gyrokinesis® Master Trainer and a Pilates Teacher Trainer I have the opportunity to meet a lot of trainers, studio owners, and other Master Trainers from all over the country and all over the world. Because our work is fairly specialized and somewhat unusual we tend to befriend each other and open up quickly, as not everyone in our lives understands truly what it is that we do. In meeting all these talented, dedicated people, the majority of whom are women, similar themes keep arising in their stories. These leaders and role models of the mind body fitness industry, these whole food eating, meditating, regular exercisers are very often actually pretty sick.

Among my friends and colleagues in the industry a seemingly disproportionate number of us experience symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome, adrenal fatigue, hormonal issues, autoimmune diseases, and just overwhelming, generalized fatigue. Among my trainer friends there are serval who are recovering from various cancers (keep in mind as you read, I do not at all mean to imply they are at all to blame for their cancers because of lifestyle choices they have made, there are many environmental and hereditary factors involved). In many of these cases the onset or flare up of these issues have coincided with periods of prolonged, elevated stress.

I myself have had at least two serious instances of what I can see now was stress induced illness, primarily due to the nature and intensity of my work. And even with the recognition of the consequences of my tendency toward overworking I still fall into the same trap repeatedly.Why is this happening to us? Here are some of the biggest contributing factors I see

We have a really skewed perception of “full time”is for our industry. As trainers of private clients and group classes full time should really only be 25 hours, 30 max. Why? In addition to our client hours, for which we are paid (unless, of course you’re a studio owner, in which case you may not get paid for teaching hours at all) we may also have prep time for classes, material review, research on the injuries or dysfunctions of our clients, scheduling, phone calls, emails, and texts to answer, client file notes to write, as well as professional reading. In a 9-5 desk job these tasks would generally be done during compensated “work” hours. For most of us these are unpaid hours tacked onto our daily and weekly work loads.

One on one sessions, group classes, and teacher training courses require a high energy output. I think we often underestimate the amount of focus we give our individual clients during their sessions and how draining this can be. Teaching eight private sessions a day, five to six days a week will quickly leave a trainer depleted. Group classes require still another sort of focus, as you try to address the needs of several clients simultaneously, while keeping them all safe, challenged, and entertained. We often enjoy our work so deeply and are energized by it on one level, so we might not noticed the ways in which its slowly draining us on another.

We need the money! This work is feast or famine, ebb and flow, and not always predictable. The panic of a slow period, when clients may be away for the holidays or at their summer cottages, can cause us to overcommit for the months that follow.

We love our work and can’t say no. I’m very guilty of this one. I get super excited about invitations to teach courses, or creating a day of Master Classes because students have requested it and I do happen to have one Sunday open in April where I could just squeeze it in. Students request courses after I’ve “finalized” my teacher training schedule for the year and I use up my last free weekend to fit in just one more. This past autumn I worked myself until I was completely run down when I had to finish the last of five Pilates manuals I had enthusiastically agreed to write, so it would be done in time to get to the editor and then the printer before the course started. I finished it on on a train from Frankfurt to Freiburg, on my way to still another course, which leads to the next point…

Our work often requires travel, which is fun but exhausting. While this is more of an issue for Master Trainers or teacher trainers, who travel to teach courses, many trainers do a good bit of traveling for continuing education. This is a great perk of our industry, but we have to recognize the toll it takes on our energy reserves.

So what do we do about it? I’m still working on this and will be the first to admit I don’t always take my own advice, but I have had times when I’ve hit that sweet spot of productivity and free time. Even just a month or so, when it all feels balanced and manageable. Here are some tactics that have worked for me (and which I am currently in the process of re-implementing).

Always have a day off. Every week. Maybe even two. You need the down time. You may think that days off are for wussies, but they’re not. Even you, super-trainer-extraordinaire, need a break. And you teach better when you’re refreshed, trust me.

Set your maximum workload and don’t schedule anything that will exceed that. This is not what you probably could teach, rather, what after careful consideration you’ve concluded you actually should be teaching. Do this for your daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly schedules. Maybe Wednesday is your crazy long day where you hit your absolute maximum, but then Thursday had best be a light day when you can fit in a walk in the woods or spend some good time with friends or family.

Make your household budget based on your leaner income months, stick to it and put any extra that comes in into an emergency fund and/or a “dry month” fund. This way you know you’ve got your expenses and spending covered each month and won’t be tempted to take on extra workload every time an opportunity presents itself.

Sleep. You know this. You’re a fitness professional. But we often neglect this basic, crucial key to our health and wellbeing. Set your bedtime so that it allows you your full night’s sleep before you need to be up in the morning. And then defend that bedtime against anything or anyone that encroaches upon it. And for traveling, I have a sort of wedge shaped travel pillow that sits on the tray table on the plane and lets me lean forward into it and actually sleep on flights. I even managed to sleep through most of a flight from LA to China with it and actually felt pretty refreshed when I arrived. That may not be the travel sleep hack for you, but consider what might be helpful to you, such as a day off when you return before going back to work.

Remember, your clients love you and want what’s best for you! The relationship between regular clients and their trainers is a pretty special one. We care about them and they care about us, too. If you need to adjust your schedule in a way that effects them so you can get home to have more time with your kid after school, or need to drop your Saturday sessions so you can have some downtime they will probably be more understanding than you think.

You might prep them a couple weeks in advance of a big schedule overhaul, saying something like “I’m realizing I’m working too hard and it’s effecting my health/family-life/kid/(whatever it may be for your situation). I’m looking at ways I can reorganize my schedule to take better care of myself”. This way, when you do have to move them to a different time slot, or maybe even transition them to another trainer, they’re less likely to see it as an inconvenience and will probably feel good about being able to be supportive of you. If they’re unpleasant or overly upset over it they may actually be one of the energy drains in your week and you’re probably better off focusing your time on you more positive clients.

It may be challenging to make these changes, in fact I know it’s hard because I’ve struggled with it throughout my 22 years of teaching. But it’s critical that we take care of ourselves to prevent excessive stress, burnout, and the health problems that follow, so that we can have fulfilling, prosperous, and sustainable careers for the long haul.

Have you experienced some of these issues? What are the challenges you face in staying healthy and balanced in your career? Have you come up with solutions that work for you? Let me know in the comments!

I’m not so much the “blogging type”, whatever that may be, but it seems the time has come that a blog is the most efficient and effective means to communicate with and support my students and colleagues around the country and around the world, and hopefully make some new interesting connections as well.The inspiration to start this blog comes from all the students and colleagues with whom I’ve sat over coffee who’ve had all sorts of questions and dilemmas relating to our somewhat peculiar field of “movement”.

A little bit about my background: I got my BFA in Dance from the University of Michigan. During my time there I suffered a pretty bad ankle injury. I would go on to see five Physical Therapists in the next couple of years, but couldn’t quite get past the injury.

When I graduated and everyone else was auditioning for companies my ankle was still so bad I wasn’t sure I could continue to dance on it. I took a year off and lived in Dublin, backpacked around Europe, and waited tables. Upon returning to the States I was determined to rehab my injury to get my dance career back on track. It was 1997 and Pilates was a somewhat of a new concept in Michigan, but I’d heard of it through dance and somehow decided this is what I was going to do, for my body and to make some money without having to wait tables.

A dancer friend gave me a postcard about a new pilates studio called Equilibrium that was opening in the Detroit area and that was looking for trainees for the first teacher training course being offered. I ended up being in that first training course and was hired almost immediately to teach, as there weren’t any experienced trainers in the area. I would finish with my coursework for the day and immediately teach to my clients what I had just learned in class. It was total immersion into the work, not always ideal, but a great way to learn fast.

We were doing Stott Pilates, as we’re so close to Canada ( where Stott originated), and were the first Licensed Training Center in the States. Later I became an Instructor Trainer for Stott, which I did for several years, and then left Stott to pursue other pilates perspectives. I’ll discuss that path and why I made that choice in a future post.With the pilates work my ankle got stronger and stronger and I was back to dancing, working with several area choreographers on various projects, as well as creating my own works.

With commuting to the studio about an hour away from my where I lived and also trying to fit in all my dance classes, rehearsals, and performances, it became clear I needed to work closer to home. But there was no studio in Ann Arbor.

And that is why I opened The Movement Center. At about this time I was also falling in love with GYROTONIC® and began flying around the country to study with various Master Trainers, as there were none in Michigan, or anywhere close to Michigan for that matter.

Pretty much no one in Ann Arbor had heard of GYROTONIC®, and still back in 1999 few were even aware of Pilates yet. But I had no trouble quickly building a client base and was actually fully booked the first week I opened my first little studio. I never really wanted to be a studio owner, but I needed a place to teach, so I created it.

It was small at first, just me in a small space, but then clients became trainers and wanted to work with me, and then we needed a bigger space, and then a studio manager, a bookkeeper, and eventually a social media manager, and at some point I realized I gone from working in a cozy little collective to employing about 12 people.

By 2013 I was a mother to a pre-schooler, teaching clients and teacher training courses for GYROTONIC®, GYROKINESIS®, and Stott Pilates, then often getting home after a 12 hour day of teaching only to have to deal with admin work. I had four of my ten trainers go on maternity leave at the same time and had no way to cover the clients.

Leaving the studio to take courses for myself, or just to get away, became more and more difficult. I felt a great heaviness of the responsibility for the livelihoods of the trainers and staff. I was miserable. Until the day an answer presented itself to me I had no idea how I could get out of what I had created. It dawned on me I’d spent five years building the business, five years enjoying it, and five years wishing for a way out.

Then one of the my trainers and the studio manager asked me to meet for a coffee to chat. They had a vision for opening a big wellness center. It was a huge venture. They asked me to come in as a partner, but I asked could I please just work there and be done with running a business.

So, after lots of planning and work, we transitioned the trainers and clients to the new studio.Now I’m based out of a larger wellness center that offers private training, group classes, wellness coaching, massage, and has a juice bar and a full desk staff who handle all the booking and payments.

I have the freedom to travel for courses, or just to have a vacation, and I have a base for teaching clients and educational courses. I teach clients from 7am through 1pm, Monday through Friday so, except when I have a course running, I have plenty of time for my son, workouts, time with my partner, and for getting to dance class or a weekly open drawing session.

I hope that some of what I’ve learned from these years of experience can be helpful to others in the movement industry. I welcome your questions, thoughts, and feedback. What are the issues you’re facing as a trainer? I’d love to hear from you!

I’d always had some interest in pre and postnatal Pilates and GYROTONIC® training and had done several trainings and much reading on the subject. I felt confident working with pregnant and postpartum clients, and they all seemed to benefit from the work. But it was in 2009 that I became pregnant myself with my son, Graeme, and at that point my moderate interest exploded into a near obsession.

In going through the experience in my own body, working with talented midwife, Pat Kramer, and comparing my experiences with those of other very knowledgable movers, many answers came into place for me, as well as many new questions, all of which led to deeper exploration and understanding.

Here I will share with you some highlights, all of which I knew before my own journey, but never fully “got” until I’d been through it!

1. You must move through your pregnancy! We hear this, but most women don’t understand exactly how. We hear general guidelines, mostly of contraindications; “don’t work your abs after the second trimester, don’t lie on your back, don’t stretch”, etc. Which may leave you thinking “Really??” and “Then what on earth DO I do???”

This is a great time to work with a pre-natal pilates or GYROTONIC® trainer, even for just one or two introductory private sessions, or to take a small group class (small being key here- if there are 20 people in your class you won’t get the attention you need to move safely and effectively).

2. Training for labor is training for the most intense, demanding, and, for those who haven’t experienced it before, unusual athletic event ever. One must be prepared physically for any number of scenarios. Imaging training for a triathlon, not knowing if it would last for hours or for days, not knowing if when you went to get your bike if you’d have a race bike, mountain bike, tandem bike, or unicycle. Labor unfolds as it goes, and I want the women I work with to be prepared for whatever may be needed.

In my case I came down with a horrible chest cold the day before I went into labor, and ended up taking from Saturday evening until Monday afternoon to have him. His elbow was poking into my spine and so I had to float in the birth tub with my arms supporting me for several hours. I ended up coming out of the tub to have him in a full squat position with my husband supporting my arms with such effort that I had bruises on my forearms for days afterward! Thankfully I’d kept up my general strength throughout my pregnancy to carry me through an extended labor, trained my upper body strength and endurance to be able to support my weight on my arms for an extended time, and had the mobility to attain and maintain a squat position (which many women do not).

3. Work consistently, but not intensely. Your energy is most needed to build a baby. This is not the time for intense training, but rather specific, deliberate training tailored to your changing needs. Those needs will change for day to day- and even hour to hour. You can work your abdominals, and need to do so, but in a manner that is very different than how you would work them before or after pregnancy. You will need to stretch some, but in a way that protects your loosening ligaments and doesn’t create strain on the positioning of your pelvic bones. Pregnancy is a time to work at a consistent, deliberate, focused, adaptable, and mellow pace.

4. Plan ahead for your postnatal recovery! In your final weeks of pregnancy you should already have a plan and an understanding of what are the basic pelvic floor and deep abdominal movements you can -and need to- do safely in the days following the birth. Many women wait until their six week check up with their doctor to resume any type of exercise. But if you haven’t been working with some basic breathing work and gentle muscular contractions for pelvic floor and transverse abdominals, you’ll have already missed a crucial stage of your reconditioning. But many movements during this time are contraindicated, meaning they should be avoided. The sleep deprived newborn days are not the time to start researching pelvic floor conditioning!

In the final weeks of pregnancy I start to give my clients a movement plan for recovery and a link to my online postnatal video. The plan is easily adaptable for variables such as C-section or tearing. I also make myself available by phone, email, or Skype, to assist them if needed before they are able to get back to the studio to begin their postnatal sessions.

5. A strong, healthy mommy who takes time for herself is key to a happy, healthy baby and to enjoying motherhood. Learn to see time for yourself and your body as a GIFT to your baby and your partner!

One of the most exciting aspects of the work I do is to see people transform as they turn their love for movement into careers as Pilates teachers. Common questions I hear from prospective teacher training students are “who can do the Pilates teacher training?” or“I love this work, but I not a dancer or anything like that. Could I still become a teacher?” The answer to these questions is that anyone with a true interest in movement and a dedication to learning can do the training.

Back when I did my Pilates training to become a teacher, it was true that almost all of us were dancers. It was natural for a population with so much movement experience – and so many injuries- to have a drive and interest in pursuing careers in Pilates. But over the years what I have seen is that as Pilates training has become more mainstream and available to a wider population it is important to have trainers who also come from diverse backgrounds.

Often a client will look at a dancer and say “sure, that’s easy for you to do, you’re a dancer!”, but if the trainer is a 60-something non-dancer who simply followed a passion for moving and feeling good, that trainer can be a great inspiration to clients who may otherwise be intimidated by Pilates training.

Another group of people who do really well transitioning to careers teaching Pilates are moms. The flexibility of scheduling and the ability to make a nice bit of money in just a few hours a day, a few times a week, can be very appealing to a former stay at home mom, or a mom wanting to transition to a career that allows more time for family. I’ve seen women set up studios in their homes, work part-time at established studios or gyms, or get really creative in working teaching Pilates into their lives.

Of course dancers still make great teachers and tend to take very naturally to the work. Teaching Pilates can be a great way to support a career in dance, or to keep involved in movement after a dance career.

In fact anyone, male or female, who has an interest in the movement, a good work ethic, and who craves the independence and flexibility of teaching private sessions or group classes would be a great candidate for teacher training.

The STOTT PILATES Instructor Training program is a great way to start off a career in movement. Recognized and highly regarded internationally, a certification in STOTT PILATES opens broad opportunities for teaching.

As an Instructor Trainer I have great confidence that the STOTT training program equips new teachers with the ability to program safe and effective workouts for different populations and postures, select or create modifications for various body types or limitations, and to teach an inspiring and fun class from which participants will really benefit.

Interested in becoming a Pilates teacher?  The Movement Center is hosting the STOTT PILATES  Intensive Mat-Plus and Intensive Reformer certification training programs this summer. I’m looking forward to training a new group of Pilates instructors and invite you to contact me directly if you have any questions.

The beginning of Spring provides us the perfect time to think about renewal, whether that’s through a rejuvenation, cleanse, or simply a recommitment to a health and fitness routine. For myself as a busy teacher, mom, and business owner, I’ve realized it helps to use the change of the seasons as a time to regroup, refresh, and revitalize myself.

Having had my little baby turn two years old in February reminded me of how quickly the years pass and how important it is to rejuvenate through my own seasonal rituals. How ygou mark the change of the seasons is personal to you and your needs but I’d like to share with you how I’ll be marking the beginning of spring.

 1. REGROUP: Looking at what’s bugging me or getting in the way of my great life.

I’ll start by taking a look at how I’m spending my time and if that’s giving me what I need. Am I getting enough time with my family? Am I able to get in ample exercise each day? Does my day allow me to take time in the morning for even just five minutes of meditation, time in the evening to prepare healthy meals (and no, hummus eaten out of the container while tidying the house doesn’t actually count as a proper meal). Are my mornings calm and organized, setting a positive tone for the day?

2. REFRESH: Spring cleaning my house and my mind.

Spare moments are few and far between in my life, but I’ll be taking 10 or 20 minutes here or there over the course of a week to clear out the hall closet, take my son’s outgrown clothes to the basement so they don’t burst out of his dresser when opened, and to sketch out my daily and weekly schedule and slash out anything that doesn’t serve the needs I reestablished in my “regrouping”.

This will allow me to make sure my workouts, cooking time, and playtime with my son are blocked off on my calendar and that an avalanche of summer sun hats and dog leashes falling from the closet doesn’t eat up my meditation time in the morning. Maybe for you this would be a great time to schedule classes or private sessions so that they’re on your schedule for the coming season, reinflate that fitness ball that’s gathering dust, and clear out you drawer of any workout clothes that pinch, ride up, or just don’t make you feel enthusiastic about gearing up for your sessions.

 3. REVITALIZE: Giving my body a well deserved tune up!

I’ll designate a three week stretch to do some physical rejuvenation, which has the effect of also revitalizing and calming m mind. During this time I’ll do daily body “scrubbing”, which is a form of dry brushing Juliu Horvath, creator of the GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® work, teaches. It’s also a great time for a dietary “cleanse”. I don’t eat a lot of the foods that are generally restricted on most cleanse programs anyway, but in addition to my regular avoidance of sugar, dairy, gluten, grains other than brown rice, and of soy, I additionally will cut out rice, caffeine (yes, you read that right), and my weekly glass of wine. And I’ll tighten up on the sugar, which does tend to sneak into my regular diet here and there. (please note: if you’re thinking of doing any type of cleanse please work with a clinical or holistic nutritionist to find what’s right for you- it is out of the scope of my practice to give nutritional advice!). During this time I’ll also track my water intake and meditation time, to make sure I’m getting what I need.

How will YOU choose to regroup, refresh or revitalize this spring?  Let us know in the comments below or over on our Facebook page so that we can support each other.

If you choose to implement some seasonal rituals this spring I think you’ll see, as I do, some great lasting habits that carry through the months. And just when you start to slip back into old patterns it’ll be just about time for your summer welcoming rituals!

It may seem odd that in a studio bursting with such a variety of innovative, expensive, and brilliantly designed equipment I would be urging you to consider working with nothing more than a mat or a chair, but I find more and more often that’s exactly what I’m doing.

The pilates and GYROTONIC® equipment have great appeal and are excellent tools for finding deeper understanding, more challenge, and variety in your pilates or GYROTONIC® workout, but too often I’m seeing that the allure of the equipment overshadows the importance of finding connections within the body and of developing true understanding of the leverage, control, and focus that can best be found when working unassisted and unsupported by any apparatus.

People new to pilates or GYROTONIC® are often in such a rush to get to the equipment because, after all, isn’t that what they’re paying for? Well, no.

The value in movement classes is the expertise of the trainer, who can guide you through a series of movements selected for your particular needs and modified for you particular body. These may or may not be on equipment, but a well-balanced mind body movement program will spend at least a good bit of time working without the equipment.

Reformer springs and GYROTONIC® pulleys can not only challenge you, but also help you out by supporting the limbs and to some extent the torso as well. Wouldn’t it make sense that stepping away from the equipment regularly to work on true support and stabilization of your body weight and limbs-unassisted- would increase your awareness and round out your program? Then when you return to the equipment you do so with greater connection and understanding, which brings you further toward the results you want to see and feel.

For me personally the GYROKINESIS® work, which is done with no more than a stool and a mat, and sometimes without even a stool at all, is where I feel the most intense realization of the connections and effects we strive to create in the body through the GYROTONIC® work.

I remember years ago when I first began in a GYROKINESIS® class, I found that working without the support of the equipment challenged me physically and intellectually much more so than I had imagined.

Where the equipment would have served as a guide for many movements the GYROKINESIS® work challenged me to find the pathways, support, and realization of those movements entirely through my own understanding and capacity. Then, upon returning to the equipment, the connections I was able to find were much deeper than I’d been able to find previously.

The same is true for the Reformer, Cadillac, and Chair. The spring tension provides resistance, feedback, and support which can create more challenge, but can also serve as a crutch when not balanced with a good, regular dose of matwork training.

You can think of it in terms of the other aspects of health and wellness, such as healthy eating. Yes, you need some protein, but you still need your green leafy veggies. There’s not ever a point where you “graduate” from eating green leafies to eating just protein, you always need a regular intake of both.

Similarly, the goal is not to “graduate” from matwork to apparatus work, or from GYROKINESIS® classes to GYROTONIC® work. As in all matters of a healthy life, it is about continual balance.

So take a moment and sign up for that pilates mat or GYROKINESIS® class today. Make it a regular weekly date and you’ll soon feel the increased benefits of your well-rounded practice!