Pilates Tips from the Pros | FusionPilatesEDU.com

The Thoracolumbar Fascia

by Jennifer Gianni I just got back from teaching a 12 hour Anatomy in Clay class in Hilton Head Is., S.C. at Core Pilates. It was a fabulous – a curious group will do that to a class. Twelve hours is never enough time and this was especially the case with this ‘hungry for knowledge’ […]…

Call & Response: Ab Curl

A teaching basic that needs energy, practice, and patience is the idea of creating a basis of communication with your client. This communication is not always verbal, but it is just as important, if not more so, than what the client says. As a teacher, you must read what the body is saying and translate […]…

The Gazelle, the Kangaroo, and YOU

by Jennifer Gianni The age old standard in the science of movement and biomechanics is that muscles contract and shorten and this energy is transferred through passive tendons to create change in the joint and therefore a change in shape. And this is still true… but only for steady movement such as bicycling. In movements […]…

Exercising During the Second Trimester

The body will start to change visibly during the second trimester. You will hear people say that the second trimester is the best part of being pregnant, the honeymoon period of the pregnancy. By this point, most women have gotten over their feelings of nausea and extreme tiredness and actually feel very well. My mother […]…

The Fascial School

I am just back from an awe inspiring and life changing educational experience in Germany at Ulm University where the 3rd Fascial Summer School took place. A group of only 75 of us that included medical professionals , researchers, body workers and movement therapists were in attendance. We had the incredible privilege of sitting […]…

Wall Squats

The wall is such a great tool to explore the Pilates repertoire. I love to think about it like an upright Reformer, finding all the cues and movements that we find lying down on the carriage. This is the perfect place to work on the Pilates principles in the upright position. Also, wall squats are […]…

Correct Calf Raises on the Mat

Working calf raises into your mat classes and private sessions is essential in the practice of bringing the Pilates repertoire into upright moving posture. All of the work that we do in the studio means nothing if our clients cannot translate it into their everyday lives. Working on calf raises is the perfect place to […]…

How to Care for Your Chair

A part of running a successful studio is taking care of your investment in your equipment. This not only makes sense fiscally, but also in terms of your client’s overall experience. It is crucial that your studio is a clean, safe, welcoming environment for your clients to walk into. It should also be cause for […]…

Carola Trier

Again today we are looking at where the origins of the Pilates work began. To understand the metamorphosis and the progression that this work has endured, we need to understand the people behind it. As Contrology got passed down exercise by exercise and then got translated into certification form, those creative souls that regard […]…

Why Does the Classical Repertoire Start with the 100s?

The Hundred exercise is the perfect blend of the breath work in conjunction with spinal flexion, abdominal strength, and shoulder girdle movement. Now these movement principles need to be warmed up to and honed separately before they can be put together within one exercise. So although in theory The Hundred is the perfect kick start […]…

Pilates Foundations: Core Activation

In this article, we will link all that we have learned about the Breath to our Core musculature. This is the golden key to working from the inside out! What it is: We hear so much in the gym and media about our Core Muscles and core stabilization, but not many of us know exactly […]…

Saw with Blankets and an Overball

The mat Pilates repertoire is brilliant in its entirety. The exercises flow into one another with seamless transitions. Each exercise is a preparation for the the one after it. But what happens when you cannot do all of the exercises the way that they were designed? How can we get the work to translate to […]…

A Brief Animated History of Pilates

We wanted to share our short history of Pilates video. This video is part of our Course Prep Program. We had a lot of fun making it. What do you think?!…

Leg Lengthening and Opening with the Foam Roller

In this economy, a massage therapy session is sometimes out of the question. Try these leg openings as your substitute for your therapist. These opening exercises will help to break up all those tight connections between the muscles, making you feel looser, freer, and more mobile. If you hit a spot on the legs or […]…

Spine Stretch on the Cadillac

Spine Stretch on the Cadillac can be done in a number of different, creative ways. Many ways are available to modify this exercise, from propping the sitz bones on a blanket to bending the knees to shortening the range of motion. Our end goal is to always find easier and more fluid articulation between the […]…

Stability Ball Exercises to Lengthen Legs & Open Hips

With its pliability, roundness, and fluidity of movement, the stability ball lends itself perfectly to supporting and encouraging stretching and opening poses. The next few exercises help to bring awareness and suppleness to our legs and hips that are often over used and in need of this much deserved TLC! Remember these following precautions when […]…

Upper Back Strength & Flexibility with Classical Pilates Exercises

What it is: To create true functionality in our bodies, we must have a balance of stability, strength, fluidity and flexibility. As we have seen in many previous entries, this concept of balancing the muscles and therefore the body is the core of the Pilates system. In Pilates we do not group our exercises […]…

Elephant

Elephant is a classical exercise that is taught often in the studio to work on upper/mid back stability, core strengthening and opening of the back body. By playing with the spring tension you can change the focus and muscle energy of the exercise. Your clients need both ends of this strength spectrum and everything in […]…

Pilates Glute & Hamstring Exercises with Magic Circle

Here are a few classical Pilates exercises with a Magic Circle twist! Adding the Magic Circle into the glute and hamstring exercises helps connect and fully engage the working muscles. There will be a definite learning curve to most of these and you may need to have a friend help you place the Circle the […]…

Side Footwork on the Reformer

Side body work is an important part of staying balanced, aligned, and strong. One of the hardest places to get into proper alignment in side lying is on the Reformer because of the restraints of the shoulder blocks, headrest, and footbar. The video below will show you how to prop the body in side lying […]…