Once I hit my forties and after years of teaching, I felt I was wearing out my body (and spirit). All those high impact classes gave me plantar fasciitis, which I thought would be permanent. I had frequent headaches from all the shoulder and neck tension in my body.
I spent a lot of time at the doctor’s office and chiropractor after tweaking my neck/shoulders during training for a half marathon. After having my fourth child later in life, I struggled to bounce back after baby.
I couldn’t figure out why I was having these issues, because as an instructor I was getting the recommended exercises, practicing yoga, and checking “all the boxes” for good health.
But truth be told, my demanding teaching schedule was leaving me exhausted and I stopped seeing the positive effects of exercise.
Feeling the burnout, I took a brief teaching hiatus. I wanted exercise to feel good again, like it was when I was younger. My body deserved better care than all the extreme exercising I was doing. I wanted to again be a student, to experience what it was like to be a “newbie” at something. That’s when I discovered reformer classes at a local Club Pilates studio.
It was love at first class.
I soon found my plantar fasciitis symptoms went completely away. I also discovered those nagging aches and pains from getting older were becoming less frequent. The frequent tension headaches from my neck/shoulder problems went completely away. Instead of feeling drained post-workout, I felt energized and ready to take on my day. I couldn’t believe I worked my body so effectively and yet didn’t feel like crashing on the couch afterwards.
When I was in a reformer class one day I noticed a woman in her 70’s next to me, and a woman in her 20’s on the other side. Both were working their bodies and getting a great workout for their individual needs.
I realized at this moment, Pilates is really for EVERY body at every stage in life!
I kept hearing from other women how much better they felt in their body, how they ached less and felt strong in a useful, lasting way. Story after story of lives transformed through pilates motivated me to look into teacher training. I just knew I had to teach it and share my pilates passion with others. I had found my excitement for movement again!
In six months I completed my 500-hour comprehensive training under the guidance of my mentor and friend Ana Macias (now the director of fitness programming with MNT Studios in San Francisco). After graduation I also studied for and passed the Pilates Certified Teacher exam given by the Pilates Method Alliance.
Every day I work to help one more person towards feeling stronger and empowered in their body. I live for the moment when someone says to me, “I can’t believe how much better I feel!” Will you be the next person? Let's talk!
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