The Pilates-Pro.com team just got back from the Body Mind Spirit educational conference that took place last weekend (April 23-27) in Santa Clara, CA. Pilates and Gyrotonic teachers took over the hotel and convention center as they floated between classes and the expo hall (and the pool—the weather was beautiful!). This year, the regular 3-day conference was fortified with two days of pre-conference intensives with tracks for both beginner and advanced instructors and those interested in scoliosis and osteoporosis. Yoga, which used to be on the BMS rooster, wasn’t available this year, but Feldenkrais and other somatic techniques were on offer.

The expo hall floor was also buzzing with equipment demos, new products and old favorites. Flip through our slideshow above for a few of the highlights, and look for more details about some of the products soon on the site.

P.S. We created the slideshow using Flickr and PictoBrowser. We’ve also started a Pilates-Pro.com group photo pool on Flickr, which is open to everyone to join and post and share Pilates pics. More on this later!

By Pat Guyton 

The steps to becoming a Pilates teacher were more arcane in the past, and extremely rigorous. Sixty years ago, students went to Joe’s gym to learn Contrology as a means of recovering from injury or training for another career, such as dance. Many became committed to the technique, but it was only after decades of consistent training that a select few were chosen as teachers. This practice of study, apprenticeship and invitation by a master teacher was a remnant of the guild apprenticeship system of training practiced in Europe.

The education of a Pilates instructor is different today. As Pilates booms, the demand for teachers has morphed Joe’s tradition of serious, lengthy study into an age of instant development. Rather than dedicating years of practice and observation to bettering teaching skills, many programs turn out new instructors in a matter of months. And while the training of these instructors varies in comprehensiveness, an additional issue is at hand: The ease of entering a training program has resulted in many soon-to-be instructors enrolling without fully understanding what it takes to become—and continue to be—a good teacher.

Before investing time and money into a career you may not be suited for, you can take steps to explore all angles of life as a Pilates instructor. Here’s how:

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Pilates finess videos can jumpstart those days you don’t feel like putting yourself through a workout, but it’s rare to glean useful teaching tips from a standard exercise dvd. For true teaching inspiration, it may be a better idea to look to some of the specialty videos available, instead.

For a brush-up on efficiency:
“Transitions and Order”, from Rebecca Leone and Heidi Byrnes of Pilates Powerhouse NW
If you need to add order and efficiency to your studio or sessions, check out the tips in this DVD. Designed for studio owners and instructors, the first part of this offering details practical suggestions for equipment storage and maintenance. After implementing these ideas, never again will you scramble around during a session looking for the correct prop. The remainder of the DVD is dedicated to teaching the transitions between classical exercises on the mat and Reformer—where to put the handles after each exercise, when to tip the headrest down, and so forth. This video is especially useful for instructors who have a clear understanding of the exercises, but are looking for ways to speed up and smooth out their classes and private sessions. After learning the linking steps on this DVD, instructors can slowly teach the transitions to students, which will ultimately keep the students focused all session long.

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Now is the time to make your 2008 continuing education plans. If you’ve never attended a conference, check out the offerings on the next page. They are great opportunities to get out of the studio, meet new colleagues and build on your teaching skills. Read on for a rundown of some Pilates education conference happenings around the world.

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The Pilates Method Alliance held its seventh-annual International Educational Conference Nov. 1-4 in Orlando, Fla., drawing approximately 700 Pilates instructors for a weekend of moving, learning and celebrating the “Pilates is for Every Body” theme. An impressive lineup of teachers—Elizabeth Larkam, Jillian Hessel, Brent Anderson, Wendy LeBlanc-Arbuckle, Marie-Jose Blom-Lawrence, Madeline Black, Alan Herdman, Moira Merrithew, Julian Littleford, Michelle Larsson, Mari Winsor and many more—presented on a wide range of topics. PMA members also had the chance to take the PMA Pilates Certification Exam and shop for new equipment, apparel and services on the expo hall floor.

Beyond these business-as-usual happenings, the conference featured some exciting and newsworthy highlights. Read on for more.

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It’s no doubt that an understanding of anatomy is one key to being a good Pilates teacher. A reader recently asked if we could recommend some good books on the topic. Here are a few that are popular among Pilates teachers we polled. If you don’t see your favorite, please post a recommendation in the comments section!

Anatomy of Movement by Blandine Calais-Germain

 
Anatomy Coloring Book by Wynn Kapit

Anatomy of Pilates from The PhysicalMind Institute

Anatomy Trains by Thomas W. Myers  

A few weeks ago, Pilates Pro got a first look at STOTT PILATES’ brand-new New York City training center. It’s housed inside a downtown branch of New York Sports Club, a New York City health club. The facility, which is fully stocked with STOTT PILATES’ latest equipment, will be a busy place—it will serve both club members and teachers in training.

Moira and Lindsay Merrithew, founders of STOTT PILATES, flew in from Toronto to unveil the studio to instructors and media. Moira (the blur in the photo at left) led a Pilates demonstration and showed off some of the unique features of the equipment.

This partnership between a health club and Pilates corporation is a sign of Pilates’ continued growth in popularity among general fitness enthusiasts. According to Allyson Donnelly, director of group exercise for New York Sports Clubs, Pilates is the third most popular group class, behind Spinning and yoga, at Town Sports International, which owns New York Sports Club and operates 146 clubs the New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. areas. And, she says, the average mat class attendee is getting savvier. She has noticed higher participation and retention in classes taught by the better, more educated instructors. Her members also want more than just mat classes. Many get hooked on an instructor who motivates them to progress to equipment classes and private sessions. Donnelly has learned that those popular teachers translate into Pilates profits, and now pays them more to keep them around.

Instructor training at the new location is already underway. Click here to see the latest schedule.

What should you do when you feel like your Pilates teaching has hit a plateau? According to many master instructors, going “back-to-school” may be the solution.

As third- and fourth-generation Pilates teachers progress in their careers, many are seeking specialized instruction to help elevate their understanding of the method and its applications. Training programs are answering the demand, with instructors like Tom McCook of Center of Balance in Mountain View, CA, offering Continuing Education Courses with the experienced instructor in mind. “The goal of these workshops is to support teachers in developing the art of teaching and cultivating personal balance which allows you have a successful life,” says McCook, who plans to launch an intensive advanced teacher training program in late 2007. “It’s also about cultivating a community of teachers to share and develop with.”  

The Pilates Center of Boulder, CO, is also making strides in advanced teaching instruction. The center, which is run under the direction of Rachel Taylor Segel and Amy Taylor Alpers, is the first to offer a Master’s program in Pilates education. Open to experienced instructors, this 96-hour seminar series is designed to impart instructors with a more specialized knowledge, teaching them to better identify and correct imbalances, work with clients with special needs and create more effective programming.

Amy Taylor Alpers answered our questions about this new training program, which will debut in early 2007.

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