Pilates Workout Blog

The Pilates Nun: Rebecca Leone

Rebecca Leone

by Laurette Ryan

www.balancepointpilates.com

Okay Pilates enthusiasts, have you met the Pilates Nun? Do you have one of her delightful pens? Or had the good fortune to attend one of her workshops? Yes?- you lucky dog! No?- well you must put her, on your list to do! The Pilates Nun (aka Rebecca Leone) and I sat down for a chat last month, well because I think it’s important that you know , “Who’s who” in Pilates and also because she is heading a worthy crusade to improve the quality of Pilates training, so that it is safe and effective…who couldn’t love that?

Rebecca Leone was an extremely active youth. She describes herself as a tomboy, in love with outdoors,grit on her-bugs in her hair-married to nature kind of girl. She played competitive sports with the boys, loved swimming, diving, cycling, just about any kind of physical activity. She learned these activities mainly by watching, observing , somatic-ally digesting and processing.

In her 20s she worked in the business world,developing systems and marketing her talents as a free-lancer …. being a free-lancer was great for her because it gave her time to pursue physical activities, try new things…(she is a bit of an adventurer at heart, an explorer) in the 1980s while looking for new and exciting challenges she found an article in the Portland Oregonian about Pilates. Mainly about the social history of Pilates, she found it so intriguing that she cut it out and put it in her things to do file. She could really identify with this Joe Pilates guy, so big and strong and athletic, a natural athletic ability she felt within herself. This may have been Rebecca’s love at first sight moment with Joe?

She went on later to try find out about Pilates and at the time there was only one studio listed in Seattle… she gave them a call. They were a bit unaccommodating, not giving very much information, requiring her to come in for lessons to find out about their “secret society” (my words) Pilates. They were not nice and so she decided to forget Pilates. (let’s pause here- how helpful and educating is the staff who answers the phone at your studio? How many students are lost because of this kind of Pilates elitist nonsense?) So some time goes by and Rebecca , who’s been in 3 car accidents and feeling a little stiff, is urged by a co-worker to go to her (the co-worker’s) Pilates studio. She’s reluctant because of the encounter with the 1^st Pilates studio, but she goes. She of course, loves it! (you knew that would happen!) One more thing, Rebecca is also diagnosed with histoplasmosis of the eye, at this time she is looking for a new career path…. isn’t kismet, somethin’?

So here we have one active, athletic,smart, business savvy lady, who feels a cosmic connection to Joe and she’s is looking for a new and meaningful career, I love when the stars align, don’t you?

Rebecca sought out schools to become trained in Pilates. Her foundational training was with Romana Kryzanowska , she truly enjoyed her training. However she did notice there was something missing. Her training had taught her hundreds of exercises,their order and transitions and how to set-up each piece of apparatus but there was no problem solving….What about the clients who had difficulty lifting their head and shoulders comfortably, what about strengthening and stretching the back for clients who could not make progress? Rebecca started developing protocols for problem solving then and there. Her idea was that she fully intended to open her own studio and wanted to help people overcome these barriers so there would be success for her clients and her studio. She wanted her clients to know upfront what she and Pilates were all about and what it could do for them…she didn’t want them to feel as she had, that Pilates was some mysterious secret society…..come take a lesson , sign-up and then we let you in on it. Rebecca graduated her training in July 2001 and opened her studio September 2001! If you know her this will not surprise you- she’s a get-it-done kinda gal.

And that brings me to Rebecca Leone’s new mission…..

Her mission: She says she was taught wrong and she has taught wrong , and there’s video! She goes on to assert we’ve all taught wrong based on bad information…we are all sisters and brothers in that. Like many of us, her required reading in training was Anatomy of Movement. Blandine Calais-Germain… and so she read it-really read it! She also found the work of Stuart McGill and his book “Low Back Disorders” which she says became “bible” for her. What she realized is, that the way she had been taught to teach flexion had a big problem, so she applied what Blandine writes about flexion of the spine to the teaching of Pilates (4-5 years ago). Suddenly, the understanding of how much stronger you need to be to do it the way described in these writings-led her to understand Joe more. When Joe wrote about lengthening… “he puts dashes between the letters of the words, in order to let you know how much he really, really meant for you to do just that”, says Rebecca.

She began teaching workshops on this concept of resisted or lifted flexion. The deep back muscles get, as she says “ridiculously strong”! , and as far as Joe was concerned -your spine was what, it was all about! After a few years of refining her Safe Spine Teaching Technique she wanted to share this information globally. Rebecca has taken this invaluable information which she acknowledges is right there for anyone to access and shows how to apply this to the Pilates work, for many a teacher has read these books and still hasn’t understood their implication in our field.

Rebecca has identified 3 funnels for getting this information out in the public domain. First is the PMA Exam, secondly Teacher Training Schools (who are already getting on board- Balancepoint has stressed lifted flexion since 2007) and lastly, online and print media.(which are unfortunately full of examples of poorly executed exercises) She recognizes the fact that although equipment maintenance and good record keeping are important safety measures, if 86 percent of the Pilates repertoire is flexion and you teach it improperly that is the bigger safety problem. Rebecca admitted that “She is the messenger and she might get killed, but that’s alright”, her passion for this work, for Joe , for the history seems to be what drives her to help us evolve our understanding and firm-up our foundations so this work will go on.

I asked Rebecca about “The Pilates Nun” where did that come from? , she explained to me that one day a client came in and said “how was your weekend?” she had to say “Was it the weekend ?… you see I am in constant service and devotion to Joe Pilates” and so she named herself the Pilates Nun – in service, devotion and sometimes long periods of celibacy. People sometimes say she works too much and her response is, “ that that person has not found the passion in their lives and that they are not driven with this ambition to share what they have with as many people as possible. And that is what drives me”….”the information is there, and I don’t think it should be held hostage for money”, she feels her mission is to help finish Joe’s mission to have the information be available.

She cites that Joe qualified people, you had to be willing to take 3 sessions per week for 90 days in order to work with him-non-negotiable, she says if it took Joe 3 months to get the work into your body, we might be all be “screwed” because how will we get clients to commit to that? So she wanted to come up with ways for modern teachers to still “deliver the goods” without requiring the thing (coming to the studio 3 times a week for 3 months) that we can’t get today…so she teaches- at the first contact, (phone, email, etc.) get the client to understand two things :1.What I can do for you… and 2. That every session that I teach you will support the goal of you getting out bed every day of your life and your back feeling fantastic or as fantastic as it’s possible to feel.

One of her great accomplishments is being one of the first to come to PMA to teach business strategies, to teach teachers the imperative business skills needed to be successful at running a Pilates business. She credits her previous life in that field of business and marketing with giving her skills she is able to pass along to others, these are skills most often missing from primary training programs which merely teach exercises. Rebecca stresses that part of what schools should be doing is preparing teachers to go out in the market and be successful.

Our Pilates Nun is a one of a kind Pilates treasure. She freely gives away so much to our community, just go to her vimeo channel and check out all the free content on safe spine teaching and other teaching strategies. Better yet, book yourself into one of her workshops , you will be inspired, motivated , renewed and rejoicing!

Check out Rebecca Leone

http://rebeccaleone.com/

Free problem solving video site:  http://vimeo.com/channels/rebeccaleone

Free mat class video site:  http://vimeo.com/album/263363

Rebecca@RebeccaLeone.com

by Laurette Ryan

Just back from the PMA 2011 conference in Palm Springs. I got to connect with so many awesome teachers and benefactors of our Pilates world. It’s in those moments I know I am so lucky to have found and discovered my calling as a teacher of Joe Pilate’s work.

I am also re-energized to move this work, as a true profession, forward. In 2012, I personally, will be re-doubling my efforts to achieve critical-mass in awareness of teacher training, qualifications and certification. I feel it is essential for us (Pilates Teachers) to uphold the foundations and standards of our work and move forward together, blazing the trail on the pathway to professional recognition.

The percentage of truly “certified” teachers is still small. This does not reflect the percentage of “qualified” teachers, whom I believe there are a great number! Helping the public have some idea who to go to for “real” Pilates, (not referring to style or lineage-but instead-*not core class,ab class etc.) becomes more difficult everyday as more and more fitness instructors read an article online or in print and suddenly add “Pilates” to their repertoire of “can teach”! AND the public has no idea!

We are in the days of the Barber/Dentist. 200 years ago, if you had a bad tooth you went to your local Barber to have it extracted. Today people would never consider that- but they will go to their aerobic instructor for Pilates , and it’s basically just as outrageous. In the 17^th century,Pierre Fauchard, “the father of modern dentistry” was probably not well-liked by the Barbers of his day. The Barber/Dentist continued well into the 19^th century, let’s hope it doesn’t take 2 centuries for Pilates to become it’s own field of study! Barbers, I am sure, felt they were in fact, very qualified to take care of dental concerns, and resented the implication that it would take an entire educational experience devoted to that practice to do such. (sound familiar yet?) The parallels here are uncanny. Now Barbers are great at what they do -but they are not Dentists and we all, easily, see that today. I long for the day that will be the case in our profession. The day when we appreciate what our group exercise and personal trainers can do for us, but would never consider going to them for advice or lessons in Pilates.

You’ve heard my rants on the benefits of 3^rd Party credentialing and true “certification” -I know this is a huge part of getting us to the goal of being a Profession, a real career. At this point, those of you who cannot see or understand this, have their heads in the sand- the time is now to look up and look forward. We join hands and heart together, inclusive. (Feel the Pilates love-I’m calling it Pil-love -that’s what happens after 4 day love-fest with your Pilates peeps in the desert!) There is room for all qualified Pilates teachers in this, by getting “certified” “3^rd party credentialed” yes- PMA-certified (the ONLY 3^rd party credential) we help each other and we sustain our profession. *(BTW the PMA is a not-for-profit! We are the voice! We are the PMA! We need you and your voice! Again it is a not-for profit and it’s books are open to all-so if you’re wondering – go educate yourself on the finances of this thing- it’s your absolute right and you should be cautious about where you put your time energy and money- kudos to you.)

My crusade this year will be to begin to educate the public about our profession and credentialing. I feel a little like Joan of Arc and wonder if I shall be burned at the stake- but I love my profession and I suppose when a passion grows so deeply in one, this is what one, is compelled to do. Wish me luck and send fire extinguishers and water.

Sincerely and with the deepest Pil-love,

Laurette Ryan

www.balancepointpilates.com

Is Pilates Different?

By Laurette Ryan

www.balancepointpilates.com

www.LauretteRyan.com

Recently, I was engaged in one of those crazy online “discussions” where a person asked “So, what makes Pilates different from other forms of exercise?” And just like it goes, at times when you are online, I couldn’t tell whether the “asker” was under the impression that Pilates was in fact no different, or they just wanted others to defend their personal position as to why it was different and see if it matched her contentions??? I, of course strongly believe Pilates is different, more importantly though I felt my clients thought it was different. The problem was, I so strongly believed this, that I never actually asked them what they thought.

I have spent the last couple of weeks asking! I’ve asked my clients, I’ve asked Pilates teachers, I’ve asked people online….and what I found out – made me smile, because I found out that what I know from a scientific and experiential foundation is what they believe too! Everyone who answered also replied that they expected to continue to practice Pilates for a lifetime! Let me repeat— a lifetime!

Interestingly, all student felt that they experienced a feeling or sense of having “lengthened” their muscles. Every respondent participated in other physical fitness activities. A few had then given up their other activities completely and solely practiced Pilates.

Whitney Arruda who runs on the treadmill and does free weights at home,has been practicing Pilates for 6 years on and off, said, “I find Pilates very effective, I have always been a runner to stay in shape, but after I started doing Pilates I found that Pilates lengthens the body and strengthens muscles that I didn’t know I had and other forms of training don’t reach. Pilates is a full body workout that lengthens and strengthens the body using your own body mass/muscle, Pilates gets the deeper muscles and not just the ones on the surface like many types of training.”

Carrie Brooks : “The word “lengthen” is a good summary word for Pilates.

Most students reported using principles like proper breathing, core engagement and a focused mind, which they learned in Pilates, in their other sports and activities. These Pilates enthusiasts recognized that Pilates was a system of exercises which focused on “whole body movement” Let me be honest, anytime anyone stated that -I was getting a little giddy. I could tell they “got it”. They might have started for a toned tummy…but after practicing they are all finding the joy in an efficiently balanced, functionally intelligent body. The consensus was that they had not previously understood- the what , how, or why of strengthening and using deep muscle groups like the transverse abdominus. ( I like to call it- your suck-in muscle, you know pretend your on the beach and that cute guy/gal walks by…you know-your suck-in muscle!)

“Pilates makes me feel longer, stronger, and more centered. My posture has changed drastically and I was recently deemed a half inch taller at a physical this year. I considered myself to be 5′ 4 1/2″ since my teenage years. When the nurse claimed that I was 5′5″, I had to ask her to please remeasure in order to convince myself that I “grew” in my late twenties!” says Kristen Reynolds,Pilates Teacher and Physical Therapist.

Lavina McKenna replied, “It really helped my posture which I can see now in old pictures of me. It toned and shaped better than all other types of exercises that I had ever done.”

The Teacher was noted as a very important factor in the effectiveness of the pilates workout. Although, it is a topic of much debate, I think this emphasizes the need for setting guidelines or parameters like third party certification as a way for the public to find a qualified teacher.

When asked to explain why Pilates is different?,Tracy Maurstad, PMA-CPT  of Las Vegas Pilates replied, “Interesting challenge Laurette. It’s hard to distill down something we’re so passionate about isn’t it? Pilates is not about how your body LOOKS. It’s about how your body WORKS. Looking good just happens to be a nice side benefit! Traditional weight training comes out of body building. Think about a body builder. On stage. Posing. Looking good. But not MOVING. Pilates uses full body movement emanating from a strong core not to get bigger, but to get better.” she also added, “…The concentration required. If you’re talking about The Housewives of Whatever and doing a Pilates exercise, you may be doing exercise, but you’re not doing Pilates. Practicing Pilates requires your full attention. The motion without the mind won’t get you there. Imagine your spine growing another inch, or a powerful magnet being dropped between your hip sockets, even just a little more weight into the ball of your big toes and the feeling of the exercise completely changes. I call those “Pilates moments”.

Is Pilates different? YES, those who practice properly agree. They may continue with running or weight training or cardio, but they need their Pilates. Nothing else substitutes. So whether my the “online-asker” of the question is satisfied ..I don’t know. What most importantly matters is, people do think Pilates is different and is effective and intend to practice it their whole lives.

Whitney summed it up, “I enjoy Pilates…. I find that it makes me feel good about my body and myself and also helps me mentally with stress from work/life.”

Pilates makes life better.

Now -go do your Pilates….

Laurette Ryan