The Missing Link in Pilates Rehabilitation

November 9th, 2009

Much has been said and written on the wonderful benefits of Pilates for rehabilitation. Indeed Pilates is the “recovery exericse regime” highly recommended by physiotherapists, chiropractors and orthopedists because it can be easily integrated into rehabilitative exercise and physiotherapy programs. Pilates based rehabilitation can benefit people with:

  • Chronic neck and back pain
  • Osteoporosis
  • Sciatica
  • Shoulder impingement/tendinitis
  • Hip bursitis
  • Ankle injuries
  • Total knee/hip replacements
  • Multiple Sclerosis
  • Parkinson’s Disease
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Scoliosis
  • Performance & sports injuries
  • Repetitive Stress Injuries
  • Muscle strains

Because Pilates exercises are so controlled, they are very safe for those in rehabilitation after an accident. In particular, the various pieces of Pilates equipment puts the body in specific angles that allows for better access to affected area. A way of re-educating and re-aligning the body to prevent imbalances. Doctors have also found this method to be an excellent supplement to standard physiotherapy.

However, we have found that with injuries comes scar tissues that are hard and stiff. In fact, scar tissues has a way of stiffening so quickly that  the ligaments and tendons around a injured area, typically a joint becomes stiff and uncomfortable. Hence the affected joint lost much of its functional mobility. With this, nerve innervation that crosses over the same and surrounding area gets tense, resulting in chronic pain over time.

While it is important to note that most Pilates instructors are not trained nor qualified to make diagnosis or treatment plans for injured clients, it is more important to know that your rehab Pilates instructor is trained in therapy work to do the immediate release that is so crucial towards the recovery process.

To teach Pilates, plain and simple for rehabilitation, simply does not work.

Although the Pilates method is in itself is rehabilitative and therapeutic, it will take too long without the intervention of remedial bodywork like myofascial release (Visit http://www.myofascialrelease.com for more info) for instant relieve of chronic tightness and pain. Once the affected joint or spot of tightness is identified and released, its effect on the functional range of motion is immediate and lasting. With this done, the proper training can then start. And this process is repeated back and forth till the joint or affected area is no longer tense and stiff.Recognizing that muscles around an area in pain or injured needs to be taken care of is always a good approach instead of strictly just Pilates training.

We have consistent guaranteed results working with clients who uses the above approach with so much success that we see them moving on to a general maintenance program or back to mainstream fitness regime.  Well, we know because they are so kind to let us know they feel so different and it is great to feel alive again!

Come look me up if you want to discuss or talk about your health issues, especially if it is bothering you for years! I would love to meet or chat to you!

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Self Motivation

September 5th, 2009

Last week, a woman came into the studio wanting to do Pilates and hoping to lose weight in the process too. But she proudly stated she has an inconsistency issue. So she prefers to train only as she please. Frankly, I wondered why she even bother!

If it is so easy, we would be living in a relatively healthy world today.

It’s been 5 months since I got thrown off my bicycle. And there was a lifestyle change, so to speak. Besides dealing with physical injuries, there is the other aspect of mental. My mind bordered on anxiety, fear, depression, pain, regret and more through the weeks. I was living more in the shadows of negative emotions than positive ones simply because I was not used to this change.

After that, it was even harder to motivate myself to regain stamina after sitting around for weeks waiting for bones to fuse and stitches to close. Training was intermittent. Meanwhile, I have 2 races to run, races that were planned prior to the accident. Boy, the timing for the last one was so bad that I was embarrassed to say more. In fact, it is some what humiliating. So I am now on a personal challenge.

But what is motivation?

Are you self motivated? Or does your family motivate you? Or are you someone who is spiritually motivated?

Whatever it is that you have been trying to do without success, check these out!

“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when it’s convenient. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results.”

“A man who wants something will find a way; a man who doesn’t will find an excuse.”

Are your thoughts keeping you from reaching your goals and depriving you of results? Are you short-changing yourself?

Only you have the answer! Only you yourself know better!

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Gratitude In Daily Life

July 5th, 2009

One of my client who turned good friend, shares with me that I am the happiest when I am teaching my class. Even when I am down, teaching a class never fails to cheer me up. It is as if I had swallowed a “miracle” pill and the energy can’t be contained. If you have any idea what is going on in my head right now, you would laugh! Remember the commercial on this bunny playing a drum running on “energized battery”, it just keeps on drumming and drumming and drumming; non stop!

Her comment sounds absurd and I can’t help smiling but it leads me to ponder on many things. How do one make this joy stay on and on, 24/7, like in the commercial? Gosh…I can’t be on batteries forever!

Joy is a choice, one wrote. Take pleasures in life’s simple happenings, turning all negative circumstances into positive ones. Be mindful helps as the intention sets the right direction. Learn to create your own personal “List of Joy” is another great tip!

But the word Gratitude caught my eye. To me, nothing beats the word “Gratitude”.

Gratitude is defined most simply as “the condition of being thankful.”

In fact, I am grateful for a second chance to be here. It has been almost 3 months since my freaky bicycle accident. The body is still rehabilitating but not fast enough for me. Man………., you can’t imagine the depression that comes after. The mental struggle and the physical handicap. I can’t wait to jump on my bike again but I am forced to be patient.

“Thanks!” written by UC Davis psychologist Robert Emmons, one of the leader in positive psychology research reports how practicing thankfulness can counteract not only bad situations but also the increasingly prevalent theory that we all have a predetermined “set point” for just how happy we tend to be.

Emmons observes that gratitude has rarely been studied by psychologists. This is unfortunate, he notes, as “Gratitude is literally one of the few things that can measurably change peoples’ lives.” But – and here’s the self-help angle – “gratitude (or thankfulness) is an effortful state to create and maintain. It is not for the intellectually lethargic.”

Emmons writes, “Preliminary findings suggest that those who regularly practice grateful thinking do reap emotional, physical, and interpersonal benefits. Grateful people experience higher levels of positive emotions such as joy, enthusiasm, love, happiness, and optimism The practice of gratitude as a discipline protects a person from the destructive impulses of envy, resentment, greed, and bitterness.” That cultivating gratitude can fight depression is no small deal, as antidepressants have become the most-prescribed medications in the nation. Not only all that, but being grateful can, or might, also protect us from heart attacks, lessen physical pain and confer other physiological benefits. At the same time, he avers that we need to be less focused on individuality and more aware and, yes, thankful for our relationships and dependency on others for our well being.

Thanfully, Emmons skillful book, concludes with instructions on how to practice gratitude and goes on to highlight it can be measured mentally, physically and spiritually. This measure of attainability, I know will come in helpful for most in this economic uncertainty.

I should thank Emmons for writing it, my blog project for assigning it to me and the simple fact of my living another day to write this.

And for me, oh boy… it is certainly working. And I feel much better already!

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Change your health, change yourself!

June 1st, 2009

Raise your hand if you have a resolution to make changes to achieve good health. Do you struggle to fit in a mere 15mins (or more) of some form of exercise per day?

According to Dr Radha Gopalan, who spoke at the National Achiever’s Congress in Singapore last week, “The mental being and emotions we have, developed what we are today. We bring diseases upon ourselves!” And “genetics is merely a blueprint”.

“Stress comes in many forms. Even when you are happy, you can be stressed. Look within!”

Dr Radha Gopalan goes on to state that “No Symptoms does not define a healthy body!” and “Disease of the arteries does not give us heart attack!”

The power of believe in ourselves is the key to change of behavior. It is the value of what we feel in ourselves that that drives us. We control how we feel and that goes to influence ourselves, our behavior, our spirit and ultimately our body.

Here is a map idea:

Thoughts
↓

Words

↓

Action

↓

Behavior

↓

Value

↓

YOU

Our every thought affects the mind and body. Words like “I can’t afford it?” and “I can’t spare the time.” borders on self-inflicting and negativity. Nobody knows the future and how can you know you can’t do it. These thoughts limits our capacity and holds us back. We lost control of the mind and achieve nothing for our body.

Health = Wealth = Happiness = Spiritual (Sense of living)

Wonder how to get started? Join the Pilates Central mailing list to stay in the loop about special promotions and offers for next month. For the June holidays our new Family Pilates which gives free workouts for kids. Join us today!

Treat yourself to good health this year – you deserve it!

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Why Pilates Private Training?

March 14th, 2009

Ever wonder, for a moment; if the exercises that you have been doing in a group class, is correct?

I was adjusting a client one day mid-way in a group pilates class, when she suddenly exclaimed she has been doing things wrong! She told me the adjustment helped her to feel a deeper connection and the angle of alignment changed the feel of the same exercise she had been doing for years!

That same evening right after class, she signed up for Private Training not only for herself but for her husband as well!

Why Private Training, you may ask?
Because it is worth every cent of your money spent!

Imagine doing certain exercise incorrectly for years! We are spending too much time doing exercise with the wrong form. Not only you will not see results, you may even get hurt. By then, you may have to spend more time learning the right form which certainlyvis better late than never.

One other top reasons include motivation, knowing that your program is personalized to reach your goals and achieve results. You have a professional to plan your personalized program, your trainer knows your strengths and weakness, helps you to make it work, encourages you to take responsibility, supports you when the going gets tough. They add value to your life. Value that can never be discounted because once you attained it, you will never want to let it go!

IDEA, the International Health and Fitness organization released a statistic that found 75% of people who exercise are not getting the results they want. But out of the 25% of people who are getting results, 90% of them are working with a Personal Trainer. Make an investment that will last a lifetime.

Why then is private training with me different from the rest?

I do not own or go for any particular brand of exercise. Pilates and Gyrotonic are the basis of my training. Both work fantastically well with each other. 90% of my clients came in with injuries to their neck, back, shoulder, knee, hips, ankles, knee and foot. All the problems need some form of release by way of massage and manual therapy. Active joint manipulation and articulation must be taught to them to support their rehabilitation journey. More often than not, some are not injured but they can tell you they do not feel right at all. When these are identified and released over time, the body starts to respond with more feel, less restriction and stiffness. When the areas of soreness or pain starts to diminish with treatment, I will slowly move in with the appropriate exercise as the range of motion has return enough for me to solicit functional training.

One without the other does not work! This has been proven and supported by clients’ testimonials.

It is my personal motto to live well. Just living is just not enough, so in order to enjoy life, one must have a good body to make it possible. People now live longer than before; the quality of life needs to be improved. With this, here is a word from the Joseph Pilates himself. Enjoy!

“There are only three things in life that will help us to live longer. Strength and suppleness together – and a good sense of humor.” -Joseph Pilates

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Celebrate Love

February 14th, 2009

The month of Love is here again!

Whatever it is to you, it is good to take this chance to spend time with people who are special, who played an important part in some way in your life. It can be family, friends, parents, colleagues and even pets!

Last week, we celebrated love a week earlier; with a group of fun people whose company I always enjoyed; at a Valentine’s Workshop; at Pilates Central! Also our very FIRST THEMED PILATES ALLEGRO WORKSHOP! Expect more to come. Check out our March Themed Workshop for Kids during the holidays!

V-Day registration is in pairs and limited to 5 couples. A Goodie Bag packed with Toe Sox, bottled water, apple, massage + workout vouchers and special homemade ham & cheese multi-grain sandwich (prepared specially by me); were given away. And to be sure its fresh, I had to make them at 5am! ;) Check out all the photos uploaded here!

There were 2 workshops and boy was I surprised people do celebrate love and friendship; both were full! And I thought it was me, only me who will think of ideas as such and wonder if it would work. Needless to say, I was thrilled! Working out Valentine’s Day? Ahem! What else could be more original?

We certainly had fun, fostering teamwork with balls throwing at specific intervals while engaging the core in rolling up and down. It was amusing to see some legs shaking so bad from lack of strength; a natural phenomenon for beginners but easy to eradicate with more practice.

VDay Workshop - Teamwork

VDay Workshop - Teamwork

This buddy workshop also confirms the fact that people tend to work best when they have buddy support during training. It is easy to motivate, inspire and encourage each other along the way. Goals are definitely much easier to achieve. Of course, finding the right buddy is the first step.

I certainly want to take this opportunity to thank the members for being game enough to spend Valentine with me and making it such a fun and enjoyable day for me. :P And I hope the sandwich is up to your expectation ?

Please feel free to share feedback or leave comments since the blog is now fully integrated.

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Looking into 2009

January 14th, 2009

It is great to be back from a nice getaway – a break necessary to re-charge and re-condition the body, mind and soul. It is also a wonderful last minute decision. Hmm…… to be frank, it must have been 8 years ago that this trip should have been made but you know how things always does not turned out the way you want or least expected it

I am talking about trekking in Nepal, the “Land of the Mountains”. It is a spiritually holistic place in my heart. It has a special draw – both inspiring and awesome.

Sunrise in Poon Hill

Sunrise in Poon Hill

Just like the unforgettable hues of sunrise at Poon Hill at Ghorepani; the ever changing shades of the color yellow that goes from dim to bright, that somehow sparkles as the sun’s brilliant rays splashed its colors across the horizon and flood the mountain peaks with its dazzling rays, sometimes turning pink in the sky, changing to dark and becoming brighter orange until it becomes a huge big ball of warmth.

Have you ever feel that sunrise makes you feel warmth, passion, cheerful, happy and gives a sense of anticipation? To me, sunrise is Pilates Central (our corporate color); warm, intimate, cozy and fun.

The trek turns out to be easier than I anticipated although I have a knee problem and no time to train. Refusing to believe in plain luck, I conclude my strength and stamina to Pilates training and some running. How it is rather easy to switch muscle groups around. When one group is tired, I focus on using another. The rest is techniques and definitely engagement of the core.

Trekking to me means a time to be in my personal space, to reflect, to challenge myself mentally and physically and to connect and re energize- an experience that can’t be explain in a few lines. You have to take it to understand it.

And I suddenly think it will be a great idea to share this experience. Pilates Central will offer Trek Training to anyone who intends to trek but does not know what to expect and has not done it. And because different treks requires different level of fitness, all training programs will be tailored to suit specific goals. It will include advice and recommendations from appropriate gear and shoes to linking up with guides and porters in Nepal. All will be taken care of by us.

So with the right training and the right people with the right trek agency, you are all set for a wonderful experience! Meanwhile, here’s one more to tickle your taste buds!

View from Muktinah at 3800 meters

View from Muktinah at 3800 meters

India, was my next destination. I was in this tomb in memory of one of the prince whose name I forgot. I have the whole place to myself. It was peaceful and serene ….. and since it was cold and foggy and I was inspired to do “Standing Pilates” to keep warm.

Standing Pilates in India

Standing Pilates in India

For me, India means great food! I don’t think I had ever enjoyed a trip where the culinary delights do leave such an impression as I am never a foodie. I eat to live; never live to eat. Everything from the curries especially the vegetarian fare to chapattis, puris, naan and more are wonderful. And CHEAP! And those never ending chai and lassi at every meal. Too bad I never got a chance to opt for a thali. Sigh!

And talking about food makes me think of Lunar Chinese New Year and more food! ;)

As we usher in the year of the Ox, try not to over indulge. However if you feel you did over-do it somehow, don’t fret. Our popular trek at Bukit Timah Hill is back; on Saturday 31 Jan at 3.30pm. You don’t have to be fit to do it and have fun. Just let you hair down and keep those feet moving. We gurantee you will have no time to feel tired for the experience with re-vitalize you! “A-aah!”

No plans for Valentine’s Day? Still thinking of doing something meaningful? We have the solution for you. Love is in the air come February at Pilates Central. Grab your love ones and join us for a fun Valentine’s Pilates Allegro Workshop. Expect lots of interactive bonding. This is the easiest way to close the gap with your partner, child, sibling, colleague, parent, boss etc..…. Don’t lose this chance of putting teamwork and comradeship into action for a great start in 2009. Includes goodie bag and packed lunch; and definitely packed laughter as well!

Here’s wishing all a Happy & Prosperous Lunar New Year! Gong Xi Fa Cai!

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Summing up 2008

December 15th, 2008

I can’t believe I am writing a blog! I have always been reading blogs but never ever written one. A techno flob like me is finally on the road to be IT savy! :)

The reason for starting this blog is simple – to make Pilates more personalized and definitely to share my thoughts on what I love to do most; teach and learn Pilates! And to keep doing it ever. To make this blog an interactive place where all can have a place to share and learn.

It has been a most astounding 2008 for Pilates Central – the new name of our Pilates Studio. Why Pilates Central? Simply because we are centrally located in the Central Business District. It will be hard to miss us with our prominent stick man logo all over our front façade. We now boost a new and bigger cozy lounge area with throw cushions. We even redo a layout to separate private training away from group classes with new reformers.

New Facade of Pilates Central

New Facade of Pilates Central

The purpose of these new machines is to facilitate our “Intro 3” program – a 3 private one on one session for beginners new to Pilates and to facilitate our students taking PMI’s Pilates Teacher Certification Program. We also started offering remedial massage and discover it is fast picking up pace as one of the most popular. Most of our clients feel it is a brilliant way to compliment their Pilates training with remedial massage (not to be confused with standard massage)as it helps to release tight joint capsules and re-align tight ligaments, tendons and muscles. They can feel the difference!

New Reformers for Group Classes

New Reformers for Group Classes

As we are the only certifying studio in Singapore for PhysicalMind Instititue’s (NYC) Pilates Teacher Training Program since 2004, our first group of students had just completed the Concentration 101 – Pilates full equipment & apparatus course. This program is an intensive but a straightforward way to be a Pilates Instructor in machine work. It comes fully supported with in- house apprenticeship and mentoring programs. Hence if you have been in the studio you would have seen our new trainees observing classes and doing case studies with their clients.Moving forward into 2009, PMI’s latest teacher’s program “Initiation 301” – Circular Pilates will be added in later part of 2009; the final stage to the full Pilates Mat Work Certification. If you want a career switch to become a Pilates instructor like me, subscribe to our mailing list or better yet email me at jo@pilatescentral.com.sg so we can send you the details.

To kick start 2009, “Standing Pilates” – the NEW 2nd level of Pilates Matwork workshop is now open for registration. To end 2008 on a high note, we have lined up a series of promotions for this holiday season.

With this year almost gone and next year upon us, it’s the time of the year to make resolutions! My hopes for next year will be to create more fun and exciting programs and workshops. Stay tuned for more excitement here!

And here’s wishing all a Merry Xmas & a fabulous New Year!

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