Forward Equals Backwards Series #2

    By  Guest Writer Diana Bailey The Guiding Principle: Consistent, Progressive Practice Nobody builds a bridge over a big river in a day, and the same premise applies to the link between body and brain. Balance and coordination require attentive repetition for gains to be realized. The question to keep in mind whenever approaching…

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Forward Equals Backwards Series #1 Balance

By featured Guest Writer Diana Bailey It is surprising to find that balance is more often explored and defined by how it is lost than how it is maintained. How do you figure out what something is when it is most often explained by what it isn’t? In a perfect Pilates world, balance is the…

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Simple progressions from Bruce King.

Rules of The Bones Book Review

“This is a health rather than beauty book. Its purpose is to help you improve your movement habits for life. ”  – Bruce King. Just finished re-reading Bruce King’s powerful gem: Rule Of The Bones. I’ve spent many years with this small treasure and find myself returning to it often. In a world of extremes…

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Fighting Perfectionism

Mistakes are...

  By Guest Writer Diana Bailey I have perfectionist clients, and I used to suffer from that…a lot. We can all at times torture ourselves with this idea that somehow, at some moment, everything will be better and my life will be happy and my body will be fitter if I could just do (whatever)…

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The Purpose of a Bind is to Discover There is no Bind.

By Guest Writer Diana Bailey Part I The deep “binding” stretches of Pilates and Yoga challenge body and mind to learn balance in their work together. Releasing chronically held tension takes the patience of repeated invitations and acceptance of the often minimal response. Dissolving the tension is the immediate goal, and certainly the most obvious…

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So What Shapes the Mind? – Part 2

Diana

  Part two: Focus of Intent   Is it a great thing to learn to deal with discomfort? Yes! Because eventually you may discover that there are very few real emergencies in life and fitness training is not one of them. The acceptance of discomfort opens the door of physical possibility. It is not an…

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So what Shapes the Mind -Part 1

“The mind shapes the body.” – Joseph Pilates So What Shapes the Mind? Part One: Clarity of Purpose How does repeatedly pushing and beating up the physical body to the point of failure, injury, breakage, or loss prove anything other than perhaps a compulsive tendency of the mind? If you let the mind goad you…

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Simple Solutions for Back Pain – #10 Hamstring Stretches

Genevieve on Back System equipment

Stretch #2- Hamstring Stretch  Back System3 Keeping the hamstrings stretched is an important part of maintaining lumbar flexibility. Tight hamstrings, gluteal and hip flexor muscles are often key components of back pain. Even if you’re not in pain,  (happy times) it’s important and extremely helpful to maintain hamstring flexibility. Keeping your hamstrings long and released…

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Simple Solutions for Back Pain #8: Foam Roller Stretch & Arm Lifts

Arms Lift Lower on Foam roller

I’m in the process of completing a Foam Roller Series to post with the goal of launching it to you this winter. In the meantime, you can find many of the Foam Roller  exercises in the Back Pain Relief category of the Changing through Movement Blog. How the Foam Roller can help You stretch Chest and…

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Perspective on fitness.

What does fitness mean? Challenge your perspective on fitness. First and foremost, the frame for fitness that can work wonders over time is relative rather than comparative. The reality is,  each of us has a unique body shaped by our own genetics and life experience. Comparing fitness to some nebulous “average” or to another person’s performance…

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