Happy Monday!!! Spring is on its way and I cannot wait. I am in the mood for shorts, no-sleeve shirts and cute sandals. I just love cute sandals!!. There is just something different about the feeling you get when you know Spring is close. Spring to me is a new beginning each year. I love being outdoors, I love the smell of the flowers and mostly, I love the colors of the flowers. I wish I was a yard person. I have always been envious of the perfectly manicured yards and the beautiful landscaping that comes very natural to some. Like I’ve said before, Betty Crocker does not live at my house and unfortunately neither does Martha Stewart, therefore, I will continue this Spring to enjoy the beauty of nature and the neighbors who know Martha Stewart.
What have you done for yourself this week? Did you get your hair colored? Did you get your hands manicured? Did you buy a new outfit or maybe just find an extra hour that you had to read or maybe just sit and watch TV for fun. Maybe you were able to meet a friend for lunch!!! Do you feel guilty when you take time for yourself? Many people do feel guilty. I hear this story on a regular basis in my business. Clients share they want to make a change to their life to get healthier and feel better, but they feel guilty because the money could be used for better reasons. Better reasons? What could be more important than taking care of ourselves? This is not selfish, it’s smart. If your are healthy your medical bills will stay low, you won’t miss work due to illnesses as often, you set healthy daily examples for your children to follow which leads to their future health, your probability of living longer rises, your chances of diseases decreases and in general you feel better, handle stress better and everyone around you will enjoy you more. So, why do you feel guilty? Look in the mirror and tell yourself, “I am important!!” Began to change your fitness and health habits today.
A few updates:
My client Debbie began her first round of chemo today and once again, she was totally positive and upbeat. She shared she had picked up her new wig and that she was nervous about her hair falling out but yet she was prepared. Sadly, this is one of 5 treatments that she must incur to rid her body of this horrible cancer. Please remember to keep Debbie in your prayers. She shared that knowing that people are praying for her has really made a difference in her life. Let’s continue to send her strength – thanks!!
Little Ber is also having his next rounds of chemo this week. Amber took Ber by his kindergarten class last week for a visit and she said the students didn’t flinch at seeing Ber without hair. Aren’t children amazing!! I wish as adults we were as resilient and accepting. Gotta love the naiveness of being of kid. Please continue to pray for Ber and his fight to live. I was saying the other day, I cannot imagine 2 years of constant needles, surgeries, chemo therapies and worse, SF8 treatments and living in and out of hospitals and only being 6 years old. Ber doesn’t remember life any differently. God Bless Ber! Please continue to pray for Ber and his continued fight to live.
Have a healthy good night, Mary Anne
Monday, March 29, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Exercise and Balance....
For the past nine years I have continually had to make life changing decisions to take care of my children, keep my life balanced and stay financially stable. My ex-husband and I split back in 2001 after 15 years of marriage. We had been high school sweethearts. I still to this day find it sad. As with most people who split, there is a story and consequences. We all handle the stress of divorce differently. For me it was a living death. During the divorce years I herniated my lower back (L5-S1) which eventually fused itself, I tore my rotator cuff and had surgery which ended up in frozen shoulder for 2 years and I spontaneously shattered my neck. My disc literally exploded into pieces sitting on my spine. Needless to say, I was a total mess. I was trying so hard to maintain a normal life for my children, working crazy hours to bring in money and pretending that nothing was wrong to everyone who knew me. I kept our separation a secret for two years because I didn’t want my children to be affected by outsiders. My body paid the toll and I truly learned that stress can kill you.
With all that happened, it changed my life and I feel I have been given direction. It is very humbling to have injuries that cause you to look at life differently overnight and realize you are looking at life through new eyes. It is very humbling to be a very active person your whole life and then one day have total atrophy and see a different person in the mirror. It is humbling to not be able to open jars, type on the computer, cook or look down to read for months and literally draw no income because you cannot work. Yet, all this humbling is good. God is good and very smart. As I healed I realized how incredibly fortunate and lucky I am. I am truly lucky!!! I thank God for these horrible injuries because they gave me a new life and a much bigger heart. The injuries also drove me to understand how this happened to my body after being active my entire life. Over the past two years I have become comfortable sharing my story with clients because I realized I was able to help them using the principles of alignment and core integrity I learned from Pilates that helped me to rehab myself. I found that my clients can use me as inspiration and also give them the belief that they can change their life through exercise. My clients know I really care about their own stories and that I believe in them. They quickly learn that I enjoy their successes as much as they do!!! Nothing better than a great success story to share
One of my clients, her name is Cheryl, is one of my cancer survivors who truly has survived a rare and very deadly cancer. Talk about humbling. Cheryl is one of my senior clients who was a nurse and is now retired. Cheryl has always realized how important exercise is to your body, yet she had really become weak and inactive. She has fallen quite a bit and does not have great balance and she drags one foot and she has had one knee operated on in the past. Cheryl and I have been working hard to get her legs stronger and to teach her to pick up her feet when she walks. One of her first successes was squatting with the ball on the wall and learning that she has to use the back of her legs (hamstrings and glutes) instead of just using the tops of her legs (quadriceps). She had to learn to turn her pelvis to the back, which takes the quadriceps away from the knee joint. She immediately realized her knee didn’t hurt to do squats. Yeah!!! I have also had to teach her how to use the deep core muscles of her stomach which is our bodies center of gravity (basically our own balance stabilizer). If you have had babies, (men obviously this is not you), you were taught to kagel (stopping the flow of urine) after birth to strength the deep pelvic muscles. Well these kagel exercises actually help you to engage a muscle called the transverse. This muscle is like a corset (yes, the ones that tie up the back like in the old south). The transverse muscle contracts around your pelvis and lower back creating a support system for the spine and stabilizes your hips and pelvis, therefore keeping you from falling or from injuring your back. Today Cheryl was able to get herself up and down from the floor without feeling like she was going to fall over and she was so elated!!!! This may not sound like much to you, but when you are a person who falls and cannot get themselves up, this is huge. I was so proud of Cheryl today – today was her day!!!
Well, good night and keep kageling!! Mary Anne
With all that happened, it changed my life and I feel I have been given direction. It is very humbling to have injuries that cause you to look at life differently overnight and realize you are looking at life through new eyes. It is very humbling to be a very active person your whole life and then one day have total atrophy and see a different person in the mirror. It is humbling to not be able to open jars, type on the computer, cook or look down to read for months and literally draw no income because you cannot work. Yet, all this humbling is good. God is good and very smart. As I healed I realized how incredibly fortunate and lucky I am. I am truly lucky!!! I thank God for these horrible injuries because they gave me a new life and a much bigger heart. The injuries also drove me to understand how this happened to my body after being active my entire life. Over the past two years I have become comfortable sharing my story with clients because I realized I was able to help them using the principles of alignment and core integrity I learned from Pilates that helped me to rehab myself. I found that my clients can use me as inspiration and also give them the belief that they can change their life through exercise. My clients know I really care about their own stories and that I believe in them. They quickly learn that I enjoy their successes as much as they do!!! Nothing better than a great success story to share
One of my clients, her name is Cheryl, is one of my cancer survivors who truly has survived a rare and very deadly cancer. Talk about humbling. Cheryl is one of my senior clients who was a nurse and is now retired. Cheryl has always realized how important exercise is to your body, yet she had really become weak and inactive. She has fallen quite a bit and does not have great balance and she drags one foot and she has had one knee operated on in the past. Cheryl and I have been working hard to get her legs stronger and to teach her to pick up her feet when she walks. One of her first successes was squatting with the ball on the wall and learning that she has to use the back of her legs (hamstrings and glutes) instead of just using the tops of her legs (quadriceps). She had to learn to turn her pelvis to the back, which takes the quadriceps away from the knee joint. She immediately realized her knee didn’t hurt to do squats. Yeah!!! I have also had to teach her how to use the deep core muscles of her stomach which is our bodies center of gravity (basically our own balance stabilizer). If you have had babies, (men obviously this is not you), you were taught to kagel (stopping the flow of urine) after birth to strength the deep pelvic muscles. Well these kagel exercises actually help you to engage a muscle called the transverse. This muscle is like a corset (yes, the ones that tie up the back like in the old south). The transverse muscle contracts around your pelvis and lower back creating a support system for the spine and stabilizes your hips and pelvis, therefore keeping you from falling or from injuring your back. Today Cheryl was able to get herself up and down from the floor without feeling like she was going to fall over and she was so elated!!!! This may not sound like much to you, but when you are a person who falls and cannot get themselves up, this is huge. I was so proud of Cheryl today – today was her day!!!
Well, good night and keep kageling!! Mary Anne
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Exercise Adherence....
Happy Tuesday evening! I hope today was a nice day for you. I haven’t been able to write on my blog in a while and feel I am behind with all that has been happening. Let’s see, I think I should start with bragging about my youngest daughter Allie. She is a very, very happy go lucky person and my more social butterfly. She loves to take pictures of herself and her friends and like most teenagers today, lives on Facebook. Well, this weekend she received a letter of acceptance into the International Baccalaureate Program at Midlothian High School. I was so proud of her and cannot believe my youngest will be starting high school in the fall. Her dream since the 3rd grade is to go to Virginia Tech and be a Hokie and she heard that this program will help her get there. We’ll see in four years. Way to go Allie!
My other daughter, Carter, who is in 11th grade took her SAT’s this weekend. She swore it was the hardest test she had ever taken and is planning on retaking it already. This is my daughter who swore that the High School Varsity Softball coach didn’t like her so therefore she wouldn’t make the team but said she would do whatever it took to show him she could play ball. Well she made the team. Honestly I never questioned her making the team, but believe it’s good for her to realize she has to work hard and prove herself. I was very proud of Carter too!!!
Today I came home from work and received the dreaded call all parents worry about once their teenagers begin driving. My son, Boone, called me and I could hear fear in his voice immediately. He had rear-ended another driver and thankfully everyone involved was ok. He said just before he and his girlfriend had gotten in the car he had found on the ground a gold plated charm that had “luck” written on the front. He laughed when he handed it to me and said the charm didn’t work. I gave him that mommy grin and told him “yes it did” he was here and the bruised car could be fixed.
Last time I wrote I shared with you about Ber’s Bowl weekend. The fundraiser brought in $16,000 dollars. A huge shout out to everyone who donated, taught, massaged, silent auctioned and participated. I just love the kindness that permeates when others need help. Little Ber is continuing chemo treatments next week and needs you to keep him in your prayers!
I saw Debbie this week!!! I was so excited when she walked up with her huge gorgeous smile. She is healing very well from her double mastectomy and as usual just as positive as can be. She came to the gym to walk the track and you could tell she was happy to be at ACAC. Please continue to keep Debbie in your prayers too, she will begin chemo treatments in the near future.
Well, as you know I am a personal trainer and one of the largest aspects of my job is to motivate others to meet their health and fitness goals by helping them to stick to an exercise program. Basically I figure out ways to teach you exercise adherence. Have you ever thought about this before? Do you fit the 60% of the population who does not engage in at least 30 minutes of exercise daily? If so, I would really like to change your life and help you to see the value of yourself and how important you are to your family and friends. Woman, in particular, die of heart disease every day. Did you know that heart disease is the #1 killer of women. This is very scary to me, especially when it doesn’t have to be this way. Health results from physical activity happens very quickly and in most cases keeps you medicine free as you age. If you think about it, 30 minutes a day is a very small amount of time daily yet the health rewards from 30 minutes of exercise is huge. My goal for 2010 is to produce a personal training video that will touch the lives of others to help teach them how to begin an exercise program and also to help them believe in themselves. I’ll keep you posted.
I have a client named Liz and she came to me overweight a little less than a year ago. Liz was medicated for high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Liz is a Mother of three teenagers and she has spent the past 19 years taking care of her family. She was an active rower and also rode horses competitively as a teenager, therefore not a rookie to activity. Yet, once the family life took over Liz’s routine changed and overtime she gained the weight and then the blood pressure and high cholesterol came to visit. When I first met Liz she told me she realized she needed to invest in herself because she realized at 47 her health was not what it should be and she was worried. Prior to contacting me she went and had a check up and had all the proper blood work done. I was excited to work with Liz because I knew what changes were going to occur for her over the next few months. We began meeting 3 times a week for the first four months. Liz really had made a decision to commit to her health and really listened to my guidance and worked very hard. Liz came to me de-conditioned, just walking around the track a couple of times in the early weeks burned her shins to death and frightened her because she became breathy quickly. We had to really work with Liz’s back because she had the “hump” that many people get “kyphotic back” when their posture or stature is more forward and rounded at the shoulders. This in itself was a challenge because this “kyphotic posture or hump” on her back makes it difficult for her to lay on her back, sleep well and also stand up straight. We focused on this postural default a lot and if you saw how much flatter her hump is today and how she can lay flat on her back now, you would be amazed!!! I also taught Liz how to read her heart rate so she could see how hard her heart was working so she could begin learning how to burn calories along with teaching her basic strength training and Pilates to strengthen her core and work on her balance. At four months, Liz went back to the doctor and had her blood work done again. She came back to me with great news!! Her doctor had asked her “what have you been doing, your blood work is great!” Not only had Liz lost weight, but all her blood counts had improved and her doctor told her that in another few months she would do the blood work again and if the blood work dropped again, she would be off her medicines. Liz was stunned. Four months and she was having huge health changes that were tangible along with her shrinking body. Along with her great results, Liz’s demeanor was different. She shared she was sleeping better, her legs didn’t hurt anymore, she didn’t get breathy walking anymore and she was a less stressful Mother. Liz’s family has been a huge support for her. I am so very proud of Liz and am happy that she learned that the investment she made in herself also made life easier for her daily. When we first met I had told Liz about small group training and how motivating and successful it was for women. Liz told me in the early months that the “group thing” just wasn’t for her, so I did not press this goal with her, yet 6 months later, she approached me and said “you will not believe this Mary Anne, but I want to join one of your small groups”. I was floored and happy at the same time. She had gained so much confidence in herself and her abilities that she was no longer uncomfortable working out in front of others. God bless you Liz!!! What a great story…
Well, as usual, I’m typing at night and I have to teach spinning at 6am (I love this group). I promise it won’t take me a week to write again. God bless and good night!! Mary Anne
My other daughter, Carter, who is in 11th grade took her SAT’s this weekend. She swore it was the hardest test she had ever taken and is planning on retaking it already. This is my daughter who swore that the High School Varsity Softball coach didn’t like her so therefore she wouldn’t make the team but said she would do whatever it took to show him she could play ball. Well she made the team. Honestly I never questioned her making the team, but believe it’s good for her to realize she has to work hard and prove herself. I was very proud of Carter too!!!
Today I came home from work and received the dreaded call all parents worry about once their teenagers begin driving. My son, Boone, called me and I could hear fear in his voice immediately. He had rear-ended another driver and thankfully everyone involved was ok. He said just before he and his girlfriend had gotten in the car he had found on the ground a gold plated charm that had “luck” written on the front. He laughed when he handed it to me and said the charm didn’t work. I gave him that mommy grin and told him “yes it did” he was here and the bruised car could be fixed.
Last time I wrote I shared with you about Ber’s Bowl weekend. The fundraiser brought in $16,000 dollars. A huge shout out to everyone who donated, taught, massaged, silent auctioned and participated. I just love the kindness that permeates when others need help. Little Ber is continuing chemo treatments next week and needs you to keep him in your prayers!
I saw Debbie this week!!! I was so excited when she walked up with her huge gorgeous smile. She is healing very well from her double mastectomy and as usual just as positive as can be. She came to the gym to walk the track and you could tell she was happy to be at ACAC. Please continue to keep Debbie in your prayers too, she will begin chemo treatments in the near future.
Well, as you know I am a personal trainer and one of the largest aspects of my job is to motivate others to meet their health and fitness goals by helping them to stick to an exercise program. Basically I figure out ways to teach you exercise adherence. Have you ever thought about this before? Do you fit the 60% of the population who does not engage in at least 30 minutes of exercise daily? If so, I would really like to change your life and help you to see the value of yourself and how important you are to your family and friends. Woman, in particular, die of heart disease every day. Did you know that heart disease is the #1 killer of women. This is very scary to me, especially when it doesn’t have to be this way. Health results from physical activity happens very quickly and in most cases keeps you medicine free as you age. If you think about it, 30 minutes a day is a very small amount of time daily yet the health rewards from 30 minutes of exercise is huge. My goal for 2010 is to produce a personal training video that will touch the lives of others to help teach them how to begin an exercise program and also to help them believe in themselves. I’ll keep you posted.
I have a client named Liz and she came to me overweight a little less than a year ago. Liz was medicated for high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Liz is a Mother of three teenagers and she has spent the past 19 years taking care of her family. She was an active rower and also rode horses competitively as a teenager, therefore not a rookie to activity. Yet, once the family life took over Liz’s routine changed and overtime she gained the weight and then the blood pressure and high cholesterol came to visit. When I first met Liz she told me she realized she needed to invest in herself because she realized at 47 her health was not what it should be and she was worried. Prior to contacting me she went and had a check up and had all the proper blood work done. I was excited to work with Liz because I knew what changes were going to occur for her over the next few months. We began meeting 3 times a week for the first four months. Liz really had made a decision to commit to her health and really listened to my guidance and worked very hard. Liz came to me de-conditioned, just walking around the track a couple of times in the early weeks burned her shins to death and frightened her because she became breathy quickly. We had to really work with Liz’s back because she had the “hump” that many people get “kyphotic back” when their posture or stature is more forward and rounded at the shoulders. This in itself was a challenge because this “kyphotic posture or hump” on her back makes it difficult for her to lay on her back, sleep well and also stand up straight. We focused on this postural default a lot and if you saw how much flatter her hump is today and how she can lay flat on her back now, you would be amazed!!! I also taught Liz how to read her heart rate so she could see how hard her heart was working so she could begin learning how to burn calories along with teaching her basic strength training and Pilates to strengthen her core and work on her balance. At four months, Liz went back to the doctor and had her blood work done again. She came back to me with great news!! Her doctor had asked her “what have you been doing, your blood work is great!” Not only had Liz lost weight, but all her blood counts had improved and her doctor told her that in another few months she would do the blood work again and if the blood work dropped again, she would be off her medicines. Liz was stunned. Four months and she was having huge health changes that were tangible along with her shrinking body. Along with her great results, Liz’s demeanor was different. She shared she was sleeping better, her legs didn’t hurt anymore, she didn’t get breathy walking anymore and she was a less stressful Mother. Liz’s family has been a huge support for her. I am so very proud of Liz and am happy that she learned that the investment she made in herself also made life easier for her daily. When we first met I had told Liz about small group training and how motivating and successful it was for women. Liz told me in the early months that the “group thing” just wasn’t for her, so I did not press this goal with her, yet 6 months later, she approached me and said “you will not believe this Mary Anne, but I want to join one of your small groups”. I was floored and happy at the same time. She had gained so much confidence in herself and her abilities that she was no longer uncomfortable working out in front of others. God bless you Liz!!! What a great story…
Well, as usual, I’m typing at night and I have to teach spinning at 6am (I love this group). I promise it won’t take me a week to write again. God bless and good night!! Mary Anne
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Ber's Bowl....
What a gorgeous Sunday! I wish every day could be as beautiful as it was today. John and I were able to do our weekly Sunday morning ride. It felt so good to be on the bike and feel the fresh air. My last few rides had not gone so well, but today was a different day. I felt strong today and I am ready for my week to begin.
ACAC finally had Ber’s Bowl this weekend. You may remember from my earlier blogs about Ber (Bear) that ACAC had to cancel the fund raising event we had planned to raise money for little Ber the weekend of the Super Bowl due to the snow. The fundraiser is held to raise awareness and help for Ber and other children fighting the battle of neuroblastoma. The weekend of marathon group exercises classes began on Friday evening and ran through early afternoon today. ACAC donates $1 for every member and $5 for ever non-member. We were bummed that we did not have the attendance we have received the past 2 years. Having to cancel such a huge event a month before really made the difference, not to mention it was beautiful outside. One of our trainers, Camille, rode her indoor trainer for 100 miles and raised $2300. Do you realize how hard it is to ride 100 miles outdoors let alone on a stationary bike inside. Camille is amazing!! Our massage therapist Helen did non-stop massages, $1 a minute, all weekend. Not sure how much Helen raised but as of Friday evening she had raised over $400 in 6 hours. Helen is also amazing!!! I will let you know the final totals of the weekend once they are posted.
Little Ber had to have his chemo treatments this week and truly did not have a fun week. The treatments made him sick and Amber said there was one night they were up every hour for 8 hours straight. Ber came home in time for Ber’s bowl to begin. He insisted he wanted to be at the gym and came for a few short visits. You could tell his 6 year old body was tired. Usually when you see him he is so upbeat, but he was a little quieter than usual. Amber was able to take a class on Friday evening and she said she really felt the emotions of the week. Sadly tears were shed. I truly cannot imagine how Amber and Steve feel every day, along with many other parents that fight to keep their children alive. Please continue to pray for Ber and his family and the other families who have children with childhood cancers.
One of the classes I taught this weekend for the “marathon” of classes was a Pilates class. I had so much fun teaching this group. It is always nice to meet a room of strangers and see if I can impact them in positive way. I challenged myself to try to teach each person in the room one alignment default they had and show them how they can correct the issue and make an exercise much easier. Posture and alignment is a passion of mine and I find most love learning about their own body, it is empowering to have control of yourself. Two women in the class learned they have an excessive curve in their back, called lordosis. This excessive curve requires a towel or soft cushion to be put under the arch of their back when lying on the floor. One woman had what we call sway back, which means the upper outward curve of her back is longer than most. You do not see this as often as lordosis. Both conditions make it hard and even impossible in some instances to do a roll-up or a sit-up. I had at least 5 people in class who had a forward head. This means the back of the head cannot lay flat on the floor when lying on your back and your chin points up to the ceiling exposing your adams apple. This alignment default requires a rolled up towel or cushion under the head to keep the spine in a straight line and keeps your shoulder blades in a comfortable position. This will immediately take the stress off their neck and make sit-ups and any Pilates core exercise on your back much easier.
After class, five of the woman who were guest of ACAC, shared they found the hour very interesting and asked if I had a video they could buy. This was awesome!! Three of the woman take classes in Pilates on a regular basis and were pleased to learn and also now understand why they had not been able to accomplish certain exercises. One woman in particular said this was the first time ever that she did a full roll-up. I was very excited that they had something to take home with them. I will keep you all posted on the Pilates video!
Well, it is getting late and I need to get some rest, 5:00am just comes around way too early.
Mary Anne
ACAC finally had Ber’s Bowl this weekend. You may remember from my earlier blogs about Ber (Bear) that ACAC had to cancel the fund raising event we had planned to raise money for little Ber the weekend of the Super Bowl due to the snow. The fundraiser is held to raise awareness and help for Ber and other children fighting the battle of neuroblastoma. The weekend of marathon group exercises classes began on Friday evening and ran through early afternoon today. ACAC donates $1 for every member and $5 for ever non-member. We were bummed that we did not have the attendance we have received the past 2 years. Having to cancel such a huge event a month before really made the difference, not to mention it was beautiful outside. One of our trainers, Camille, rode her indoor trainer for 100 miles and raised $2300. Do you realize how hard it is to ride 100 miles outdoors let alone on a stationary bike inside. Camille is amazing!! Our massage therapist Helen did non-stop massages, $1 a minute, all weekend. Not sure how much Helen raised but as of Friday evening she had raised over $400 in 6 hours. Helen is also amazing!!! I will let you know the final totals of the weekend once they are posted.
Little Ber had to have his chemo treatments this week and truly did not have a fun week. The treatments made him sick and Amber said there was one night they were up every hour for 8 hours straight. Ber came home in time for Ber’s bowl to begin. He insisted he wanted to be at the gym and came for a few short visits. You could tell his 6 year old body was tired. Usually when you see him he is so upbeat, but he was a little quieter than usual. Amber was able to take a class on Friday evening and she said she really felt the emotions of the week. Sadly tears were shed. I truly cannot imagine how Amber and Steve feel every day, along with many other parents that fight to keep their children alive. Please continue to pray for Ber and his family and the other families who have children with childhood cancers.
One of the classes I taught this weekend for the “marathon” of classes was a Pilates class. I had so much fun teaching this group. It is always nice to meet a room of strangers and see if I can impact them in positive way. I challenged myself to try to teach each person in the room one alignment default they had and show them how they can correct the issue and make an exercise much easier. Posture and alignment is a passion of mine and I find most love learning about their own body, it is empowering to have control of yourself. Two women in the class learned they have an excessive curve in their back, called lordosis. This excessive curve requires a towel or soft cushion to be put under the arch of their back when lying on the floor. One woman had what we call sway back, which means the upper outward curve of her back is longer than most. You do not see this as often as lordosis. Both conditions make it hard and even impossible in some instances to do a roll-up or a sit-up. I had at least 5 people in class who had a forward head. This means the back of the head cannot lay flat on the floor when lying on your back and your chin points up to the ceiling exposing your adams apple. This alignment default requires a rolled up towel or cushion under the head to keep the spine in a straight line and keeps your shoulder blades in a comfortable position. This will immediately take the stress off their neck and make sit-ups and any Pilates core exercise on your back much easier.
After class, five of the woman who were guest of ACAC, shared they found the hour very interesting and asked if I had a video they could buy. This was awesome!! Three of the woman take classes in Pilates on a regular basis and were pleased to learn and also now understand why they had not been able to accomplish certain exercises. One woman in particular said this was the first time ever that she did a full roll-up. I was very excited that they had something to take home with them. I will keep you all posted on the Pilates video!
Well, it is getting late and I need to get some rest, 5:00am just comes around way too early.
Mary Anne
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Tim, the Cyclist....
Happy Wednesday!!! Wednesday is one of my favorite days of the week. My partner, John and I have date night in the middle of the week every week and I always look forward to my evening with him alone. I literally savor this night. It’s like icing on a cake. I find this is the one day of the week we get to completely focus on each other and dive into great conversation. We do not live with each other, so I always treasure my time with him. Well, last week and this week John has been traveling and I miss him dearly. I already cannot wait till next week – woo hoo!
I have a new client who is a local cyclist. Tim rides for one of the local teams and unlike me, he is an upper category rider. He joined ACAC through a program that we offer called the Prep program. This program is unique because doctors give a patient a prescription to come to ACAC so we can help guide the patient through recovery from an operation or from a medical condition using our wellness services and our on-site nurse. Basically, the patient pays $60 for 60 days and at the end of 60 days they can use the $60 to join the gym. What a deal. Well Tim was sent to ACAC because of a knee issue that has kept him from riding for months. He had been to several therapist and trainers and was set up for an MRI next week. We happened to run into each other last week at the gym and I recognized him from races. He shared his knee issue with me and I quickly did some alignment evaluations with him and showed him a few changes to make with some of his exercises he was given. He seemed pleased with what I was showing him, so he asked if we could meet for a real session. So on Monday we met and I did quite a bit with him so he would understand the importance of using the correct muscles in the leg to track the knee. I taught him how to squat and lunge correctly using a ball on the wall so that he could feel the correct muscles fire that are required to execute an efficient pedal stroke on the bike. We also practiced this on a spin bike so he could feel the difference of his old way and my new way. I felt Tim was beginning to grasp the concept that our body is like a machine and when one part of the machine doesn’t work, there is a breakdown in the system. Muscles are there to protect the joint and the ligaments and therefore exercise shouldn’t hurt.
Tuesday morning Tim stopped by my office and asked if I had a minute. He wanted to share with me that for the first time in months, he had an incredible long pain free ride after he had met with me on Monday. He said the ride was is first in a long time and it was awesome. He felt so much stronger on the bike already with the few changes we made on Monday. (I can’t imagine how fast he will be now – he was already blistering fast) This was a really cool moment. He said he had come to me with an open mind and didn’t know what a category 4 rider could do for him. I laughed!!! He said he just couldn’t wait to come back next week and learn more. He felt he had his life back. Anyway, like I told him, alignment is everything, no matter if you are a walker, runner, cyclist or a person sitting at a desk every day. I love days like Monday!!
Enjoy your evening!! Mary Anne
I have a new client who is a local cyclist. Tim rides for one of the local teams and unlike me, he is an upper category rider. He joined ACAC through a program that we offer called the Prep program. This program is unique because doctors give a patient a prescription to come to ACAC so we can help guide the patient through recovery from an operation or from a medical condition using our wellness services and our on-site nurse. Basically, the patient pays $60 for 60 days and at the end of 60 days they can use the $60 to join the gym. What a deal. Well Tim was sent to ACAC because of a knee issue that has kept him from riding for months. He had been to several therapist and trainers and was set up for an MRI next week. We happened to run into each other last week at the gym and I recognized him from races. He shared his knee issue with me and I quickly did some alignment evaluations with him and showed him a few changes to make with some of his exercises he was given. He seemed pleased with what I was showing him, so he asked if we could meet for a real session. So on Monday we met and I did quite a bit with him so he would understand the importance of using the correct muscles in the leg to track the knee. I taught him how to squat and lunge correctly using a ball on the wall so that he could feel the correct muscles fire that are required to execute an efficient pedal stroke on the bike. We also practiced this on a spin bike so he could feel the difference of his old way and my new way. I felt Tim was beginning to grasp the concept that our body is like a machine and when one part of the machine doesn’t work, there is a breakdown in the system. Muscles are there to protect the joint and the ligaments and therefore exercise shouldn’t hurt.
Tuesday morning Tim stopped by my office and asked if I had a minute. He wanted to share with me that for the first time in months, he had an incredible long pain free ride after he had met with me on Monday. He said the ride was is first in a long time and it was awesome. He felt so much stronger on the bike already with the few changes we made on Monday. (I can’t imagine how fast he will be now – he was already blistering fast) This was a really cool moment. He said he had come to me with an open mind and didn’t know what a category 4 rider could do for him. I laughed!!! He said he just couldn’t wait to come back next week and learn more. He felt he had his life back. Anyway, like I told him, alignment is everything, no matter if you are a walker, runner, cyclist or a person sitting at a desk every day. I love days like Monday!!
Enjoy your evening!! Mary Anne
Monday, March 1, 2010
92 years young…..
On Friday I was given a verdict from a court hearing regarding my ex-husband and it did not go in my favor. My ex-husband had the misfortune of losing his job this past summer. Fortunately he was able to find a new job which unfortunately paid him less money. He then petitioned the court asking to have his child support payment dropped and the court granted him his request. Well be as it may, money does not grow on trees (darn it!!). I am angry about the situation and plan to use my anger to drive me to succeed even more. My children are too important to me. My client Pat told me today if anyone could make an idea happen it would be me. Well Pat, I’m going to try and thank you for the encouragement. I need it right now. Phew, got that off my shoulders, I feel better…. On to better things
Great story today from one of my client’s named Kris. She is very funny and never holds back what she “really feels” especially in an e-mail. I just love it!! And I love her honesty!!! I also enjoy the fact that she stresses every time she has a piano lesson because she hasn’t practiced and she wants an excuse not to go. She is very, very funny! She makes me laugh every time we are together. Kris has 5 children and they are all very close in age. She gained weight after having the children and came to me so she could get some weight off. I worked with her one on one in the beginning and then I moved her into a small group because I knew it would really help her motivation and keep her focused once she developed a relationship with these woman. I also knew she would become accountable not only to me, but her new partners in crime. Kris has worked very hard and was excited today because her hard work was paying off. The irony was it took her grandmother to pass before Kris would realize how much.
Kris’s grandmother was 92 years old and had lived a wonderful life and was very lucky to pass in her sleep (God please let that be the way I go). Well, Kris was going through her clothes to find the outfit to wear to the viewing and she was elated that none of them fit. he had to go out and buy herself new pants and shirts to fit her new bod – woo hoo!!! (this is really funny to me, because I am always telling her to treat herself – which is hard for a mother of 5 and it took her grandmothers passing for her to finally shop). Kris was sad in one breath and excited in another.
Kris told us how her grandmother (now remember she was 92 years old) just recently at her families river house, rode an oversized tricycle because she wanted to remember what it felt like one more time. She said her Mother was running beside her the entire time so worried that she would fall over. She never fell. I LOVED this picture of her grandmother and how spunky she sounded. I loved it because even at the age of 90 our bodies still love to move and our mind and spirit responds. Good for you grandma.
Well, shorter blog tonight. I have to get to work figuring out how to make up for lost income. Keep me in your prayers tonight. Thanks a million. Mary Anne
Great story today from one of my client’s named Kris. She is very funny and never holds back what she “really feels” especially in an e-mail. I just love it!! And I love her honesty!!! I also enjoy the fact that she stresses every time she has a piano lesson because she hasn’t practiced and she wants an excuse not to go. She is very, very funny! She makes me laugh every time we are together. Kris has 5 children and they are all very close in age. She gained weight after having the children and came to me so she could get some weight off. I worked with her one on one in the beginning and then I moved her into a small group because I knew it would really help her motivation and keep her focused once she developed a relationship with these woman. I also knew she would become accountable not only to me, but her new partners in crime. Kris has worked very hard and was excited today because her hard work was paying off. The irony was it took her grandmother to pass before Kris would realize how much.
Kris’s grandmother was 92 years old and had lived a wonderful life and was very lucky to pass in her sleep (God please let that be the way I go). Well, Kris was going through her clothes to find the outfit to wear to the viewing and she was elated that none of them fit. he had to go out and buy herself new pants and shirts to fit her new bod – woo hoo!!! (this is really funny to me, because I am always telling her to treat herself – which is hard for a mother of 5 and it took her grandmothers passing for her to finally shop). Kris was sad in one breath and excited in another.
Kris told us how her grandmother (now remember she was 92 years old) just recently at her families river house, rode an oversized tricycle because she wanted to remember what it felt like one more time. She said her Mother was running beside her the entire time so worried that she would fall over. She never fell. I LOVED this picture of her grandmother and how spunky she sounded. I loved it because even at the age of 90 our bodies still love to move and our mind and spirit responds. Good for you grandma.
Well, shorter blog tonight. I have to get to work figuring out how to make up for lost income. Keep me in your prayers tonight. Thanks a million. Mary Anne
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