Pilates

I was going to post this a few days ago, but then my computer decided it wanted to be a jerk and get a virus, so, it's a few days later than I wanted it to be, but here it is.


For any of you who know me, you know that I absolutely love Pilates. I love it so much that I found a mentor and became certified to teach. It's always been incredibly important to me as a dancer, but, anybody can benefit from it.


Pilates focuses on the core, but more specifically, on the transverse abdominis. On every single exhale, this muscle is supposed to be contracted. It's the same set of muscles you use to stop the flow of urine, or, if you're a woman, it's a Kegel exercise. Pilates is also about length. It won't give you bulk, which is why it's amazing for dancers although that's changing. It also focuses on the body-mind connection.

There are an absolute TON of health benefits from Pilates, so, here's a short list:
- Long, lean muscle
- Weight loss
- Heart and lung endurance
- Anti-aging effects
- Build bone density
- Better focus and concentration
- Better memory
- Increased flexibility
- Self awareness
- Stronger immune system
- Better sleep
- Self confidence
- Increased circulation
- Better posture
- Faster metabolism
- Overall better health

I could go on for days, so I'll let that soak in. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have!

The Biggest Loser

I know a lot of people who are absolutely obsessed with this show. I watched it once with some friends and I love the idea of a show where they are helping people lose weight. I don't love the idea that they are eliminating people and having them lose WAY too much weight WAY too fast.

It's ridiculous to think that people can be eliminated for not losing enough body fat. Well, put them up against somebody who is either male and/or has way more body fat than you do, and guess what? You're not going to lose as much body fat compared to them! So I guess the logical thing is that you're not working hard enough and you get sent home. Really? Also, one of the contestants lost 100 lbs in 7 weeks or something like that. Again, REALLY? Here I was under the impression that 2 lbs a week was healthy weight loss. Yeah, yeah, most of it was water weight at first, but, COME ON! The trainers should KNOW BETTER! They also should know that half the crap they have them do at the gym is NOT GOOD FOR THEM TO BE DOING AT THEIR CURRENT WEIGHT AND FITNESS LEVEL!!! Is that what I have to do to be a successful trainer like Jillian Michaels? I can do unsafe things, put my clients in danger of injury and scrunch up the left side of my face whenever I talk too, but that isn't me. I don't know, for some reason I like to err on the side of caution and not hurt people.

I think I'd like the show better if nobody was eliminated and they encouraged healthy weight loss. It also wouldn't hurt if Jillian stopped the scrunch face routine too...

My new project

Before I go into detail about my new project (that may be the death of me if I'm able to get this off the ground, but it would be worth it), I'd like to rant a little bit about dance. This is my favorite topic, so hopefully I can keep this relatively short.

On Friday, I heard some of the dancers at the studio kind of arguing about which dance style is the best and takes the most talent. This kind of stuff really irks me. I stepped in and I told them we're all doing the same exact thing, but using a different technique. It's all about expressing yourself with your body. It doesn't matter what you call your style. It doesn't matter what kind of music you're using. I don't let music define what dance style I feel like doing. I've been known to use hip hop for a ballet piece, classical music for a hip hop piece, I can tap dance to The Misfits, I can do lyrical to Prince if I wanted, hell I'm using Marilyn Manson for a pointe piece this year, it's all about the movement and the freedom of the movement. You may not understand who I am when you're talking to me, but you'll know exactly who I am as a person when you see me dance. When I'm dancing, the guards are down, the baggage is set aside and I'm my true self. It's a completely vulnerable state, but I embrace it. I may not be able to tell you how I'm feeling about something, but I can sure as hell SHOW you how I'm feeling using my body. Which leads me into my project:

I want to start my own dance company. I want to fuse styles together (which is my favorite thing in the world to do) and show that we're all after the same goal: art. All dance is created equally. Sure, we all can favor one style over the other (guess which one is my favorite), but it doesn't make it better than all other forms. I have a lot of great ideas and a lot of great choreography swimming around in my head that I would love to see come to life. I can't do a lot of what I really want to do with my students because they're not willing to "go there" with me. I want dancers who don't hold back. A lot of dancers are afraid of what they can really do, and it scares them. I need some fearless people!

I'll make a few phone calls tomorrow and see where I can get a rehearsal space. Then, I'll probably put an ad on Craigslist for auditions. I would love to see this happen. I need to do something creative.

Here's an update:

OK, so, I know my last post was awful, and it felt awful (believe me), but Chris and I are going to be working things out, so, false alarm...We'll be OK. We're going to start counseling soon and although I'm not living at the house full time right now, I'm hoping to be moving back in soon. It's kind of lame staying with my parents half of the week and sleeping on an air mattress. Although my sheets are hot pink, so I guess that makes me feel better.


In other news, I'll still be teaching Pilates at Snap Fitness (for now), but I did just get a job at a chiropractor's office as a fitness trainer. It's really awesome because he has a ton of equipment, massage therapists, a nutritionist, and a couple of other chiropractors all in the same building. He'll be hiring in a male trainer because as he put it "Not every guy wants to work with a 100 lb female trainer." Me? 100 lbs? Why, thank you! However, it's understandable because a lot of men think women don't know anything about fitness, so, whatever...

On the dance front, things are fine. Although I almost had a mutiny on my hands the other day, but I quickly diffused that situation. Teenagers...ugh...


I've been having some issues lately with my body (as usual.) I'm about 99.9% sure I have iliopsoas tendonitis in my right hip, which would explain the problems I've been having. I've been icing it and treating it very nicely. I also now am mysteriously having problems with my right calf muscle (yeah, my right leg is kind of a mess right now). It feels so incredibly tight, and it's all the way around my entire lower leg. It hurts. I think it's because I just started Insanity this week and it just isn't used to that kind of abuse...or something...I have no clue. We'll see what happens.


Speaking of Insanity, I really like the program so far. I do miss P90X, but it's nice to do something different. I'm a lot stronger than I thought I was, but I keep having to stop because my calf is spazzing out on me. It would be nice to see what my cardiorespiratory system can really do, but I guess I'll have to wait until my calf stops being a jerk. I really hope this program won't make my calves get any bigger because then I wouldn't be able to wear pants. I have a hard enough time trying to take my current jeans off as it is, so if they got any bigger I'd have some serious problems. I don't want a repeat of getting stuck in a pair of skinny jeans at Express again. That was humiliating, yet hilarious.


I'm thinking tomorrow I'm going to write a blog about the benefits of Pilates. Just because I love it so much!