Now if only the darn stoller would recoil....

So now that we've been blessed with gorg weather, I am of course getting completely motivated to get outside and exercise! Yesterday, I picked up Henry from his escuela (school) and we quickly rushed home to grab the bob stroller, my running gear, water and sports drink, snacks for Henry and our sun glasses. We headed over to an area that is west of the Boulder Reservoir. I can never remember the trail name and I know I've talked about it before on my blog.... Thing is, I never really ventured out to run off-road with the bob and a 30 pound toddler (usually it is paved or the hubby is pushing the bob). WHOA. It wasn't until I took the bob out of the car and onto the trail with Henry in it that I realized we were low on air...the tires that is. "Hmmm," I thought to myself, this is going to be interesting. You're hear now, so get it together and just run the damn thing." I managed the 3 mile loop ok, but heck, those hills were rough. As a friend described, it is like trying to push a shopping cart through the snow. You try to push that thing away from you so that it could coast a bit, but its a no go. It literally comes to a stand still if you aren't consistently pushing it. Needless to say, I managed to burn off the chocolate I had eaten earlier so despite the angst, there were some pluses. Henry had a blast observing and checking the scene out. He loved seeing the horsies, cows, ducks, birds and the many doggies that jog the trail.
Having embarked on this trail run with the bob stroller and the 30 pound toddler in tow, got me thinking about the running workshops I used to teach, "Learning to Recoil." These classes encompassed posture, body awareness, core strengthening & stretching exercises, and stride/gate assessments. We taught efficient running posture so that one can move quicker more effectively with less energy. My friend and colleague Ralph Havens PT of Mission Hills Physical Therapy in San Diego and I put these together. They were so fun! So while in the midst of pushing the shopping cart through the snow, I thought about my posture, my stride, the angle at which my elbows bent (yes this matters) as well as where my hips where in relation to my knees and ankles. Of course I was v connected to my core too (with all that Pilates in my body). It helped as believe it or not, I am not sore today! Now if only that darn stroller would recoil.....
If interested, let me know if you'd like me to post a video cast of some running tips. Could be fun.

Henry in the bob


Huh?


Gorgeous Foothills (look how GREEN it is-even though the snow slosh we had 2 days prior really gave me a heartache)


short break to catch my breath and take in the views! Look at my cute baba!

Clearing Clutter

Spring is round the corner and I am feeling as though some much needed cleaning both physically AND mentally is in order!
I am in the process of setting up my Pilates business website, www.intrinsicpilates.com (not live yet so you won't find anything yummy there yet). Am very stoked about it and am taking my time to put it together in a cohesive manner. Aside from bits about my classes, as well as my background, I will have my professional Pilates blog attached to that site. This is where you will get insights of the benefits, exercises to do at home, quick tips and so on. I'd like to have this pro blog be more specific to Pilates and Wellness versus the personal bits I like to spew on the screen at this blog.
These changes will help me organize my thoughts and keep concise as I have about 3 other websites and businesses in mind that I would be keen on starting someday in the near future. *head spins round and round at this notion*
So will keep you up to date on the launch of my site.
My plans for the week is to SPRING CLEAN and clear out the clutter (aka get rid of my piles of paper). Organizing and cleaning my space, de-cluttering the office, and other parts of the house as well as simplifying my thoughts by getting it all down on a piece of paper as a list of to do's. Maybe I should take cues from Peter Walsh over at Oprah and make a "messyhouse" pledge. I must commit!
As for the Pilates biz, some really exciting news is that I will be giving a chat in May or June to a great group of women cyclists on the benefits of Pilates for their riding (core strength will improve balance and efficiency on the bike as well as improve their endurance). Can't wait as I am looking forward to working with a committed group of gals who are passionate about their sport (whether a novice or elite). The group is called Venus de Miles and they are a women's cycling club here in Boulder. They also host a ride in the summer (this year is on the 30th of August) which benefits Greenhouse Scholars, an organization providing mentorship and scholarship support to high-performing, under-resourced students. Yesterday I went to a spinning class organized by the group. It was awesome! Looking forward to linking in with them. Too bad I just sold my bike (which means I will just have to build a new one)! Ha ha.

Therapeutic Pilates

Today I thought I should write a little information regarding the therapeutic benefits of the Pilates method. There are many ways in which Pilates can be therapeutic for things like post op, chronic pain, post injury, post-pregnancy to name a few.
I'd like to focus on Women's health specific to pelvic conditions. I'm sure many of you have heard your doctor or a friend talk about "kegel's." A kegel exercise consists of contracting and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles. In Pilates we focus a lot on the connection to the pelvic floor as the pelvis is not only the keystone to the distribution of our body's weight, but helps us stay upright as well as strengthen our powerhouse/abs. Engaging our pelvic floor helps us better connect to the strength of our most internal abdominal muscle, the transverses (they do quite well when they can work together).
As we age, incontinence becomes a more familiar word. Having babies also weaken organs and muscles in our trunk. Geez, I've been there. I managed to give all natural birth to an 8 pound baby and I have a small frame at 5'5". Hen is two and I am just starting to feel really internally strong again. Not flimsy or unconnected like I was post birth.
It is best that we start to really learn how to exercise our pelvic floor and abdominal's (key word here is internally, a 6 pack is nice but that's not what I'm getting at) so we can help prohibit these issues down the road. I'd like to share a basic kegel exercise with you (and no it isn't the kegel exercise your doctor told you about: stopping your stream while on the toilet. I wouldn't recommend doing that).
So here goes:
Sitting on a upright chair (no comfy soft armchairs,ok) or on an exercise ball (when sitting on the ball make sure that the bend of your knees is about 90 degrees or wider. Plus you don't want your hips lower than your knees).
While seated, place a small ball or pillow in between your knees. Place your hands on thighs. Inhale, free breath (no movement). Exhale gently squeeze the ball (or pillow) with your inner legs (not your outer legs or gluts). As you squeeze make sure you engage your pelvic floor. To do this, sorry if this is too graphic for you but it works, is to imagine you are holding a tampon up inside you. Inhale you want to completely relax the pelvic floor and your legs. Start again as you exhale, you gently squeeze ball/pillow with inner legs, kegel and third part is to pull your tummy in.Do this about 6 times. Please don't hesitate to comment if you have further questions about this exercise.
Have FUN!