It's Official!

Well, it's over. That's right, I received final word that I passed my written test! I am now an officially certified Pilates instructor. It is a huge relief to be done, to take my lessons for me and my body, and to really start to teach (and, therefore, hopefully make money).

So, thanks to everyone who made it possible:

• My husband- super-supportive and encouraging
• Brie- I learned more than I ever thought there was
• The girls in the program- you can do it!
• The rest of my family- for putting up with my crazy ideas

Hopefully this blog will now become more about the challenges and situations of teaching, as well as general wellness and fitness, in conjunction with my new job at Wellworks for You.

The Psychology of Teaching

As I am starting to teach more, I am beginning to develop my own style, pace and wording. The problem with this, of course, is that it is mine. Working in an established studio, where some people have been with the same instructor for 5 years, can be a little precarious. They are now used to a particular way of doing things, hearing things, working. And here comes this new instructor, who looks like she's about 12, and asks for something else. Needless to say, there's some resistance. So, how do I break through? With little kids, it's a little easier. They will say "That's not how we do it in Miss So-and-so's class." To which the reply is "Do I look like Miss So-and-so?", and you can move on. Adults, however, require a little more information than that. (Not that I haven't been tempted to try it)

I think there a couple different attitudes of students out there:

• those willing to give you a chance, mainly because their other instructor said to
• those who will never like you
• those who just want the work, they don't care about the personality

and those categories can be broken down into a motivation for being the student in the first place:

• those who want a workout
• those who are there for their own "me"time
• those who are there because they feel like they "should" be (whether it's because everyone else is doing it and it's the hottest thing, guilt, or someone in their life made them come)
• those who are there as a social outing

In a private lesson, you can connect with a person and get to understand their motivation and their willingness to work. Usually whatever the reason for being there and attitude, I can get through to them. At least for an hour.

Group classes, however, are another story. When I enter a group class, my goal is to give them a good, true Pilates workout, safely. But, I am realizing, because there is more than one person involved, I cannot make all of them happy. The chances of all of them having the same attitude and the same motivation is probably 0.

Last week, I subbed a group class. There were 6 people. 2 were there for the work. They left happy campers, and 1 has joined another of my classes. 1 person wanted nothing to do with me. I tried to offer corrections, and she wouldn't take them. She left frustrated and unhappy. One was disappointed that the class did not take the full hour, yet she said the class was good. My guess is that she was there for "me" time. Her goal was unfulfilled (on all our paperwork, it says "Classes are 50-55min", but whatever). Now know why she is there, if I have her in a class again, I can be more sensitive to the fact that she is the for an hour, an hour she doesn't have to be anywhere else, doing anything else, and she would like to keep it that way. 2 people I couldn't get a good read on. They worked out, they left.

It took me a good deal of reflection to understand that my teaching style is not going to fulfill every one's needs. That's why all the mentors have said "Not everyone will like your class. Don't take it personally." I've wondered, "How do I not take it personally?!" But know I can see that there are just too many variables in a group of people to meet all of their needs.

The attitude someone comes in with can change, if they want it to. I can't make that happen, no matter how much I change up my style. If they want their teacher, that's pretty much ballgame for me. If they want the work, or if they are willing to try, then we're in business. I think your motivation drives your attitude. Again, if they are there for the work, they are going to leave fulfilled. If they came for another reason, I may be able hit that, but it isn't my main goal.

Having these experiences has helped me to clarify my teaching style- Work, technique, safety. But that doesn't mean I get to ignore the fact that people come in looking for something else. I need to learn to balance my goals with theirs.

As promised

The life updates:

1. No, I'm not pregnant.
2. Chris and I are in the process of buying a house. We are in negotiations for a house in Ardmore.
3. I am joining the staff of a Pilates studio in Bryn Mawr, Pilates for Movement. I plan on being there about 20 hrs/week.
4. I am re-joining Tegler McHenry and Assoc. as the manager of our new wellness company, Wellworks For You. I will be there the other 20 hrs. Very complimentary jobs.
5. I'll be home for Easter. I hope to see you all soon!

Sorry! Let's get you updated.

Well, it has been a very, very, very long time since I have written.

First, the Pilates updates (life updates will follow in another post): I passed my Advanced practical with a great score at the beginning of March. I passed 2 of the 3 parts of the Advanced written, so I had to retake 1 section. I am still waiting to hear back on the retake.


Since I am basically done with the program, it is a good time to reflect. First of all, what an incredible experience it was. There really is no substitute for submerging yourself, day after day, in your area of study. Just being around Pilates and great Pilates instructors all the time provides great learning opportunities- you learn almost by osmosis! It is hard to believe that 9 months ago, I had no idea how to teach this work, and was terrified. Now, I'm getting paid to do it (although, sometimes still terrified).

Also, what the program and Pilates has done for me and my body is pretty incredible. I am a walking testimonial to the effectiveness of the method. I now have curves where I should have curves, muscles all over, almost even sides of my back, and am a lot more flexible. I even almost have a left split, which I never thought would happen. I have learned to work with my body and my issues: scoliosis, shoulder tension and I'm currently working through a little injury on my right side. The issues that I have make me a better teacher, as I now know the healing power of the work.

Pilates and this program have been great for my emotional health too. I am much more confident than I was before. I have done something incredibly difficult, that not too many people in the world have done, and done it well. I have achieved something that I wanted for my life. I am healthy and happy.

I have joined the staff of Pilates for Movement in Bryn Mawr. I am so excited to join them and look forward to building a schedule of both private lessons and group classes there.

Hiatus

For most of the time between now and Election day my blogging will take place at:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/blog/nicoledecides

Yup, that's right folks. I will be voting for Barack Obama in November. It has taken a lot of soul-searching, researching and questioning, but that's what I have decided. For awhile, I was doing so grudgingly, and at the same time considering not voting at all. But, I now feel pretty strongly about it. For a fairly short version of my story, it's the first post on the new blog. It's much longer than that, but that's not what blogs are for. If you need more info, let me know, I will be more than willing to share.

What I will not be willing to do is: argue, yell, name-call, listen to people doing any of those things. The world is mean and nasty enough without willingly subjecting yourself to it.

Frustration or Why I Love the Minute Clinic

I am incredibly frustrated with my body right now. Defeated by it, even.

On June 6, it decided to get strep throat. Annoying, as it was my first week at the Pilates studio. However, I was not totally shocked by this, as strep throat is my disease of choice. Anyone who has lived with me will tell you that. I still remember junior year of college, and Melissa telling everyone I had scarlet fever.....I went to the Minute Clinic, in the CVS in Rosemont. For the record, I recommend this. No waiting at the doctor's office, early hours and weekend hours, all in all more convenient.

Since I liked my first trip there so much, my body decided it would like to go back. Today, please. Thursday I started sneezing a lot, Friday I had a runny nose, yesterday I felt pretty crappy (but we decided to go to the beach, which sounded more fun than the Minute Clinic, nice as they are. Besides, that fresh air should have helped me out, right?). But last night and today, I couldn't do anything. My head hurt so badly, my throat was sore, and I absolutely could not breathe through my nose. I called my doctor's office at 2:30AM, hoping they would just call something in. They said they don't do antibiotic call ins without seeing the patient first, so if I wanted to come in on Monday or Tuesday.... Um, no. Thank you. Chris wouldn't let me go teach this morning, which I got up to do, so I decided to put that time to good use and go get better! Minute Clinic to the rescue!

I had to wait 15 minutes, which compared to your typical doctor's office waiting room time is not bad. I had the same nurse practictioner as the last time. We are now good friends. Hopefully my body can go more than 3 weeks without seeing her again. Other good thing about the Minute Clinic- the pharmacy is right there! So within half an hour, I had a diagnosis (sinus infection), drugs (amoxicillin and Mucinex) and was on my way (to a Fringe rehearsal). Hooray!

The frustration is this- Why is this happening????? I'm supposed to be at my healthiest. I'm eating more than usual, working out, doing something that I love, sleeping, even the occassional nap! But with these 2 infections I feel really defeated. I can't work out as hard as I want to, nothing sounds appetizing. Plus, I am just plain stressed out from being sick- I don't work that much, so I hate missing that money, and I need lots of hours at the Pilates studio, as I am still catching up from the first time I was sick!

There was a radio commercial on when I was young that went "If you're sick and tired of being sick and tired..." (and I can still sing the jingle), and that is how I feel right now. I really can't go through 3 week cycles of this. I don't know if it is my schedule, just the change of seasons, the change of jobs/lifestyle, the anxiety that I am carrying regarding all of it, or what. All I know is, it's got to go!

Life is Short

My very good friend Kelli lost her mom this week. It was quite a shock. We are not at an age to be dealing with the death of our parents. I'm blessed enough to have all of my grandparents around still, so death is a fairly rare experience for me.

This this episode gave me cause for reflection. And these are my thoughts:

• It's a cliche, I know, but life really is short. Therefore, you ought to spend your time here on the good stuff. Find what you like and find a way to do it.
• I spend a lot of time worrying. A lot of time. Worrying. About fairly dumb, or uncontrollable, things. This is a waste of my life. I carry grudges, fight with my husband, I don't see my family more than a dozen days a year. Again, waste.
• People and your relationships with them are more important than whatever else you have going on- your job, your worries, your schedule, whatever. Take time to let the people who are important to you know that they are important to you. This is hard for me, because I feel like I'm always running between things, but I'm going to try to do it more. I'm also going to try to repair some relationships that aren't so great right now. Grudges and anger are not good ways to spend your life. I would hate for my last interaction with a person in my life be one of anger or bitterness.
• It is really easy to let relationships slip away- people move, change, just get busy. If the relationship is worth it, give it some effort. Friendships don't happen by magic.