by Lesley Powell

I have had the great fortune to start my Pilates career in a physical therapy practice.  We had clients with Repetitive Stress Injuries (reporters injured from the work on  the computer), back, knee and shoulder injuries.  Pilates works on the entire body, not just the injured place on the body.

As with the journalists, Pilates worked on improving their posture and the foundations of support.  When you have poor posture, it changes how you use your shoulders and arms.  Try it. Slump and lift your arms up.  Stand tall and feel how different your arms feel.

When the hips are unleveled (this picture shows a subtle gluteal weakness) with lifting a leg up, this is a reflection of gluteal weakness.  This weakness can show up in back, knee and hip discomfort.  Even my working with dancers,  there is poor use of the gluteals to maintain good alignment of the spine and leg.  When the true function of a muscle is not working correctly, other muscles compensate to stabilize.

Rudolph Laban had a concept of stability/mobility.  We need both principles in any movement.  As in the movement above,  true function the standing leg and core should stabilize the mobility of lifting one leg up such as the passe in dance.   If the leg/hip hypermobilizes on the standing/working side,  the back has to compensate.

49 W. 27th St. Mezzanine B, New York City 212-904-1399

Join us this April.  Register before April 4 and save $20 on each workshops with Dianne Woodruff

for a workshop with Dianne Woodruff.  I took a workshop about the Gluteals with Dianne at a Laban Conference last year.  I felt amazing and it helped with my sacrum as well.

Glute strength for true balance

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Saturday 10 April 2010
Time: 1-4 p.m. $120

We have only two legs and must stand on one of them to take a step. No one would argue the importance of good balance and prevention of falls. Balance boards and other devices are fine but the anatomical and functional issues behind bipedal stability deserve more attention. This seminar for pilates instructors, personal trainers and health-care practitioners addresses essential movement patterns for bipedal stability and a healthy back in a pedestrian culture. Such patterns were identified and researched by Dr. Vladimir Janda as early as 1964. Over the last 20 years Dr. Woodruff has developed an approach to assessment, correction and preventive exercise that you will learn in this seminar.

To register

Dianne L. Woodruff, CMA, PhD, has been teaching for 35 years and has been in private practice for 20 working with people who have movement difficulties and unresolved myofascial pain. Her newest video, 3-D WORKOUT™, vol II, an integrated approach to fitness, was released in 2006. A Certified Movement Analyst with a doctorate in Somatic Education, she developed the anatomy curriculum for Stott Pilates in Toronto. She writes and lectures widely.www.body-in-motion.com.

Early Bird Discount for Workshops

with Dianne L. Woodruff, CMA, PhD
$20 off each workshop if registered by 4/4/2010

Introduction to 3-D Workout

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Sunday 11 April 2010
Time: 2-5 p.m. $120

3-D Workout is a low-impact, low-tech fitness program you can do anywhere. This workshop introduces you to the basics as shown on the DVD and then some. We use our bodies in three-dimensions at all times so your exercise should go beyond the conventional biceps curl and other single plane exercises. The 3-D Workout program, developed by Dianne Woodruff, CMA, PhD, is inspired by the Laban/Bartenieff framework. Available in classes and as instructor training, this workshop is open to all. DVDs will be available for sale at a discount.

Sacroiliac treatment protocol

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Sunday 11 April 2010
Time: 9:30-12:30  $120

This workshop offers a step-by-step method of assessment and treatment for sacroiliac pain. It includes the anatomical framework and function, observation of whole-body and defined body parts in motion, various tests for sacroiliac dysfunction and methods for treating the problem. The workshop, aimed at “the dead seven inches” is an application of Bartenieff Fundamentals in a therapeutic framework. Open to personal trainers, pilates/yoga instructors and health practitioners. Taught by Dianne Woodruff.

Glute strength for true balance

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Saturday 10 April 2010
Time: 1-4 p.m. $120

We have only two legs and must stand on one of them to take a step. No one would argue the importance of good balance and prevention of falls. Balance boards and other devices are fine but the anatomical and functional issues behind bipedal stability deserve more attention. This seminar for pilates instructors, personal trainers and health-care practitioners addresses essential movement patterns for bipedal stability and a healthy back in a pedestrian culture. Such patterns were identified and researched by Dr. Vladimir Janda as early as 1964. Over the last 20 years Dr. Woodruff has developed an approach to assessment, correction and preventive exercise that you will learn in this seminar.

To register

POSTURAL ANALYSIS WORKSHOP at Movements Afoot

Taught by Doris Pasteleur Hall
and Nicola Wiener, Physical Therapist

This workshop is open to all Pilates, yoga, and dance teachers; personal trainers; bodyworkers and health care providers.
Date:   Sun   3/21/2010
Time:  1:30 PM – 5:30 PM
$120.00

Posture reflects our most fundamental organization and has the most profound influence over the way in which we move.  Postural analysis is an invaluable tool for interpreting this structural information. Developing the skill of understanding postural patterns can help us find ways to become more efficient and powerful in our movements.
Join us for this workshop in which we will:

• Observe the key bony landmarks from the front, back and side view
• Explore different ways of recording this information
• Discuss your observations and interpretations
• Consolidate your existing knowledge and expand your assessment skills
• Discuss problem solving strategies for different movement/bodywork modalities

Please come dressed in layers with appropriate lab clothes for assessing posture (shorts, sports bras, bathing suits etc.)

To register

Hi Lesley,
“I have a client with hamstring tendinitis and hip bursitis. Are there restrictions within the pilates realm of exercises she should avoid. Extension of the leg or rotation of the hip are just a few I have questions on. Would love your input. Thanks.” Pilates Teacher

My first motto: Movement should be painfree.  Movement can be great for the legs and hips, but I would modify the range of motion.  The range of motion is determined by the client’s ability.  For instance, I have been having a right hamstring problem.  It is remarkably tighter than the left.  I still work on flexibility but I don’t push it to meet the range of the left.

Pilates can be great for these issues.  The leg straps/springs invite mobility of the femur in the hip socket.  Even small legs circles gets the muscles of the hips moving usually in a healthy way.  Working on flexiblity of the entire hip can be great.

As in my case, my right hamstring works a lot harder because of rotation in my pelvis.  Stretching my psoas creates balance in my alignment.  Sometimes the tightness of all the hip muscles can jammed the femur in the hip socket especially the iliotibia band.  Be careful to not push overstretching with an injury.  Your workout should not aggravate the condition.  If so, modify.  If they are not getting better,  I highly recommend physical therapy.

More info about Bursitus

Dianne Woodruff

Dianne Woodruff, CMA, PHD

founder of Body-in-Motion

I am so excited to have Dianne Woodruff
teaching this April at Movements Afoot.

I have studied withher at a few conferences.  She always deepens my knowledge as a teacher and my practice.In the fall of 2008, I took an hour workshop about the abductors.  It was amazing and my body felt great.

Introduction to 3-D Workout

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Sunday 11 April 2010
Time: 2-5 p.m. $120

3-D Workout is a low-impact, low-tech fitness program you can do anywhere. This workshop introduces you to the basics as shown on the DVD and then some. We use our bodies in three-dimensions at all times so your exercise should go beyond the conventional biceps curl and other single plane exercises. The 3-D Workout program, developed by Dianne Woodruff, CMA, PhD, is inspired by the Laban/Bartenieff framework. Available in classes and as instructor training, this workshop is open to all. DVDs will be available for sale at a discount.

Sacroiliac treatment protocol

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Sunday 11 April 2010
Time: 9:30-12:30  $120

This workshop offers a step-by-step method of assessment and treatment for sacroiliac pain. It includes the anatomical framework and function, observation of whole-body and defined body parts in motion, various tests for sacroiliac dysfunction and methods for treating the problem. The workshop, aimed at “the dead seven inches” is an application of Bartenieff Fundamentals in a therapeutic framework. Open to personal trainers, pilates/yoga instructors and health practitioners.

Glute strength for true balance

With Dianne Woodruff
Date: Saturday 10 April 2010
Time: 1-4 p.m. $120

We have only two legs and must stand on one of them to take a step. No one would argue the importance of good balance and prevention of falls. Balance boards and other devices are fine but the anatomical and functional issues behind bipedal stability deserve more attention. This seminar for pilates instructors, personal trainers and health-care practitioners addresses essential movement patterns for bipedal stability and a healthy back in a pedestrian culture. Such patterns were identified and researched by Dr. Vladimir Janda as early as 1964. Over the last 20 years Dr. Woodruff has developed an approach to assessment, correction and preventive exercise that you will learn in this seminar.

Dianne L. Woodruff, CMA, PhD, has been teaching for 35 years and has been in private practice for 20 working with people who have movement difficulties and unresolved myofascial pain. Her newest video, 3-D WORKOUT™, vol II, an integrated approach to fitness, was released in 2006.  A Certified Movement Analyst with a doctorate in Somatic Education, she developed the anatomy curriculum for Stott Pilates in Toronto. She writes and lectures widely.www.body-in-motion.com.

To register

49 W. 27th St. Mezzanine B, New York City 212-904-1399

Our classes  combine:

• Pilates
• Bartenieff Fundamentals
• Franklin Method
• BodyMind techniques for better movement & relaxation
• Restorative yoga

Finding a movement/fitness practice is hard for all. It is especially more difficult for those suffering from an injury or neurological disease. Traditional exercise does not always address how to create a fitness practice when the body is not well. How the mind influences the body can determine better function for most.

Traditional exercise has an emphasis on the loading of muscles, repetitions and sweat. This is important in the end result of good healthy fitness. The process for finding fitness should be different when the body is not well.

A lot of classes and fitness are too fast and/or too much exertion for the person who does not feel well. Sometimes the body will go to the muscles that are already overworked when the load/exertion is too much. For instance, abdominal and bridging exercises are important in back care. Many complain of back pain in these kinds of exercises. What is happening here?

The brain is giving the wrong feedback to the body.

Instead of initiating the movement from the abdominals in the crunch,
the brain goes to the back muscles to start the work. How do you make change?

You retrain how the mind thinks about movement. This is a practice in itself. These techniques are used by athletes, dancers and gymnasts.

Essential tools are:

• Breath Imagery
• Better understanding of functional anatomy
• Cueing
• Mental rehearsals
• Relaxation techniques

We are going to look at how to train the abdominals and the legs using new tools. Breath is your road to deeper concentration, relaxation and core support. For further in depth practice see my podcast on breath. One can also used breath as imagery to assist in change. When you blow up a balloon, it swells up into a moldable shape. When you allow a balloon to let out the air out, the balloon releases back to its original shape.

• Focus your breath to an area of tightness in your body.
• Imagine the breath expanding that area like a balloon with the inhale.
• As that area expands, feel how the muscles lengthen, widen and release.
• On the exhale, imagine the muscles falling softer towards the ground.
• Breath can be a great tool when the body is fatigued or in pain.
• Let’s say you are in a class and you have reached a place of fatigued.

Instead of leaving class, go back as the class workout to the breath. Only join back into the class when you feel well.

ANATOMICAL IMAGERY

Understanding how the body works can really help one find new connections and a preventive measure from re-injury. We are going to look at the Bartenieff Fundamental, the thigh lift. This is a underlying concept how the thighbone moves in the hip socket. It is essential for a movements of the legs such as walking and level changes such as getting up from a chair.

When someone comes in with a back injury,
I look at how they do a thigh lift.

When the thighbone is not gliding well in the hip socket,
the pelvis will unleveled to lift the leg.
This repetitive motion can lead to more discomfort in the back, hips and legs.

Here(see above podcast) is the thighbone placed into the hip socket. Notice how it is a deep round socket for the head of the femur bone. When the leg is lifted, there is an opposition of movement of the two distal points of the femur bone; one where the knee is and the other, the femur head in the hip socket. In the thigh lift, the head of the femur will glide in the opposite direction of the knee. The higher the knee is lifted, the head of the femur will roll and glide lower in the socket towards the sitz bones.

Image the bone gliding down in the hip socket as you do the thigh lift.
Feel how the back lengthens with the bone gliding well in the hip socket.

When you understand how the body is designed, you will have better movement. As Eric Franklin says “Embodied anatomy improves function”. When the thigh lift is done correctly, the correct muscles will be invited to work. The Bartenieff Fundamental, the thigh lift is the underlying concept in all abdominal work and movements of the legs.
(See my podcast on Pilates Basics: Enhancing the core)

Mental Rehearsal

This is a technique used by musicians, dancers and athletes. You review the movement in your head like it is a film. You image the movement with complete success, expression and enjoyment. We are going to look at the Bartenieff Fundamental, the pelvic shift forward. This can be a great exercise to get the legs stronger and stabilized the spine. Sometimes when the legs are weak, the back wants to overcompensate. This can be painful for many.

• Visualize yourself doing a pelvic shift forward.
• Press down on your feet feeling equal pressure on the inside and outside lane of the feet.
• Feel the hamstrings engaged against your thighbone
• Using your leg muscles rise the pelvis forward towards your feet.
• Your relaxed spine rises up in one piece.
• Your back is relaxed and the legs are doing the work
• Imagine your legs are like an elevator that carries the load of the spine up and down.
• Slowly descend your spine down with your spine in neutral. Your spine should come down in one piece.
• Practice this a few times and then try to do a real Pelvic technique.

Mental rehearsal is great to use when you are fatigued or in pain. Research has shown through biofeedback that muscles are charged even with mental rehearsal.

Relaxation techniques

Sometimes to get to the correct muscles usage, one needs to release the overcompensating muscles. Stretching can be positive for some; for others over-stretching can put a muscle in spasm. Constructive rest position is a practice of lying on your back to release unnecessary tension in your body.

• Lie on your back
• Have your legs bent with your feet on the floor or on a stool/chair. A belt can help keep the legs together. This can help diminish tension.
• Observe how your spine feels on the floor.
• What areas of the spine lay well on the floor?
• How is tension in your body affects how you lie on the floor?
• Use breath and image of the balloon to create new releases in your spine.

For further information about constructive rest:

• Andre Bernard
• Eric Franklin
• Restorative yoga
• Another great book about release techniques Paul Escosque Pain-Free

We would love to bring pilates movement to people who would love a Pilates class designed at the pace and needs of their present health. We will be setting up a new series this spring.  Please give us a call if you and others would like to set specific days/times.

Special Pilates classes:

• Back care
• MS
• Arthritis
• Fibromylia
• Chronic fatigue
• Cancer survivors
• Parkinson’s

Lesley Powell: Observe how they lateral bend in their spines.  Most probably there is not a lot of movement in the upper thoracic.  They achieve side bending mostly at the lumbar or leaning (losing their grounding of their pelvis.)

Put your finger at the upper thoracic spine.  Have them only side bend at that place.  It will be a small movement.

I would work on opening the upper spine in many planes such as side bending and rotation.  Isolate the movement in the upper thoracic.  Use this as a warm-up before flexion exercises.

I once took a great workshop with Dianne Woodruff. (She will be at Movements Afoot in the spring). She had us all perform a crunch and observe the range.  Then she had us sit and do a stretch (like mermaid) that lateral flexed, rotated and then rolled up.  We performed the crunch again and we all had more range of motion.

Two weeks ago I fell off a chair in my apartment trying to hang a picture on a wall. I landed on my back hard.  I could feel with the fall that I whacked my sacrum out.

My usual techniques of release with constructive rest and rolling on Franklin balls were too painful to practice.  Lying on my back was the worse.  The first couple days on my days off, I just did gentle walking and small movements on my side that I learned from Hanna somatics.

I got some outside help with visiting my rolfer, Kayte Ringer and Cranial Sacral Message therapist, Ula Katsoulis.  Around my sacrum is bruised so I have to wait until this heals.

Movement as always was my savior.  With the bruised sacrum, I concentrated below and above the injury.  Some movements such as Pilates rolldown was impossible.  I modified positions and range of motion of movements.  Gentle movement helped unlock the pelvis stuck from spasms.  I never pushed into pain.  Fortunately at Movements Afoot, there are many props to help modify positions.  For instance, lying on my back, I put extra padding around my tailbone.

When you injured yourself, I highly recommend visiting a specialist to help you recover.  If you feel comfortable to be in class, make sure that you tell the teacher about your body.  At Movements Afoot, our teachers are well trained to help you find modifications for exercises.  Please let them know beforehand.  Movement should not be painful.  Great movement should invite new fluidity into your muscles and joints.

This weekend I have been doing a workshop w. Roxlyn Moret and Amy Matthews. This workshop on the legs is part of BodyMind Centering’s Yoga series.

We have been going over how the bones and joints move in the lower limbs. There has been some partnering to help us feel better movements of the bones and joints. It has been very gentle. We have not even done a full yoga class.

I am so sore this morning! It just proves how good function and form are essntial for real positive change in the body.