It always pleases me to see Pilates making the front pages of the newspapers. So this morning when my copy of The Times was delivered I was very happy to see the headline ”Pilates not painkillers best cure for backache”.
The article began by saying that taking drugs for back pain is largely pointless, following an overview of research.
The study was led by Manuela Ferriera of the George Institute in Sydney. Her team analysed 35 trials involving 6,000 patients using non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for back pain and sciatica. Only one in six patients treated with the drugs received any pain relief that they would not have got from a placebo. But that relief was so small that it made no difference to their lives. However, the drugs almost doubled the risk of problems such as bleeding and stomach ulcers.
Dr Ferreira stated that “back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide and is commonly managed by prescribing anti-inflammatory drugs. Our results show that these drugs only provide very limited short-term pain relief. They do reduce the level of pain but only very slightly and arguable not of any clinical significance. When you factor in the side-effects which are common, it becomes clear that these drugs are not the answer to providing pain relief to the many millions who suffer from this debilitating condition every year.”
Pilates not painkillers best cure for backache Gustavo Machado, another of the researchers said “Patients with back pain should consider an exercise program to help them manage their condition. For example aerobic exercises, strengthening/stretching exercises, Pilates and core-stability exercises.”
Of course, all us Pilates people are reading this having known the truth for many years having dealt with thousands of clients. But it’s always nice to see it reported in the mainstream press, especially the quality press.
I have written before about similar topics before, and I think it’s important to stress again that the best remedy for a back condition and many other issues is not, as the report says, only one thing. Even doing Pilates alone, whilst it will without doubt improve the condition, is not the best way to get the maximum results for your clients. We must deal with any problem in a holistic way. I agree with the article that this must include Pilates/core-stability exercises and also cardio, but I would add another vital element; mental health. It is totally proven that pain is as much psychological as it is physical, if not more so. So my advice is to treat back pain with appropriate and varied exercise. But also use techniques such as meditation. This is the total wellness I refer to in my PilatesEVO training courses. It is why in PilatesEVO I teach about meditation as well as NLP, meridians and functional movements.
I’d love to chat with other teachers so if you have any comments then please drop me a line by clicking on www.pilatesevo.com or email me at chris@pilatesevo.com.
Chris Hunt is the creator of PilatesEVO, and he also runs wellness educations and retreats at the PilatesEVO School in Barcelona and online.
Pilates e PNL (Programa Neurolinguístico): como se tornar um melhor instrutor de Pilates
O Programa Neurolinguístico (PNL) é uma abordagem em comunicação, desenvolvimento pessoal, e psicoterapia. Há uma conexão entre processos neurológicos, linguagem e padrões comportamentais que são aprendidos através de experiências e que podem ser organizados para se atingir metas específicas na vida. Foi criado por Richard Bandler, um estudioso matemático, e John Grinder, um professor de linguística da Universidade da Califórnia em 1972. Desde então, outras pessoas têm complementado o programa com suas próprias técnicas e idéias. PNL tem crescido mundialmente e o PilatesEVO é um sistema em que se utiliza o PNL como base para aprender e ensinar o método Pilates. Este artigo tem como objetivo mostrar ao instrutor de Pilates, que é possível utilizar essa ferramenta para melhorar as aulas e o aprendizado dos alunos, visto que, muitas vezes os alunos têm dificuldade em entender os movimentos e porquê devem realizá-los da maneira que ensinamos. Assim como também temos alunos que são mais difíceis de fidelizar em nossas aulas.
O nome PNL é quase explicado por si só:
Neuro/Neurologia é o estudo do Sistema Nervoso. Como pensamos/como funciona todos nossos processos fisiológicos.
Linguística é o estudo da linguagem e de como usá-la, bem como seu efeito em nós e em outras pessoas.
Programação é sobre a sequência das ações que tomamos e a ordem em que as tomamos. Porque fazemos e porque pensamos da maneira que pensamos, e como nos levantamos da cama e nos motivamos a fazer todas as coisas que queremos a cada dia.
Então, no PNL tentamos unir todas estas áreas em um Sistema que pode ajudar pessoas a obter uma nova perspectiva de suas vidas, fazê-las melhores na comunicação e se comportarem diferente para alcançar o melhor. Claramente, esse trabalho pode ajudar pessoas a mudar suas próprias vidas para melhor, mas, em nosso caso, nos ajudar como profissionais do Pilates a melhor muito o aspecto da comunicação com nossos alunos e como lidar com diferentes tipos de pessoas!
Incluindo PNL na aula de Pilates
Existem 7 razões principais para se utilizer o NLP no Pilates
1) Faz com que seu aluno entenda os movimentos do Pilates com maior facilidade
2) Faz com que seu aluno goste mais de suas aulas
3) Permite que seu aluno ganhe maiores benefícios de sua aulas
4) Faz com que você possa se tornar um melhor professor, passando as informações de maneira mais eficaz
5) Faz com que você entenda melhor as necessidades do seu aluno
6) Faz com que você melhore a interação entre você e seu aluno, inclusive em aulas para grupos
7) Te ajuda em sua própria vida. Entender você mesmo e alcançar seus objetivos pessoais
Todos estes pontos acima também te ajudarão a manter seus alunos e a qualidade das aulas bem como o mais esperado: o resultado, seja ele qual for!
Há muitos aspectos do PNL que eu costumo ensinar durante o curso do método criado por mim, o PilatesEVO mas, neste artigo falarei sobre os Sistemas de Representação. É apenas uma parte do PNL mas, uma parte muito importante pois nos ajuda a entender como as outras pessoas aprendem.
Todos nós já passamos pela experiência de encontrar alguém que nos identificamos ao primeiro momento ou alguém com quem não nos sentimos muito confortáveis. Isso pode acontecer no trabalho, num bar, e crucialmente durante uma sessão de exercícios. Tenho visto pessoas deixarem de frequentar aulas dizendo “eu simplesmente não consigo” ou “eu não consigo me conectar com a aula ou com o professor”. Estas pessoas geralmente não têm consciência do porquê da existência destes sentimentos, mas através deste artigo podemos imaginar como se conscientizar sobre estes motivos e saber as razões pelas quais estes sentimentos podem ocorrer. Este conhecimento é muito poderoso e pode transformar nossas aulas e tornar-nos também pessoas de sucesso.
Classificação dos Sistemas de Representação
Nós processamos informações através de quatro formas distintas: visual; auditiva; cinestésica e cognitiva. Estas são as maneiras em que representamos o mundo aravés de nossos cinco sentidos e como nós tipicamente nos comunicamos de volta com o mundo. Quando a informação alcança nosso cérebro, uma experiência de mundo ganha significado e forma. Esta é a nossa representação, ou seja, nossa percepção da informação. Embora todos nós utilizemos todas os sistemas de representação, nós sempre tendemos a ter uma preferência entre eles.
Então quais são os quatro sistemas de representação (ou aprendizado)?
Visual
Pessoas visuais memorizam através de figuras ou fotos. Então, estas pessoas geralmente têm dificuldades em se lembrar de instruções verbais porque suas mentes tendem a “vagar”. São pessoas que se distraem menos com ruídos ou sons mais altos e geralmente utilizam frases visuais.
Pessoas visuais precisam “ver a informação” para poder entendê-las, gostam de um feedback baseado no visual e de usar gestos!
Auditivo
Pessoas que são predominantemente auditivas memorizam informações passo a passo e através de sequências. Gostam de ouvir o feedback através de conversas. Elas tendem a utilizar frases auditivas e se interessam naquilo que temos a dizer. Elas podem ser excelentes ouvintes, gostar de música e da voz falada.
Pessoas auditivas gostam de memorizar informações passo a passo, através de procedimentos sequênciais. Gostam de ouvir “como estão indo” e respondem à um determinado tom de voz ou conjunto de palavras.
Cinestésico
Pessoas cinestésicas processam informações que lhes são ditas para determinar seus sentimentos. Elas respondem bem ao toque e a recompensas físicas. Interessam-se em como se sentem e memorizam através do processo de realizar.
Pessoas cinestésicas respondem ao programa se sentirem-se bem. São pessoas muito físicas e gostam de ser tocadas. Elas aprendem atráves de uma ensino passo a passo.
Cognitivo
Pessoas cognitivas “conversam consigo mesmas” e gostam de pensar em como as informações podem fazer sentido e então as entendem. Dão muito valor na lógica e gostam de detalhes.
Pessoas cognitivas: precisam entender porque estão fazendo aquilo que estão realizando. Novas idéias precisam fazer sentido e serem lógicas para que elas possam se engajar completamente.
Há um teste simples para se fazer em casa que dá a idéia de qual sistema de aprendizado fazemos parte. No link https://www.facebook.com/pilatesevo, é possível mandar uma mensagem inbox com endereço de email e então enviaremos um teste. É possível utilizarmos este teste com os nossos alunos!
Neste teste podemos ver que aprendemos através da fusão destes sistemas, mas com um ou dois sistemas dominantes. Estatísticas sugerem que em países desenvolvidos, 60% das pessoas são predominantemente visuais, 20% auditivas e 20% cinestésicas. Isso explica porque fotos de propagandas no Facebook funcionam melhor do que os anúncios feitos apenas com palavras ou textos. Então, vale a pena lembrar disso quando criamos materiais de marketing e também quando estamos ministrando nossa aula de Pilates!
O sistema de aprendizado que usamos com maior predominância é como um idioma especial que abraça todos os nossos processos mentais de consciência, do pensamento, das lembranças, da imaginação e da percepção. Entender todas estas questões mais claramente, permite que nos comuniquemos melhor conosco e com outras pessoas e que possamos controlar a maneira que interpretamos as informações. Então, uma vez que entendemos mais sobre como representamos informações para nós mesmos, podemos melhorar nosso próprio aprendizado e nossas aulas focando em um sistema favorito e desenvolvendo os outros sistemas também de acordo com nossos alunos.
Como utilizar os Sistemas de Aprendizagem
Se ensinarmos utilizando somente os métodos visual e auditivo (como muitos professores fazem), não será surpresa se algumas pessoas em nossas aulas não responderem adequadamente ao que ensinamos. Isso nos mostra que possivelmente, elas preferem outros sistemas que não estamos utilizando.
Como podemos maximizar o potencial de treinamento em nossos alunos?
Pessoas visuais: devemos dar demonstrações claras dos movimentos
Pessoas auditivas: devemos instruir de forma muito clara enquanto demonstramos os movimentos.
Pessoas cinestésica: devemos tocar os alunos até o ponto em que sintam certeza de que seus corpos estão realmente alinhados da maneira que devem ficar e seus movimentos estão perfeitos ao ponto de estas pessoas sentirem realmente as sensações devidas.
Pessoas Cognitivas: devemos explicar não somente como fazer os movimentos mas, o porquê de estarmos realizando estes movimentos. Estas pessoas precisam entender o que estão fazendo e o porquê estão fazendo.
Parece óbvio mas, quando nos aprofundamos nos sistemas de aprendizado, passamos a avaliar muito melhor nossos alunos e a conhecê-los melhor também assim como a nós mesmos. Nossas aulas ficam mais produtivas e os alunos interagem melhor com o grupo e com o instrutor. A fidelização dos alunos aumenta e são vistos muitos resultados satisfatórios. Os objetivos são alcançados rapidamente. Vamos testar!
Por Chris Hunt – Nascido em Londres/Criador do Método PilatesEVO que utiliza movimentos mais funcionais, PNL, meridianos e meditação (utilizado por muitos instrutores de Pilates em vários países incluindo Russia e toda a Europa, chegando agora no Brasil!).Trabalha com Pilates há 25 anos. Parceiro da MR3 – Sport/Training/Nutrição em São Paulo (com Marcelo Capella). Cursos no Brasil (São Paulo, dias 19, 20, 21 e 22 de Maio). Contato: educations@pilatesevo.com
Traduzido pela fisioterapeuta Dra. Renata Barros dos Santos (MR3 – Sport/Training/Nutrição)
Pilates EVO is the only system that allows and encourages its teachers to bring their own ideas and experiences and create new combinations that can be used all over the world. Do you always want to be told what to do? Or do you want to create your own Universe?
Pilates EVO by Chris Hunt
To find out how this system seemlessly incorporates NLP, meridians, mindfulness meditation, scared numbers and Kundalini in a flowing practise with a unique soundtrack, click on www.pilatesevo.com. Blend the old with the new.
The next Pilates EVO educations in 2015 are in the UK in October (London and the Cotswolds) and in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay in November. For more information and to book your place, just click on our Facebook Events Page.
It has flow and movement with sequences of moves created using the sacred numbers 3, 7 and 21. It uses uplifting soundtracks mixed in London by DJ Shameless to enable clients to really connect with their body, giving a far deeper and rewarding experience. It is appropriate for all ages and abilities as the movements have different levels progressing muscular fitness using repetitions, range of motion, rate and resistance. This creates a total system that will remain challenging to a wide range of training goals from elite athletes to people seeking everyday fitness.
About Chris Hunt
A former Claims Manager in the financial markets of the City of London, Chris had a mid-life enlightenment (as opposed to a mid-life crisis….) and left behind the rat-race and fighting for a seat on the daily commute to dedicate his life to his true calling, health, wellness and helping people. Chris is a fully qualified Pilates teacher (OCR in England) and now travels the world teaching teachers about Pilates, functional training and wellness. Chris spent time in Bangkok and is qualified in Thai Massage (meridian lines) and meditation. Chris lives and works in London and Barcelona where he enjoys meditating, surfing, snowboarding, rock climbing, and making music. He organises unique health conventions around the world, where all profits go to local children’s charities. You can read more about Chris by clicking on http://www.chrishuntblog.com/about/
I will be presenting Pilates EVO in Moscow, Russia at MIOFF in October 2014. I hope to see lots of my friends there and I am sure that I will meet lots of new friends as well.
Click on the image above to read about MIOFF and Pilates EVO (there is an English language option).
During my visit in October I will be holding a 3 day Pilates Foundation Education, a 3 day Pilates EVO Advanced Education, and a 2 day Introduction to Pilates course. There will also be some Pilates EVO masterclasses.
For more information about attending the courses, please contact me as soon as possible as places are very limited. If you are a club in Moscow and you want to talk about bringing Pilates EVO to your club, then please contact me.
Chris pays 50% of any money made from this BLOG to his charity partners. More details can be found by clicking on www.chrishuntwellness.com and selecting the “charity partners” tab.
When we create something ourselves, it can be a difficult step to share our creation with the world. What will people think? Will they like it? Will they criticize or praise? Will it be a success? I have always followed the words of Aristotle, who famously said, “there is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing and be nothing”.
When I was young, I suffered from a lot of back pain. I was born with a spine defect and that led to poor posture which made my problem worse. Hours spent playing sports and practising the piano further added to my problems. I tried many things to help, but Pilates was the thing that really changed my life. It enabled me to live a full life, to run marathons, to snowboard, surf, play golf and never think twice about my back before trying something new. From that day forward, I had a passionate belief that Pilates could help many people improve their quality of life.
In the early days, whilst still practising and studying Pilates I was worked in the City of London as an Insurance Manager. I continue to this day working as a Senior Business Consultant so my life has an excellent balance.
I travelled the world teaching Piates and learning (we never stop learning, and anyone who says any different is very sadly mistaken). As well as Pilates, I was interested in kundalini and other methods of functional training. I also developed a deep love of meditation which took me to the Buddhist Temples of Thailand. Whilst there, I also discovered and studied meridians, becoming qualified in Thai Massage. It was not just the body that interested me. I had always been interested in psychology, in what I saw as “total fitness”. I studied Buddhist psychology and other modern concepts such as Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP).
As I travelled teaching Pilates, within my subconscious there was a seed that was growing, an idea that I could use all my knowledge to create a different type of Pilates that reflected the ancient and modern. I am classically trained, and it pains me to see some of the new systems that claim to be “Pilates” when they are clearly nothing of the sort. So I took my time to think about how my new system could stay true to the principles of Pilates, to my principles, but how I could add to the experience my own knowledge, character and ideas.
It was important for to me to create a system from my heart, a system where everything has meaning and purpose. In my opinion there are too many systems and teachers who teach not from their heart, but from their bank balance. To quote Einstein, “Nothing truly valuable arises from ambition or from a mere sense of duty.”
Music has always been a massive part of my life. I am a classically trained pianist and I play guitar, sing and write songs. I wanted every detail of EVO to maximise the total experience, so it has its own unique uplifting soundtracks mixed in London designed to enable clients to really connect with how their body is moving and working, giving a deep and rewarding experience.
We should never forget our past. It built the foundation that our present so depends. But the past is not an excuse to stay still and not plan for a different future.
Chris pays all profits made from this BLOG to his charity partners. More details can be found by clicking on www.chrishuntwellness.com and selecting the “charity partners” tab.
So, after having so much fun with my blog over the past few months, the limitations of having it on the free WordPress hosting have become just too unbearable. So today my blog will be moved to the new domain address of www.chrishuntblog.com.
This move should be seamless, and the new domain hosting should be up and running by this evening, but if there are any problems then please let me know because I do not want to lose any of my valued subscribers or readers.
So here’s to a brave new world. Well, it’s not so new. And it isn’t really brave either.
So I am blogging about my blog. That must be kind of ironic or maybe just a little sad?!?! But I am proud to be a 20,000 blogger in only 7 months, and saying that on my blog has some poetic justice about it.
So thank you to everyone for spending your precious time and reading my ramblings, some of which I hope you liked. And here is to the next 20,000 hits. I won’t let it go to my head…. 🙂
Usually in my blog I try to bring a more light-hearted look to Pilates and health. I was going to write today about Pilates in Russia following my latest visit. But if you have been reading my articles over the past months you will see that I have a big interest in the issues of mental health and depression and their link to physical exercise. I do not seek controversy, but I am not afraid to talk about the topics that some people would rather ignore. I could write interesting articles about Shoulder Bridge, but I leave such articles to other people.
I lost my father to Alzheimer’s (see my blog “I lost my father, don’t lose yours” and I have also talked about depression and the link between mental and physical health in several previous articles. So it was with great sadness that over the weekend I read about the suicide of a 34 year-old Pilates teacher in New York last week, who jumped from her Upper West Side building. My deepest and sincere condolences to her family and friends. I am sure that some people reading this article will know the lady in question, so I hope you will forgive me for writing about this tragic event.
There are suggestions about incurable disease and mental health issues. I have personal experience of the dark places that can lead people to depression and even suicide. I lost a close friend many years ago and I found it very difficult to understand how I did not see the signs. But the truth is that as teachers we are performers, so most of us have a great “game face” that we switch on during those times when we would rather be anywhere else than standing smiling in front of a group of people. As much as we all love Pilates and bringing our knowledge to the communities that we live in, we are human as well, so we have difficult situations to deal with and we are allowed to be sad sometimes. “The show must go on” is an old cliché but it has a lot of relevance for many people every day.
I love being a Pilates teacher, and I love helping people to change their lives (it is important to remember that we do not change people’s lives, we simply give people the knowledge and belief so that they can change their own lives). I also love the Pilates community. Sure, people criticize me and the things that I write in my blogs sometimes, and of course I do not and cannot expect everyone to always agree with my point of view. And there are also always people in every walk of life who try to make a name for themselves by being negative as they find it easier to criticize than praise. But everywhere I travel from Russia to the US, and every Pilates forum and group I am a member of, I always have a strong sense of community, a sense that the vast majority of Pilates professionals want only to help each other, want to share their knowledge and experience.
It is for this reason that I love our community, and I always try to give more than I receive. It is also for this reason that I created Pilates Carnival, conventions that give all profits to children’s charities and where I ask everyone including the presenters (and of course me) to work for no money, donating their time and energy for the good of our community. Of course some presenters are horrified with this thought and I have been accused of cheapening Pilates and devaluing the system. Whilst I always respect the opinions of other people, I think these people simply do not get it. They are so commercially orientated they fail to see that by promoting themselves and Pilates in an environment that benefits charities as well, they are creating a positive energy that no money can buy. And of course it is not rocket science for these people to realise that if you do a Pilates convention for charity attended by over 100 Pilates teachers/studio owners and hundred’s of member’s of the public, you might just get some good exposure and new clients from the experience. But I respect their life choices, thank them for their time, and I simply do not work with them because they are not “my type” of people.
But I am happy that the majority of Pilates people are my type, they give more than they take, love much more than they hate. To paraphrase Lennon and McCartney, in the end the love we save is equal to the love we gave. So let’s keep supporting each other, looking after each other and looking out for each other. Most things in life are more important than money or reputation. Much more important.
In the U.S.: If you are contemplating attempting suicide, there are people who can help. Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
In the U.K.: For confidential support call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch
I am excited. Those who know me will also know that I get excited a lot, and it’s usually to do with either snowboarding, surfing, a new guitar, TRX training, ice-cream, or most typically Pilates.
Today I am excited about my new project in Barcelona, Healthy Beach Barcelona. I have said many times that health must be holistic. You cannot just run, life weights, eat tomatoes or even only do Pilates. To be truly healthy, sure you can do all those things and more, but you also need spiritual and mental health. And we all know the psychological effects of feeling and looking good. Wellness is a word that is used a lot nowadays, and for me wellness encapsulates (a word that is not used enough nowadays) the holistic nature of health. So Healthy Beach Barcelona offers Pilates (naturally), fitness, nutrition, massage, meditation, NLP, Life Coaching and a range of beauty procedures.
So why am I excited about Healthy Beach Barcelona? It is because Pilates specifically and wellness generally has historically been the reserve and the domain of more mature people, but with Healthy Beach Barcelona I am introducing many concepts to a much younger audience. Starting here on the beach in Barcelona. Which brings my onto the purpose of my article, what are the benefits of exercising outside?
I grew up with Aerobics Oz Style on Sky Sports, which is certainly not a bad way to start the day. But there are other more serious benefits, and I think the most obvious is that the scenery and fresh air (assuming you are not exercising next to a major road) simply raise the spirits and are great for emotional well-being.
But my favourite place is the beach. Sand is constantly shifting and changing, demanding various muscles in the body to come into play that might not normally engage on a pavement or gym floor workout. For example when doing Pilates, sand is on different levels, and you have to adjust to that difference which brings a new element to exercise. It also removes the issue of the hard surface on your knees. When you kneel on your mat laid over the sand, your joints are cushioned.
However, a word of warning, you need to work up to a sand run or workout because it might be very different to what you and your body are used to. Start by the shoreline where the sand is flat and it’s packed down. When you feel comfortable, you can mix up your run by moving into the softer sand for a minute, like doing an interval workout, and then moving back into the harder sand. Tread carefully and go at a slower pace than what you’re used to.
Barefoot is a popular today (I have previously written articles for Barefoot Running Magazine and I will write about that next week) as it is argued that it is good for building up muscles in the foot and creating a more natural gait, as opposed to shoes dictating the gait. Beach running is a great way to try the method out. When I train people on the beach, I build them up in their running shoes by the shoreline and then the softer sand and then go for a short run on the harder sand with no shoes on.
Obviously there are considerations to be aware of when training on the beach. Look out for debris, such as bottles and sticks, wear sun-block, don’t trend on people sunbathing or little Johnny’s sandcastle, and most important for me (see reasons why I get excited above) keep clear of ice-cream sellers.
By the way, for those who were wondering where my celebrity was today, my picture today is of actress Ileana D’Cruz, someone who regularly does Pilates and exercises outside. She credits Pilates with her health so that is how she earns her place in my blog today. Celebrity watchers can now relax. I nearly went a whole blog without a celebrity! It’s not possible…. 😉
Health and wellness are all about feeling good, and for me there is no better place to feel good than in the fresh air on a beach. If you haven’t tried it, then I recommend that you do. And next time you are in Barcelona, click on Healthy Beach Barcelona and pop along for a session, or contact me before you arrive and we can organise a beautiful retreat.
If life is a beach, then why not be a healthy beach?
Chris Hunt is the creator of PilatesEVO, and he also runs wellness educations and retreats at the PilatesEVO School in Barcelona and online.
