The (inevitable) bump in the road

I've reached a benchmark in my Pilates career. I've just figured out how much I do not know. It's a humbling feeling. Although I have a good working knowledge of Pilates, I am at the very, very beginning of understanding how to apply it to the infinitely variable bodies that exist in the universe.

No two bodies are the same. I knew that. But I don't yet know how to modify and adapt this endlessly adaptable method to meet the needs of the myriad alignments that I see whenever I go anywhere and see any people.

If I see you walking down the street I am looking at the way you carry your shoulders, where your head sits relative to your sternum, if your hips move, and where in your body you seem to initiate movement. Unfortunately, I wouldn't necessarily know what to do with you if I have a chance to work with you.

Okay, I'd probably try to get you in hold your head back from where it hangs forward straining your neck muscles all day. I'd probably try to get you to drop your sit bones down over your heels when you stand and let your sternum float up and out so your shoulder blades could slide down your back a bit. And I'd most likely want you to sit up on your sit bones and lengthen your spine up out of your pelvis when you sit. And I'd definitely try to get you breathing into your rib cage to mobilize your thoracic vertebrae and increase your lung capacity. Yeah, and a bunch of other things, now that I think about it. But at some point it's just a bunch of exercises if I don't know what I am trying to accomplish more globally.

I guess ultimately this is a good thing. I have a lot to learn and I know it.

A Neo Conservative

My bank statement arrived today with a new "look." My first reaction was "Oh no!" It feels like people are constantly changing the way things look. But when I consider the previous statement in the rational light of day - prompted by the raised eyebrows of my eloquently silent mate - I must admit the changes are not more frequent. I just like them less.

Here I am making gigantic changes in my life, but I get my knickers in a twist over a rearranged bank statement. And when I finally looked at it, I had to admit the new format is easier to follow and takes up less paper. In short, it's better.

I fear my initial response to my new and improved bank statement is evidence of my age. I am becoming an old codger, someone who fears and resists change. But that is not who I am. So why the negative first take? I don't have an answer, but I will be on the lookout to see if this is a pattern.

Second time's the charm

I've seen both of my new students for a second time. This feels big because I got a chance to use the information I'd gathered during our first session. I gave my new male client, let's call him Steve, several stretches for his tight back. With each stretch he commented that he felt looser. I was lucky, in a way, because Steve had taken a monster bike ride the day before and was really achy and sore. I probably could have given him just about any stretch and he would have felt better. But I was trying out my theory that his back pain has more to do with tightness in his back than with weak abs. Since the stretches worked I'm now planning to see if I can get him to use a more neutral spine position (maintained by his abs) when he sits at work It felt really good to finally see him smile!

I also got to try out my Pilates in the Park program on my daughter. She was patient with me as I taught her the various exercises and noticed different problems presented by the muddy ground, the varying heights of the picnic tables, the hard benches that are less than conducive to rolling back for ab work, etc. Then we spread out our towels on the little lakeside beach and pretended to be in Hawaii. That was fun.

On the food front, I saw the new film, Ratatouille over the weekend. As a result, I was inspired to try making ratatouille for the first time. Based on the version shown in the film, I sliced the eggplant, zucchini and golden zucchini very thin and layered it in baking dish over and under a sauce made of onions, red pepper, and tomatoes that I'd sautéed in olive oil and pureed in the food processor. It was delicious, if I do say so myself. Next time I plan to roast and peel the pepper first to improve the flavor and texture of the sauce. Yum!