Joseph Pilates was born in Monchengladbach, Germany in 1880.  He was a very sickly child and suffered from asthma and rickets. In effort to understand his health situation he self studied human movement and animal anatomy.  He studied various types of exercise methodologies including yoga, (which is why we see some similarities in some of the movement).  Through his studies and believe that breath was key: Breath is the first and final act of life- he cured himself of the asthma.  He grew up to become a boxer and gymnast and hence a circus performer.

He first started creating exercises for his method after WWI broke out when he was put into a camp with other German Nationalist.  He taught self defense and wrestling to the other camp internees.  He was later stationed in another camp where he acted as a nurse, rehabilitating injured soldiers.  He used the beds and springs for those patients who were bed ridden.  This is where we first start to see the workings of the Cadillac.  He described his designs by saying: the machines were designed to resist the movement in a certain way making the inner muscles work against it.  We now call those inner muscles the, Powerhouse! 

He disapproved of the political movement in Germany and set sail for New York in 1925 where he met his wife Clara.  He opened his first gym in 1926 on 8^thAve.  The location of his gym was such so he could be close to Madison Square Gardens and work with boxers.  This gym was also down the hall from many dance studios including George Balanchine.  It was through Joe’s connections with many famous chorographers that he has a relationship with the dance world. 

Joseph died in 1967 at the age of 87.  Clara continued his work for another 10 years. There were around 13 followers (Elders) that continued Joe’s work after he and Clara both passed. There are only 4 elders left alive today.  Pilates gained popularity and media attention after Hollywood took hold to the work.  Today Pilates continues to grow in popularity and we still continue to see the benefits of the practice.

  Members of the walking club can track their progress and participate individually and or through weekly planned walks.

 We have established two groups of Co-Captains, AM and PM, who will be in charge of the weekly group walks.  Members of the club will have the opportunity to join scheduled group walks either early AM or later PM. 

Group walks will be scheduled on Tuesday or Thursdays.  A monthly schedule will be provided of all group walks and locations.

The goal will be to acquire enough steps to make it Joseph Pilates original studio in NY on 8^th street. (those who make it to Joe’s studio can earn a Fit Club point, steps TBD)

Turning Point Fitness will provide a tracking board so that each member can post their steps to reach the goal.

TPF will also provide destination routes so that members can try different routes or venues.

If there is enough interest to put together a Turning Point Fitness team for the New Albany Walking Classic then we will enter one from the studio!

Next steps:

Please sign up at the studio if you were not at the meeting so we know who to include in all the communication.

Co-Captains, we need to set up a meeting to kick off the club for the month of June.

 Whether you are working out on your own or you have a personal trainer, you want to be sure that have a balanced routine.  Your workouts should include at least two days of strength training and at least 3 days of cardio, but up to 5 days of cardio if your goal is weight loss.  Strength training workouts can include the following; weights- either free or machines, TRX, Pilates, and resistance tubing.  Like any type of training you should mix it up and try to combine different options into your routine. 

 When I design strength training programs for people I first evaluate where they are with the basics.  I look at their balance, flexibility and major muscle firing patterns.  Once I have a baseline of where they are at and what their goals are, I can then create a program designed for them.  When it comes to lifting weights or working with machine based equipment there are two different approaches.  You can either focus on strength or focus on endurance training of the muscle. 

 A strength focus is executed with more weight and less reps and, an endurance focus is executed with less weight and more reps.  For example, take a simple bicep curl with free weights.  If I wanted to focus on strength of the muscle I might pick a more challenging weight for the client and do 3 sets of 10 reps.  If I wanted to work on endurance muscle strength of that same muscle then, I would pick a lighter weight, but assign 3 sets of 15 reps of that exercise.  In either case you want to be sure that the weight amount you assign works the muscle to fatigue by the last set.

 It is important to train your muscles to both methods so that you can continue to see and feel results.  It is usually best to keep with the same exercise method for 4 to 6 weeks and then switch to the other.  This will keep the body guessing and hence you will get better results from your workout.  Be sure you are exercising smart and getting the most from your workouts!

Since 2005 Turning Point Fitness (TPF) has been committed to providing personal fitness programming to help you live a healthy lifestyle. We are taking this commitment to a new level by introducing the Turning Point Fitness Wellness Institute. By leveraging the expertise of our instructors and collaborating with local experts, the TPF Wellness Institute can help you take control of your life and manage an overall healthy lifestyle. Through high-touch health, wellness and lifestyle education and behavior change programming, TPF will assist you in addressing controllable lifestyle behaviors related to fitness, nutrition and lifestyle management.

Finding balance?

Hopefully you are still sticking to your New Year resolutions at this point in the year.  And more importantly hopefully you took time to set goals for yourself relating to fitness, health, family, and financial.   The health and fitness goal doesn’t have to state loose “x” amount of weight, but it does need to be measureable.  All your goals should be measureable and your health and fitness goals should tie together.  It is important to look at all your goals and see how they relate to your lifestyle and be sure they are balanced. 

You should look at your life and set up buckets: family, social, work, health & fitness and spiritual.  Once you have set up your buckets you should decide what percentage of time you need / want to delegate to each.  Everybody’s buckets will look different, but everyone should have time and goals dedicated to each one.  If you take a look at the big picture, you may have more success to sticking to your goals in a specific area.  If your buckets aren’t balanced correctly to support your goals then you will have a harder time being successful.

 For example your health and fitness goals need to have enough time allocated in that bucket in order for you to achieve your goals.  If your goal is to work out three times a week for 45 minutes, but you only allocated 10% of your time to fitness, this might be hard to achieve.  It is important that the goals are measureable, realistic and achievable.  This is one part of being balanced. The other aspect involves integrating both fitness and diet into health goals.

If your goal is to lose weight then you must address diet along with working out.  You don’t have to go on a diet per se, but you need to watch how much and what you eat.  If it is easier for you to follow a specific plan then do that, if not I suggest you track what you eat by using one of the online tracking apps that are out there.  For example, Livestrong.com provides Daily Plate, but there are many to choose from.  And today you can download the app right to your phone.  Your workout plan should include both cardio and strength.  You need the cardio to burn the fat and the strength to tone the muscles and have the body process the fuel more efficiently. 

Everything in life is about creating balance.  Part of eating right is finding balance, everything in moderation and proper portion size.  When you work out, you are training your body just to achieve balance through strength, stretch and cardio.  You need to think about your health and fitness like you do your family and work life.  If your buckets are out of balance your goals and quality of life will suffer.  So do yourself the favor this year as you set up your 2012 plan, be sure to look at the whole picture and how you are going to achieve balance and achieve your goals. 

Get your family moving!

Happy New Year!  If you recall last year at this time I wrote about keeping to your goals for 2011.  Do you still have your sheet?  Did you meet your goals?  Never mind, it doesn’t matter, it is a new year and time to start over.   This year I want to talk about making fitness and health a family affair.  There is so much talk about obesity, both adult and child.  I believe that good health and fitness habits are formed at an early age and just like anything else good habits start at home. 

 Research supports that forming good exercise habits early on in life will lead to a higher success rate, but so does exercising with a friend.   Your exercise buddy can also be your one of your family members.  As I looked back on 2011 I realized that we had a lot of family involvement at my studio.  For example, we have Mothers and Daughters, sisters, husband and wives, and in some cases the whole family that workout together.  Not only does this promote good fitness habits, but it promotes spending time with your family too. 

 I have seen some really great success with family members working out together over the years.  There are a few situations that stick out in my mind.  For example, I have a seen a lot of Mothers and Daughters that have enjoyed Xtend Barre together.  The daughters are in their teenage years and used to dance, but have since quit dancing and the Xtend Barre workout fills the void they miss from dance.  My studio in turn has offered a Mother/ Daughter workout for Mother’s Day and other special events.  These classes and special events have been a great way to get folks to try something new, exercise and have fun!   Have you ever been to a Zumba Feista or Zumba-A-Thon?  Yet another great way to have fun and workout. 

 I have also seen family members join together to help another family member recover from surgery or get back into shape from an injury.   Have you ever thought about working with a personal trainer or starting a Pilates program with a spouse, friend or sibling?   I get a lot of clients coming out of physical therapy that choose to start Pilates to help strengthen their core.  Not only does it get folks started with an exercise program, but it shows support of their family member as they are changing their lifestyles.  I think these situations are my favorite. 

 If you are starting to think about a fitness program this year, take a moment to think about someone you love and see if they might be want to join you.  Not only will you be changing the habits of two people, but you will have a partner in crime towards achieving your 2012 goals.  And maybe, just maybe you will have some fun too!

Toning up the lower body at the barre

The Barre workout is a new fitness craze that is sweeping across the country and here in Westerville.  Since the premier of the Black Swan, it seems women have sparked an interest in the ballet based Barre workouts.  They have caught the attention of movie stars like Madonna and Zooey Deschanel.  Why?  Because they work and they target the areas that women want to work; arms, abs, glutes, and thighs. 

 The Xtend Barre Workout debuted in Westerville last September at Turning Point Fitness and has been very popular.  Xtend Barre is a vigorous workout that combines serious sculpting exercises at the ballet barre with lively music and an abundance of energy.  It is a full body workout and no dance experience is necessary.  Created by former dancer and choreographer Andrea Rogers, the Xtend Barre Workout combines exercises at a professional ballet barre with precise concentrated movements to target small muscle groups.  Plies, releves and a series of cardio exercises are combined with traditional principals as well as light weight training. The focus is on “shaping” muscles by first increasing muscle strength and then lengthening the muscles by stretching.  Their tag line is, “Pilates and Dance Amplified”.

 There are other barre workouts out there but they all follow a similar pattern and have something just a little different to offer.  A typical class will start with a 5 minute warm up in the center of the room.  Then you have some upper body toning with light hand weights, typically 1 to 3lbs, but a higher rep count.  You’re not finished yet, grab your mat and head to the floor to do some pushups, planks, and tricep dips.  Then you are off to the barre to do a series of toning exercises, sometimes using a ball or band.  Xtend Barre even offers cardio segments that can take that heart rate up.  After about 30 minutes at the barre you grab your mat again and head to the floor of some abdominal work and additional lower body toning.  Between each segment you will do some stretching for the muscles you just worked. 

 Most barre workouts were developed from the Lotte Berk Method, which was started in 1971 New York, by a German dancer named Lotte Berk.  Since then it has developed and Pilates and yoga based concepts have been added to the workout.   It is a great opportunity for Pilates students to add a new workout into their routine, or it can lead students to Pilates.  Most Pilates students feel like it is an upright Pilates mat class, which offers a whole new level of challenge.  Not to mention barre classes are taught to upbeat music which differs from Pilates, and adds an additional element of fun. 

 If you haven’t tried a barre workout and are looking for something different to spice up your workout, you might want to give the barre a try.  Or should I say, “I will meet you at the barre!”