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Business Talk
Navel to Spine: Regular practice helps maintain mobility despite conditions like arthritis
Step into the transformative world of Pilates with Margaret, owner of Pilates at Your Place, who brings 24 years of expertise to this enlightening conversation about movement, mindfulness, and maintaining mobility at any age.
Margaret's personal journey into Pilates began reluctantly in her thirties when, already an exercise enthusiast, she discovered that this practice aligned perfectly with her lifelong focus on core strength. What stands out immediately is her passionate explanation of how Pilates differs from yoga and traditional exercise – it's not just about looking better, but fundamentally changing how you move through daily life. "This is your machine, your car that takes you through life," she explains, illustrating how proper technique becomes ingrained in your movement patterns.
The conversation reveals surprising insights about aging and mobility. Despite having arthritis and spinal degeneration, Margaret "moves like a kid," demonstrating how consistent Pilates practice can override common age-related limitations. Her practical tips, including the fundamental "navel to spine" technique and simple exercises like wall roll-downs, provide immediately applicable strategies for listeners. Most compelling is her mindset advice: replacing "I can't" with "I can't yet" preserves the mental pathway to progress.
Ready to transform your relationship with movement? Connect with Margaret through Pilates at Your Place at www.pilatesatyourplace.com or call 551-200-2579. Remember that even ten minutes of daily movement can maintain your mobility and strength – as Margaret wisely notes, "You make time for coffee with friends; make time for yourself too."
Welcome back everyone to Business Talk, the show, where we dive deep into the industries that keep our world moving. I'm your host, didier, and in today's episode I'll be speaking with Margaret. She owns a company that's called Pilates at your Place, and we all love Pilates, don't we? Margaret?
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:How are you doing today?
Speaker 2:I'm doing great, thank you.
Speaker 1:I'm doing great. I love that background. We know we were talking about that earlier, it's just so. What's the word I use? Tranquil.
Speaker 2:Tranquil, yes, this is my favorite little zany place.
Speaker 1:Yes, I love it. So, listeners, in each episode, our guests share practical tips and valuable advice that can help you navigate life and stay ahead of your journey. If you're enjoying this content, make sure you like this video, subscribe to the channel and maybe leave a comment for our guests as well and stick around until the end, because our guests will share a powerful story about a customer whose experience truly highlights the impact of her services that she offers. So, with that being said, take it away, margaret. Let's talk a little bit about your background. Let's get to know a little bit about you.
Speaker 2:Okay, so my journey probably, I guess, starts when I was about 50 years ago. To be honest with you, I was always into exercise to some extent. A very dear friend of mine recommended Pilates to me and I was like, oh, I do everything, I don't need Pilates too. I figured I was on my roll and doing my thing. Now I'm in my 20s. Well, now I'm in my 30s and I have my son and I take him to a gym one day and they have a Pilates class and I go.
Speaker 2:You know what, let me give this a whirl. I don't know, maybe it's something I'll enjoy. I haven't done this in a while. I kept working out, but I wasn't in the gym scene. But now I was back and I went into the class and I was like, oh my God, this is totally different Now. My whole premise in life was always about core. I don't know why, but that was my focus since I was a young person. And when I learned about it and really started delving into it, I started realizing, oh my God, this is kind of what has been on my head my whole life. And now I'm finding this, you know, workout that is really core based. I was like this is really cool and I've been doing it ever since.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about that word core. What does that look like?
Speaker 2:Core means you're talking from your shoulders down to your, you know, waistline area, and this is the core. I mean your core is supporting your back and then from there it's like that's the foundation, and then when your limbs extend from your body and Pilates, we start small but we extend.
Speaker 2:When your legs go out or your arms go out, it changes the plane and how your body works, and so you have to know how to use the levers, because these are your levers. You know, and, like I would say to people, this is your machine, this is your car, this is going to take you through life and you want to keep that car revving. And well, the first exercise out of the gate is called the hundred, and that gets the body going, it starts the engine, it gets you to understand the breath and how to move and how the body fluids start to move and the blood circulation and all that stuff.
Speaker 2:And that's all part of the process.
Speaker 1:I was going to say that about the blood circulation. When you say you start, you get the body moving, and I'm assuming that blood circulation is so important, especially when you're in the gym or you're doing what you're doing with Pilates, correct? Correct, absolutely yes and it's all about the way you do it. It's not about rushing through the technique. It's all about technique right and making sure you're going to roll actually.
Speaker 2:I like that word better yeah, well, it's well if he started. Joseph Pilates is the founder of this work and his whole premise was control-ology was the word he used, and that's what it is. Your brain and your body have to work in sync, and the brain is very powerful If we all could use it the way it's supposed to be used. We can all tap into so many things, and one of them is working with your body. You know, when you lift a box from the floor, you know many people throw their back out because they don't know how to use their body that's what.
Speaker 2:Pilates brings to the world is the fact that it it really uh, you're, you're. It's almost ingrained in your brain, so you don't have to think about it anymore once you do it enough. But you have to train yourself, which means you have to do this. It's a practice, like a yoga or anything else. You have to practice and you can't look, and every day is a new day and every person's going to feel differently. Some of us have arthritis, some of us have degeneration. You know, age is just imminent, so you really need to work on tuning up this fine motor that we have and keeping it healthy so that we can go through life and enjoy the journey.
Speaker 1:I love that you know what is one of the biggest misconceptions that people have about Pilates.
Speaker 2:Yes, it's not like yoga. They always want to think it's yoga. No, it's not. Pilates is mind-body like yoga is a mind-body, but it's building strength, it's improving the muscle tone, increasing your flexibility, it enhances your body control, and so it brings other things to the table. I'm not saying don't do yoga too, or any other exercise you want. And I would say to people too, if nothing else, get the premise of pilates, because it's really going to help you down the road. Like I didn't know half the things I know now about the body and how it works back in the day when I was just gym.
Speaker 2:You know working the weights and all that stuff. You know, now I understand more about it. So, like I was in the gym recently with my daughter and I was watching, watching her posture, and I went over to her. I go, samantha, you've got to make sure the back is, and she goes, no, I felt that, mom, yeah, you're right, so you've got to be on top of your game.
Speaker 2:But again, even I go for training with people because I don't always see myself properly, I think I'm doing it right and of course, course, my world is about sharing with you the best form I can give you. So you see it right, get it in our brain, right, we can't execute it properly, you know, and so I really. That's why there's a really big mind body connection with it, because you have to ingest it so that you can add in Then you. But again, a lot of people see things differently, right, you know, like it's a visual, see things differently, right, you know, like it's a visual. I do the work with the people because a lot of people can't have to see the visual as well as hearing.
Speaker 2:There's all those modalities you have to consider.
Speaker 1:I was going to ask you about mind-body practice and you actually answered it. That's not a bad thing, right?
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:Go ahead.
Speaker 2:No, no, I was just saying, I hope not.
Speaker 1:Go ahead. How can being more body aware?
Speaker 2:through Pilates impact your stress, your focus and even your confidence. Well, first of all, exercise in general is a stress reliever hands down. I just think everyone should really work on. You know a lot of people push exercise to the side, a lot Like I don't have the time. But you know what? You make the time for the cup of coffee or the glass of wine with your friend. Make the time for you. You know I've always been a proponent of you should be first Cause if you can't take care of you, you can't take care of anyone else. That's right. This is your starting point. So go out of the gate and do what you got to do. I used to get up at 4 in the morning to take care of me so that I can be there for my children when they got up. When my ex-husband left for work, I was at least there so that I was present. Again, being present is so important.
Speaker 1:In reference to sessions, maybe a little off topic here. What's?
Speaker 2:a normal session. And I mean, how long is a normal session? I mean, I've mastered to do it myself in a half hour's time or more or less. But you need at least a 45 minute to an hour session to really or even 50 minutes. But you know, I add a lot of extra stretching and extra stuff like that into the practice when I do my hour sessions with my clients. But again, the work is 35 exercises. I only do mat Pilates. That is my favorite and I do not waver from that. I'm only trained in that work. I'm mat three certified in mat Pilates. So I've done everything I can do to like get to the top tier and I've been doing it now 24 years.
Speaker 1:So congratulations, that's actually that's huge.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Yes, I yeah go ahead.
Speaker 1:No, no, no. I'm just saying that's, that's awesome. 25 years and doing Pilates and just trying to master the techniques.
Speaker 2:Um, Because I think we get. I will. For me personally, I can't do everything, but I want to hone in on being as perfect at this, and we're never going to be perfect, but you know and because some days you wake up and your body isn't moving so great.
Speaker 2:You know I do have arthritis, I have degeneration of the neck and the hip, but I move like a kid and I can get on the floor. I can get up off the floor like a kid and I can get on the floor and get up off the floor. You know, once we start not doing those movements for ourselves like a lot of people sit in a chair you lose it. You just do. I mean, I have clients who come back to me Margaret, they took a week off because they went away. They're like oh my god, I can't believe how stiff I am mm-hmm and it's just, it's life and it's also elements.
Speaker 2:you know it's raining here right now, but you know, when you have different weather patterns and things, they all affect your body.
Speaker 1:That's a that's a great point and it's interesting. You say that. What is like? Let's give our listeners one tip, something that they can use as a technique that can help them, even if they're at their home or at their desk at work. What is that one tip?
Speaker 2:Pulling your core. You know big, big, a big staple in Pilates is navel to spine. Again, here we go Mind, mind, body. You have to connect with it and it takes practice, Like I had a client recently Roll up is the second exercise in the Pilates repertoire, she couldn't do it. I'm like no, you, just you, you can't do it. Yet it's never. You can't do it because you never want to give yourself the brainpower to say I can't, because when you do that, you give it away.
Speaker 2:You need to say yet. So your body knows it's coming, it's just not there yet. You need to say yet.
Speaker 1:So your body knows it's coming, it's just not there yet, right, you give them tools like I.
Speaker 2:Have them, use a wall and I'll say, okay, put your feet against the wall Now, brace yourself there. Now, try to roll up and pull yourself. Now, if you're at a desk, I say, do a roll down. It's just a version of roll up, but now you're using, you can use the wall, they call it. There's a wall Pilates now where you can lean against the wall and roll down. You can also just stand up and know, know when I say that you got to bring your chin to your chest, like as if you have a tennis ball underneath your neck, underneath here, and you roll back down to the floor but then roll vertebra by vertebra back up so you stand tall again, helping that alignment with the spine, cause, again, posture is so important.
Speaker 2:You want to stand tall and feel proud, right, which is how we are. Confidence Cause, when you're standing tall and proud, you're feeling really good 100%.
Speaker 1:I agree with that. Wow Very good and that you know, as we're Wow Very good and that you know, as we're kind of wrapping up, you know there's that story and you kind of already gave a story of someone. Is there another story that really kind of stands out of one of your customers that said wow, you know, margaret, thank you so much because I was this and now I'm that.
Speaker 2:Oh, I had a client who was doing beautifully. She would send me snapshots of her body, how it was transforming. She couldn't get over the cuts she was getting in her body.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:You know the type of body that was forming. Unfortunately, then life got in the way. She stopped working out. And you know, and that's the thing, people drop it. And it's like you know and I always say to people you know, even if you could do 10 minutes a day, right do something to move that body so that you can keep it going and keep the engine fired yeah, I love it.
Speaker 1:I love that, I'm gonna get you on the map yeah, yeah, absolutely, yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:It is a guy's thing too, you know.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, I agree. I agree 100%. Well, this has just been a pleasure. I'm so happy and honored that you were able to take time out of your busy schedule to share with our listeners some of the do's and don'ts you know more do's right of what Pilates is so good for in reference to your overall well-being. And, with that being said, could you provide our listeners a phone number as well as a website to get a hold of you?
Speaker 2:Absolutely. They can reach me at wwwpilatesatyourplacecom, and my phone number is 551-200-2579.
Speaker 1:Well, Margaret, thank you again so much for spending time with us and hopefully we can have you back again in the near future.
Speaker 2:That would be wonderful. Thank you for your time, Didier.
Speaker 1:You're very welcome. Thank you for tuning in to First Media Consulting Podcast. If you enjoyed the podcast, subscribe today. Thank you for listening.