NCPT PILATES AND YOGA INSTRUCTOR, WILDERNESS GUIDE

Grace Ranson has been teaching movement for more than 20 years.

Grace began her yoga journey in 2002 obtaining her 200-hour Integral Yoga certification at Yogaville Ashram in Virginia. Then in 2005, she traveled to Coimbatore, India, to receive her 500-hour Integral Yoga certification. Additionally, Grace is certified in prenatal, postnatal, and labor yoga.

Grace discovered Pilates in 2006, and began her Pilates education in 2008 receiving her first certification with Power Pilates. As an avid Marathoner she has found that Pilates has provided the foundation of an extended career by adding more muscle endurance and core stability.

Grace additionally holds certifications in Medic Solo wilderness first aid. Medic Solo is the oldest continuous leader in wilderness medicine. Grace was on faculty for the University of Virginia leading a hiking course for 7-semesters before moving to Florida.

Grace’s passion for wellness in fitness shines through her teaching. Her knowledge and adventuresome nature makes her one of the greatest hiking guides you could ask for!

Yoga, Pilates and Hiking Sessions

Leading our yoga and hiking sessions along with Pilates at Heirloom Springs, Grace will map out beautiful hiking routes through the forrest and her yoga classes will reflect on the day as the sun sets in a setting like no other.

PILATES UNLIMITED FOUNDER

KAREN SANZO, P.T., Pilates instructor, and teacher trainer. Karen is internationally recognized for her innovative approaches to the Pilates method. Her comprehensive knowledge of anatomy and biomechanics and years of experience as a master teacher have shaped wellness programs across the nation.

Karen conducts Pilates certification workshops all over the U.S., teaching teachers how to demystify Pilates, making it accessible to everyone. Her highly effective method of working with beginners, communicating with precision, and demonstrating the fundamentals of movement are invaluable lessons for every Pilates instructor.

 Karen’s passion for Pilates is truly inspiring. She makes you want to become a part of it all. More than exercises, Karen’s emphasis on purpose, technique, and flow will facilitate learners at any level.

Visit her at pilatesunlimited.com

Workshop 1: Joints, Angles, and Forces:  An Anatomical Approach

In this interactive workshop we will have the opportunity to experience the many forces that can challenge joints and challenge the spine throughout the Pilates repertoire.

An experienced teacher understands the purpose and function of movement patterns, how to program these movements on the various apparatus and how they relate to daily life.

Understanding why we may choose exercises, and which position we put the body in, will make or programming limitless.  In our second hour we will tackle a few case studies highlighting areas where these findings can be different in different bodies.

 This workshop will help you create programs that are built on the relationships within the body; from the feet to the head. All parts of the relationship are important: mobility, stability, flexibility, balance, and coordination.

Workshop 2: The Articulate Teacher

Bodies talk. You listen. That means actively noticing the body in front of you, digging deep into your intuitive knowledge and years of experience to utilize the Pilates repertoire in a creative way.

We’ll explore techniques that go beyond elementary cueing, emphasizing clear connection over perfect performance. Your true value as a teacher is in helping clients tune into their bodies, learn how the parts relate to each other, and work with their limitations and strengths in this moment.

THE PILATES LAB CO-FOUNDER AND PILATES INSTRUCTOR

In 2005, while (somewhat miserably) pursuing a PhD in Chicago, Kristen Davis booked a lesson at the Pilates studio across the street from her apartment. It was love at first Hundred. By 2007, she'd started her comprehensive teacher training with Balanced Body Pilates. In 2009, she’d said good-bye to academia to teach Pilates full time.

Kristen has studied extensively in the lineages of three of Mr Pilates’s students: Eve Gentry through Core Dynamics Pilates and with second-generation instructor Debora Kolwey, Romana Kryzanowzka through Real Pilates Teacher Training and with second-generation instructor Alycea Ungaro, and Kathy Grant through Cara Reeser's Kathy Grant Heritage Training and with second-generation instructor Blossom Leilani Crawford.

Kristen's education is unique in that it has given her the skills and depth of knowledge to apply the work of three Pilates elders to clients of all ages and experience levels. Because Pilates is an unregulated industry, she believes it is critical to understand where and from whom exercise modifications and variations come, as well as when and why to teach them.

Her work is playful, precise and patient, and she enjoys working with clients who are returning to fitness after surgery or injury. She believes Pilates is a lifelong pursuit suitable for all bodies, and in any given week she works with clients with scoliosis, osteoporosis, joint replacements, spinal stenosis, chronic pain, and autoimmune conditions. She is particularly passionate about helping older populations maintain strength and fitness with dignity.

Visit her at stlpilateslab.com

Workshop 1: Real Talk on Aging Populations: Predictors and Pilates Programming for Aging in Place

Retired clients can be a boon to Pilates studios: often, they have free time to work out when 9-5 clients do not. Many of these clients have seen the benefits of Pilates or other types of fitness in earlier phases of their lives. These clients understand the value of an ongoing fitness program that helps them maintain strength, mobility and balance.

According to the AARP, 90% of adults over age 65 wish to stay in their homes as they age, or age in place. Independent older clients who can successfully age in place not only help a studio’s bottom line, but also support longer term client-instructor working relationships. Working with clients who become increasingly frail or who need more support can prove challenging for instructors who are skilled in progressing clients but often less confident in helping clients maintain fitness levels against the challenges of aging.

Some of the challenges aging clients face include reduced muscle mass (sarcopenia), reduced bone density (osteopenia or osteoporosis), joint replacement, general concerns with balance and mobility, as well as potential declines in cognition and memory. All of these concerns can drastically affect an older client’s ability to successfully age in place. While this list can seem overwhelming to both client and instructor, this presentation seeks to help instructors competently and safely work with aging populations while instilling confidence and independence in their clients.

Current research suggests at least three biometrics for successful aging in place: gait speed, grip strength, and ability to perform a wall squat for 30 seconds. Through an interactive workout and lecture format, presenter Kristen Davis will demonstrate where and how instructors can focus on exercises and teaching skills that encourage better gait, grip and squatting abilities within the classical Pilates repertoire. Using her years of expertise in working with older clientele, she will also offer tips for simple homework assignments and general best practices for working with aging populations.

Workshop 2: Enhancing Your Teaching through Eve Gentry and Kathy Grant Lineage

Pilates elders Eve Gentry and Kathy Grant were both rehabbed by Joseph Pilates, but never worked together in his studio. In fact, they met only once-- much later in their lives at a medical conference. Nevertheless, both taught their own auxiliary work alongside the classical Pilates repertoire: Eve developed her Gentry Movement Fundamentals while working with injured clients in Santa Fe, while Kathy developed her Before the Hundred protocol while teaching Pilates at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

These Pilates elders worked on opposite coasts, but their work reflects a shared interest in breath work, lateral movement, and rotation. On the one hand, there are only so many ways a body can move, and it seems inevitable that Mr Pilates’s students might eventually add in supplementary work in ranges of motion that appear less in the Pilates repertoire. On the other, the similarities between their respective protocols cannot be denied.

Mr Pilates famously wanted everyone in the world to practice his method. Yet because our industry remains unregulated, it can be challenging to break through the noise of online platforms, Pilates influencers, hybrid methods, automated apparatus, and more.

It is perhaps the influence of all of this non-Pilates that leads two of the biggest objections we hear from our prospective clients: “Pilates isn’t safe. I’ll get hurt.” and “Pilates is too easy. It won’t do anything for me.” The simplest answer to both complaints is, of course, “Then you’re doing it wrong.” But what if we reclaimed the auxiliary work of the elders as an antidote to both concerns? What if we could explore the building blocks of the Pilates method and build skills that deepen and intensify the work safely and effectively.

This presentation will examine some not only the similarities between the Gentry Movement Fundamentals and Before the Hundred, but also explore how both protocols can help Pilates instructors scale their mat classes safely, playfully, and with reverence for authenticity and lineage.

HEIRLOOM SPRINGS FOUNDER + TEACHER TRAINER + RETREAT GUIDE + ENTREPRENEUR 

Rachael is an international educator in the Pilates community at large and has presented on topics ranging from pre and post-natal, athletes, business coaching, and a range of special conditions. As a teacher of teachers, she continues to teach for Alycea Ungaro’s Real Pilates, training the next generation of teachers. Rachael teaches from a place of authenticity, encouragement, and clarity. With over 20 years of experience in the industry, her passion and dedication to preserving the legacy of Joseph H. Pilates’ work has only gotten stronger. 

Through Pilates, Rachael has continued to watch people's lives and bodies change. She is profoundly moved at seeing individuals realize their own inner strength and just what they are made of! In the fall of 2020 Rachael sold Pilates Methodology in Dallas, TX which marked her third studio to build, open, operate and ultimately sell. In 2021 she opened Heirloom Springs, a wellness retreat focused on farm, food, and Pilates in the Virginia Blue Ridge Mountains!

Read more here heirloomsprings.com/pilates

Workshop 1: From the Front Desk to the Reformer

Meeting a client for the first time is a little like speed dating. You know minimal information about them, you're unsure how you will get along, and you are trying to figure them out quickly. When the client walks through the door for the first time you get to see what they look like, how they move and a glimpse of personality. Sometimes you learn everything about them quickly with long drawn out stories or clients withhold important information that only trickles out overtime. 

That first date requires a menagerie of skills. Teachers must be able to listen carefully and extrapolate the most important pieces of information. The teacher must use their keen eye to identify potential issues that have not been stated or conflict with the story you were told. They must also make decisions quickly on how the session should start, where it should start, and determine the right amount of intensity and skill level. All the while, taking into consideration the various things you’ve just learned about them and their personality. It is your job to set the tone of a judgment free zone and encourage open dialogue from the beginning. To create a safe environment where a partnership can flourish. 

So how can we as well-trained teachers deliver the best possible first session with accuracy, involvement, and so much joy that the client wants to return over and over again. In this workshop, we will learn key ways to listen to the most important information, anatomically dissect it, determine how to make hard decisions quickly and deliver a safe and effective custom workout. We will explore easy ways to accomplish big goals for even the most challenging special cases. We will establish strategies for a protocol that will take the guesswork out of the equation and allow you to do your best teaching while meeting the client where they are at.

Workshop 2: Active Listening from the Forest to the Studio

Given all the listening we do in a day, one would think we'd be good at it! In fact, most of us are not, and research suggests that we only remember between 25% and 50% of what we hear. That means that when you talk to your boss, colleagues, clients, or romantic partners for 10 minutes, they pay attention to less than half of the conversation.

To truly listen requires focus, patience, and thoughtfulness. Your skills have to be honed and practiced daily. 

We listen to obtain information.

We listen to understand.

We listen for enjoyment.

We listen to learn.

Learn the secret sauce for turning new clients into devoted students, active listening. We will put those listening skills to the test on an interactive field trip into the forest.