Precision is a Spectrum

Diving into the deep Pilates pool for a moment, here. Come with me if you will. I’ve been musing on the six principles of Pilates. Ordinarily I would pontificate on Control. But it’s the concept of Precision that has a grip on me lately.

Primary Pilates education is all about getting it right.

Being precise - as the fourth principle goes. (Recall the famous list of six).

Every setup must be precise. The execution as well. The completion and transition - should follow suit.

This exacting precision is key to Pilates. To my mind the every day cue of “precision” is less about it being right for the body - and more about the work of the mind. The effort we deploy to simply "get it" just the way our instructors say, yields the mental benefit that puts Pilates in a category of its own. 

The sheer focus itself, may be one of the primary benefits and biggest results of Pilates.

Having said all of that - the longer you spend working on the exactness and specificity of each move as an instructor - the more you find the delicate nuance that each human requires. That angle of the legs for the Hundred - can land so many places in order for the abdominals to work optimally.

And the curl of the tail under for stomach massage - can be a myriad of degrees of lumbar flexion.
Or almost none. 

It all depends on the needs of that spine, in that body, on that day.

Precision is a spectrum. A range. A smorgasbord of possibilities that you get to choose from.

Knowing the textbook version, or what's in your manual is where we all begin. 

This is the guide and the guardrails for all instructors. It's the safe zone from where you navigate.

But the longer you teach the more you will find that the "right position" - the perfect setup, the ideal execution... is that one that serves your client the best.

~Alycea Ungaro - (January 2023)

There is No Pilates Bible

There's no black and white in Pilates. It's exceedingly grey.

Yeah, I said it
I preach it every day and I stand by it.
Education methodology and pedagogy aside (that’s a later blog post) - for real, there is NO Pilates Bible.

I simply can not stand the way social media makes it ok to wrap up some mantra, or manifesto in a cute little meme that somehow resonates so intensely with people that suddenly a new posting messiah is born.

If I see a post that asserts you must always do a certain thing because ya know, "rules".... I'm inclined to dismiss it.
If I see a post that states you never have to follow any format because you know, "rules".... I'm inclined to... well, see above.
There is no black and white in Pilates just as there are no real absolutes in anything.

Humans are unique. That goes for students and for teachers as well.
It applies to all of Joe Pilates students and all those he taught as well.

"But Alycea"...I hear you.
"You're a purist, an originalist..." you say. "Are you saying the classical work isn't the rule book?"
To which I answer, I personally believe that all instructors should start with Joe's original work.

BUT.....within that classical work - there is not one way. There has never been one way. Just as there is not one elder.
There's no black and white in Pilates. It's exceedingly grey.

My commitment to the work that elder Romana Kryzanowska taught me for a decade is personal.
But even within that commitment, I am keenly aware that my experience of those particular 10 years of my life starting in 1992 are just a slice of the pie. Those who studied before me - had a different experience. And even those who studied at the same time as I did had their own understanding through their own bodies.

My time with Romana was devoted to studying, practicing, asking questions and observing and notating the specific strategies she used to tease out the highest potential from her students. I was obsessed with the notion that she would be gone one day - and we'd be unable to recreate it. She was interested in my studies as a Physical Therapist when I went back to school. She asked me questions as I asked her questions. And I observed her intuition at work every day with myriad clients.

She never taught the same session, didn't give cookie cutter cues and responded in real time to the body before her.
As all teachers should.

Do I teach according to an order. Yes I do. Unless I have to adjust. Do I teach according to a formula? Yes I do. Unless that formula isn’t serving me or my student. Do I teach from a list? Yes I do. And each exercise on that list is delivered with my own interpretation of the need of my client and tailored accordingly.

So, no, there is no Pilates "bible."
Anyone telling you to follow all the rules - or none of them is only looking for sheep to follow them.

My old ballet teacher used to say "don't believe me - look it up for yourself".
I tell my trainees this all the time.

The best we can do as teachers is study, observe, practice and develop our intuition.

And that process never ends, no matter how long you teach.
Can I get an "Amen?"

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In a follow up post - I'll dig into the education of Pilates and why primary studies adopt a particular structure and format. In the meantime, what is your reaction to the idea that Pilates is a grey zone? Click on the title above to open the comment box.