If you were to imitate Grace Kelly, the late actress and former princess of Monaco, one of the first things you’d do is bring your shoulder back and down. No one would tell you to bring your shoulders back and down, you’d just take on that alignment quality because it’s a cornerstone of great posture and connotes regality. Grace Kelly was queen of shoulders back and down and famous for her outstanding posture and alignment. “Shoulder back and...
Pilates Fusion has arrived, and it’s the type of workout I teach regularly. It’s effective, it feels good, and it works for just about every body. The Pilates Method is a series or exercises, but it is also a way of looking at the physical body in both a zoomed out/big picture way, and in a zoomed in/micro-focused way. The goal of Pilates is better-ing the body. That includes better body awareness, better movement control, better balance and...
When I was a kid, whenever I stayed over at my grandma’s house in Rockville Centre New York, she’s wake up and walk to her neighborhood church, every single morning without fail. I’d scratch my head about it, because six days out of the week, there was no mass or service. She’d go regardless, service or not, and simply sit in a pew all by herself, holding her rosary beads. Church was a non-negotiable for...
The only thing playing on the TV in my household is sports – basketball, football, tennis, golf, baseball….there is always a sporting event on the screen. I’ve learned to embrace it, and I’m actually very inspired by athletes. They are outstanding examples of self-mastery. One of the most universal things among the top athletes, no matter what the sport, is they are their own best cheerleader. They give themselves a fist pump, a subtle head nod and a “Let’s...
There will always be a legitimate excuse NOT to workout. Here are the one’s I’ve heard just this week: “It’s too hot outside.”“I slept horribly last night.” “We lost power during yesterday’s storm & it still hasn’t returned.”“Traffic was bumper-to-bumper.”“I forgot my water bottle.” Sure, they’re all legit. Each one is a perfectly good reason to not workout. However, most excuses are self-sabotage, and you and I need to be mentally on guard and see them as such. Nine times...
In Italy, where I just spent 10 days, Mother Mary, the Catholic symbol of the divine feminine, is everywhere. She’s the subject of paintings, depicted in statues, and etched on walls. Her image is printed on scarves, tees and tote bags. Every single church I walked by had the image of Mother Mary near its entry. I loved being “bombarded” by Her on the street, at restaurants and cafes, in gardens and inside homes. Clearly, there’s...
I can get really puffy. My puffiness manifests first in my face, especially around my eyes, but then it goes all over, throughout my whole body. There are culprits: air travel really makes me puffy. Drinking alcohol makes me puffy. Eating excess salt (potato chips!) makes me puffy. Not moving makes me puffy. Q: What’s the remedy for puffiness?A: Exercise and water. (Easy peasy!)All forms of exercise will do, but to get slightly more intentional, I...
I often refer to the front body as the sun and the back body as the moon. By waking up the front body you let the sun shine in and it does three immediate things: To my northern hemisphere folks, Summer Solstice Blessings to you. How about celebrating with front body extension? One caveat – it’s gotta be whole front body extension, not just your heart center. That means stretching the tops of your ankles, your quadriceps, hip flexors, and...
The next time you get to enjoy live theater, whether it’s Broadway, off-broadway or way way off-broadway, try to pay attention to how much energy the actors on stage emote. They speak, sing, and move at heightened levels. Even their facial expressions are giving energy. It’s probably why some of us leave the theater with a buzz that lasts for days. “There’s nothing like live theater.” We’ve heard that sentence a hundred times, right? But why is it said over and over...
As a fit pro/independent contractor, I’ve always worked on Saturdays. And during the week, it’s common for me to have an early morning job, return home for almost the entire day, and then head out again for work in the late afternoon. Usually, I don’t work on Tuesdays, but this week, I’ve got a corporate group that day. You could say my schedule is all over the place! Year after year, I thought my lack of a work routine didn’t...
