A man carrying a long ladder walked between me and my students midway through the very first aerobics class I ever taught at age 18. It was awkward to say the least! Since then, so many unplanned, quirky things have occurred during my classes, from power outages to chipmunks scurrying over people’s bodies while they were lying in shavasana. When I was working for Club Med in the nineties, someone sat down on their mat...
There are several health and fitness related questions I get asked repeatedly. Some of them, I’ve been asked about since day one of being a fit pro. Some of them, have popped up only recently. Here they are along with a quick answer: Is there an energy bar you recommend?I’m not a fan of 99.9percent of them. I try to avoid packaged food, and energy bars are packaged food. However, if I have to pick...
‘Tis the season for parent-teacher conferences and while there is a Zoom option, I really like having them the old fashioned way, in-person. It’s nice to sit face to face with each teacher, in each classroom. The conferences are set up like this: parents are booked for 10minutes with each teacher, and then there’s five minutes between each appointment to travel from classroom to classroom. We follow the same order as the child does in...
I bet you have a pessimistic friend or family member. This is a person who tends to think about the worse case scenario, or perhaps they offer a negative comment here and there. Sometimes this person is super funny and pessimism is part of their humor. They crack you up and their words are benign to your psyche. Other times, this person is bad for your health. (Not kidding!) I’ve recently distanced myself from a...
“Detox” is a buzzword that’s been buzzing for a long time. Some might think it means some sort of drug rehab. Others may think it’s a serious liver cleanse. However, “detox” should be part of our everyday. It simply means getting rid of unwanted stuff, and you know what? If you’re exercising, you’re detoxifying. Here’s how: 1. Exhalation Every exhale is detoxifying. The amount of inhaled air contains (approximately) 21% of oxygen and 0.04% of carbon dioxide, while...
I always always always “read the room” when it comes to teaching classes. When a group of people congregate for yoga, Pilates or a some sort of fusion format, their collective energy informs me what’s up. Sometimes, we need to get moving right away. Sometimes, we need to settle in for a bit. Sometimes, the class needs to be extra alignment focused, and sometimes, the class needs to center around mindful breathing. It all depends on what intel...
What if I told you there is something you could do every day, that brings increased mobility, energy, and youthfulness…it’s free and easy, requires zero equipment, and could take as little as 10 seconds? Well, that something is elongate your glorious spine! I know, I know…this might seem too good to be true, and you may assume I’m greatly exaggerating its effectiveness, but seriously, have you elongated your spine today? Sitting, at a desk or in a car...
I just spent an afternoon with human resource directors from some of the biggest companies in the world. I listened in on parts of their conversation concerning their employees. The primary conundrum that each of these HR directors faced was how can they keep employees healthy and strong, and thus productive? Many of their employees work long hours and when their workday ends, family responsibilities begin. Basically, everyone’s busy and exhausted, so how does anyone...
There are two major differences between the male and female knee: 1. the female’s ligaments are softer and thinner, and 2. a female’s femur bone connects at the knee at a more pronounced slant. There are other physiological differences too, from lower bone density to higher percentage of body fat, but the two I mention above makes the female knee especially vulnerable to excessive high-impact activity and to reactive/sudden pivot-action, a.k.a., masculine training. Over the years, I...
Empowerment Is InevitableBecause it is so easy to feel disempowered today, I am obsessed with helping you stay empowered. I actually obsess over it! I’ve complied the five big ways we can use exercise to boost our sense of empowerment. These five things help us look, feel and function great, and the best part? We’re in charge. Yes, you and I can work on them ourselves, nothing standing in our way. Here they are: Almost all kinds...
