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Pilates studio in OKC

Strong, Stable and Mobile

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Most exercisers fall into two groups. Hit it hard with power exercises or chill laid back stretches. Your body is a very versatile machine that needs to be challenged with multiple modalities to reach peak performance.

We need the muscular strength and benefits that can be achieved in the weight room. Muscle mass boosts our metabolism, which increases energy and helps us burn more calories and control our weight. It helps build strong bones, which can prevent osteoporosis. It stabilizes blood sugar levels, preventing diabetes and improving insulin sensitivity. Weight training can also reduce the risk of cancer in your body.

We also need mobility throughout our body so we can move without pain or muscular tightness. Muscular tightness can restrict movement, leading to compensatory movement patterns and injury. A well balanced Pilates program will work towards muscular balance at any given joint. Are your hamstrings tight? You may need to look at strengthening your glutes, abdominals and hip flexors to bring better alignment to the lumbar spine and to protect it. Are your head and shoulders rounded forward? You need to strengthen your upper back muscles, rotator cuff muscles and the deep flexors of the neck. Do you struggle with overuse or repetitive injuries to your shoulders, hips or knees? A well trained Pilates instructor can help you address muscular imbalances at these joints so alignment is improved and strains and injuries are reduced.

We ask a lot of our bodies on a daily basis. With a little self care each and everyday, we can stave off a slew of sickness and disease. By working on strength, stability and mobility we will be able to enjoy an active lifestyle that is pain free, while reducing the risk of injury.

Plantar Fasciitis

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Plantar Fasciitis

The plantar fascia is a thick band of tissue that connects the heel bone to the toes. It supports the arch on the bottom of your foot. It is important to keep our feet healthy because 25% of our bones are located in our foot. When it becomes strained it gets weak swollen and irritated. The heel or bottom of your foot hurts when you stand or walk, especially first thing in the morning (or you may feel a short stabbing pain after physical activity). It is the most common cause of heel pain with more than 3 million cases per your diagnosed.

Common causes include:

Over pronation

High arches or flat feet

Standing, walking or running for long periods of time

Overweight

Tight Achilles tendon

Shoes that don’t fit well or are worn out

Treatment:

Cut back on activities that cause pain

Ice

NSAIDS

Toe, calf and towel stretches

Strengthen your core, work on alignment of foot, knee ankle and hip

Cross train (low or no impact activity)

“When Is Your Baby Due?”

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      This is the question that started me on the path to fitness.  In the early nineties I was a stay at home mom with three small boys.  It seemed like every single week someone would ask me “When is your baby due?” only problem was…I wasn’t pregnant.  It is hard to describe the anger, humiliation and sense of failure this question made me feel.  Anger at myself because I had tried so many diets and I would lose some weight but always gain it back plus some.  Failure because I didn’t have the knowledge or the will power to lose weight and keep it off.  And humiliation because my self-worth was tied up in how others thought I should look.  I made an appointment with a dietician who informed me on my very first visit for weight loss to be permanent exercise was a must!  I bought my first piece of exercise equipment, a Nordic Trac, and a passion was born.
      At the time we lived in Colorado Springs and had an unfinished basement.  My first session with the Nordic Trac was exhausting.  It only lasted three minutes, my legs were burning and my lungs felt like they would explode. I literally crawled back upstairs.  But I did not give up!  My determination to never again have any one ask me if I was pregnant outweighed any discomfort.  Every day I would go downstairs, boys in tow and try again.  It was pandemonium.  The boys had on roller blades and would play field hockey or hold their version of MMA fights while I tried to block out the chaos and hit my goal for the day.  Over the next 9 months I increased my time to an hour and lost 30 pounds.  This was the first time in my life that I felt fit.  But I was also bored.  Then a friend invited me to an aerobics class at our local YMCA.
      This invitation propelled me further along on the fitness road and would eventually lead me to where I am today.  Our first class together was a 90 minute step aerobics/toning class.  The class was so exhilarating and I discovered the joy of working out with others.  I work out harder when I have someone to share the pleasure and pain with me which still holds true today.  For the next two years I continued to take various fitness classes at the Y. Working out became a priority in my life not just for weight management, but for mental and emotional health as well.  It was an hour of sanity that I carved out a few times a week just for myself.
      Eventually I became an instructor myself to share my love of health and fitness with others.  I started my own personal training business “Fitness is Fun” to help others discover that they too could be successful at weight loss and a healthy lifestyle.  I would encourage my clients to set achievable goals and not compare themselves with others but instead be proud of their accomplishments.  And to educate them so they could separate fact from fiction when they would read about the next fad diet that made unrealistic promises.  Today I run my own Pilates studio and continue to help clients achieve their goals whether that is learning how to make exercise a priority,  relieve pain, decrease stress or increase strength and stability so they can be more competitive with a specific sport or just in the game of life.
The human body was made to move.  It is an incredible machine that can heal itself if you give it the right tools.  There is not a right or wrong form of fitness.  The trick is to find a movement activity that you enjoy so you can establish a lifelong fitness regimen.  There is not one nutrition plan that is right for everybody.  You have to find the one that nourishes your body and provides you with the energy to achieve your goals.
      So as you contemplate the New Year, set the intention to be the best version of yourself you can be and if you need help to reach those goals don’t be scared or ashamed to ask for help.  Sometimes we all need the support of others to attain our goals.

 

Increase Your Core Strength and Decrease Race Times

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      Running is an easy way to get into great cardiovascular shape and is accessible to most of us.  Buy a good pair of shoes and hit the road.  But the impact can be hard on our bodies especially if we have muscular imbalances.  Those muscular imbalances can lead to injuries in the low back, hips and knees that leave us sidelined.  Pilates is great complement to your running regimen.  But what is Pilates?  Pilates is an exercise program that uses body weight as well as spring resistance to create muscular balance throughout the body.  There is a focus on breath control, core strength and muscular balance.  All of these benefits will help you run further and faster with less fatigue.
      Core Strength-
     Pilates focuses on the deep abdominal muscles which support our lumbar spine.  These are not your six pack muscles, so crunches will not make you run faster.  Think of a canister- it has a front, back, top and a bottom.  Your core or inner unit also has a front, back, top and bottom.  These are the muscles we strengthen in Pilates and they are the ones that will propel you along.
      Breath control-
      In Pilates we learn how to breath posteriorly and laterally so we breathe into the lower lobes of our lungs.  We get a better exchange of gases here which leads to better endurance.   Many of us are shallow breathers just breathing into the top and front of our chest.  This is not very efficient which can lead to tightness in our neck and shoulders.  The muscles we use to run are endurance muscles and their fuel source is glucose and oxygen.  By improving our breath control and expanding our diaphragm, we can run faster and longer with less fatigue.
      Muscular Imbalances- every sport creates repetitive movements that can lead to muscular imbalances.  Running involves many muscles of the lower body which are prone to tightness with every day activity.  Add in a running program 2-5 times a week and low backs, hips and knees can become injured from overuse.  Pilates exercises by their very nature help to lengthen the muscles of the low back, create mobility through the hips and strengthen the muscles around the knees.  Shoulder mobility is also extremely important for a runner to achieve optimal stride.  By improving breathing mechanics and strengthening postural muscles of the upper back we will run with a more upright posture which helps us to breathe easier and more efficiently.
      Pilates can be a very beneficial cross training tool to your running program.  It is low impact, strengthens your core, lengthens and mobilizes areas of the body prone to tightness from running and improves your lung capacity. It also improves your mind body connection which is important to athletes of all  levels.

 

Benefits of Pilates for Asthma

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At the age of 36 I was diagnosed with exercise induced asthma.   I was living a healthy lifestyle, exercising and teaching daily aerobics classes.  It didn’t make sense to me that I would be afflicted with this condition.  I referred myself to an asthma and allergy specialist who was able to control my condition with medication.  I was very grateful because I was worried that I would have to stop teaching and exercising altogether.  My mom also had asthma which wasn’t well controlled.  She was prednisone dependent and I did not want to end up like that.  Winters were miserable because cold air was a trigger for my asthma.  If exposed to people with upper respiratory infections or viruses and I got it, my asthma intensified the illness and my recovery took weeks.

Asthma is chronic disease of the lungs.  The airways of people with asthma are always inflamed.  It has two different classifications- allergic asthma and non-allergic asthma.   Allergic asthma is considered an autoimmune disease while non-allergic asthma is not an autoimmune disease.  I had allergic asthma.  I am allergic to dogs, which I love, and cats, which I don’t.  Strong perfumes or cigarette smoke would always set my asthma off. I am allergic to grasses of all kinds.  For the most part I gave up running outdoors because of the allergens I would encounter.   It just wasn’t worth it even though I love being outside in the fresh air and sunshine.

A couple of years after my diagnosis I started Pilates.  Its emphasis on breath was difficult for me in the beginning.  I could not do Hundreds without coughing through the exercise.  I felt constricted and breathless when flexed up into the starting position, so an already challenging exercise was more so for me.  Breathing into the posterior and lateral aspects of my lungs well was extremely difficult so my shoulders were elevated which is a compensatory pattern in respiration.  I also had to shorten the number of inhalations and exhalations, 5 breaths in and 5 breaths out were not possible for me at first.   It took time, but eventually I started to learn the mechanics of a proper breath cycle.  It is possible to direct the breath into different parts of the body.  With asthma it is not a matter of getting oxygen in, but of exhaling adequately so you can inhale.   So, learning to exhale completely was a skill I had to learn as well as connecting my body to my breath and making it a conscious action instead of an automatic reflex.  Improved breathing has benefited every aspect of my life.

Today I am healthier and stronger because I am able to better oxygenate my muscles and oxygen is the primary fuel for many of our muscles.   I can exercise longer and harder because my breath patterns are so improved and I don’t fatigue as quickly.  Struggling for air is a thing of the past and dependence on inhalers is negligible.  I contribute all of this to Pilates and a dedication to making movement a part of my daily routine.

Rene’s Bio

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Prior to becoming a fitness professional, I was an overweight, out of shape, stay at home mom who led a sedentary lifestyle. I didn’t know how to start, much less maintain, an exercise program or a healthy lifestyle. My fitness journey began 20 years ago when I made an appointment with a dietician in order to lose weight. On the very first visit she informed me that for weight loss to be permanent, exercise was a must. By making exercise a part of my daily life along with healthy lifestyle changes I took control of my health and fitness. A passion was discovered and a dream to help others achieve their fitness goals was born. Over the years I have taught group fitness, yoga, Pilates, body sculpting and cardio heart rate training as well as personal training. In 2004 I became a STOTT PILATES® Certified Instructor and in 2007 I opened up my own Pilates studio. We have 8 instructors who meet the needs of a variety of clients with a wide range of issues and goals. I enjoy empowering others to reach their fitness goals through Pilates, personal training and virtual coaching. I receive great satisfaction when my clients reach their goals, whether it is improving race times, losing weight, relieving pain or reducing stress and feeling more energized because they have made fitness a part of their daily lives. I became an instructor trainer for STOTT PILATES® in 2013 and I now educate others who want to be instructors.  I become invested in my students and enjoy mentoring them so they can become the awesome instructors they were meant to be.

It is never too late to improve your health and fitness or to pursue your passion.  I didn’t start until I was 30 and I can honestly say that I am in better shape than I have ever been.  I wake up each morning with a sense of purpose feeling inspired and excited to share my knowledge and passion with others.

STOTT Pilates Oklahoma city

10 Benefits of Deep Breathing

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10 Benefits of Deep Breathing

1. Deep Breathing makes you calmer. Breathing deeply and feeling calm is your natural state. Deep breathing naturally relaxes the mind and body. Breathing deeply is the fastest way to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, aka the relaxation response, which makes you feel relaxed. Stress is at the core of most diseases and most of us live stressful busy lives, which is commonly accompanied with shallow breathing. When we breathe shallowly, the body does not receive as much oxygen as it needs and it makes our muscles constrict. You can almost feel this tightening when you are stressed or tense. The sympathetic nervous system is triggered when we feel stress or anxiety and sends out spikes of cortisol and adrenaline. It is the parasympathetic nervous system which counteracts this and breath is the fastest way for these two systems to communicate. With deeper breathing you can turn the switch from high alarm to low in seconds. Remember if you ever feel anxious to breathe deeply. Pay attention and you can feel the peace coming in and the tension being released as you simply (but deeply) breathe in and out.

2. Deep Breathing helps to detoxify the body. Our bodies are designed to release 70 percent of its toxins through breathing. Carbon dioxide is a natural toxic waste that comes from the body’s metabolic processes and it needs to be expelled from the body regularly and consistently. It gets transferred from the blood to our lungs and we expel it with our breath. However, when our lungs are compromised by shallow breathing, the other detoxification systems in the body take over and have to work harder to expel this waste. This overload can make the body weaker and lead to illness.

3. Deep Breathing relieves pain. Studies have proved it yet when we feel pain our instant unconscious reaction is to hold our breath. Remember that breathing deeply and breathing into pain will help to release it. Deep breathing releases endorphins which are the body’s natural feel good pain killers.

4. Deep Breathing makes you happier. Breathing deeply will increase the neurochemical production in the brain and release more of the ones that elevate moods and control pain.

5. Deep Breathing helps to improve your posture. Bad posture is often directly linked with incorrect breathing. Try it yourself and as you practice breathing deeply watch how you naturally straighten up. Filling your lungs encourages you to straighten your spine and stand or sit taller.

6. Deep Breathing stimulates the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is a crucial system in our body that most of us are fairly unaware of. We know much more about our circulatory systems but we have twice the amount of lymphatic fluid in our body as we do blood. Our circulatory system relies on our heart to pump it, while the lymphatic system relies on our breathing to get it moving. The blood pumps oxygen and nutrients to the cells and once they absorb what they need they excrete their waste back out into the sea of lymphatic fluid that our cells constantly swim in. The lymph fluid is responsible for ridding the body of the debris the cells excrete and also dead cells and other waste. As our breathing is what moves the lymph, breathing shallowly can lead to a sluggish lymphatic system which is not detoxifying properly. Deep breathing will help get that lymph flowing properly so your body can work more efficiently.

7. Deep Breathing increases our cardiovascular capacity. It gives many of the same benefits of exercise and can enhance the benefits you get from exercise. Aerobic exercise (cardio) uses fat as energy, while anaerobic exercise (strength training) uses glucose as energy. By expanding our cardiovascular capacity from deep breathing we can do more cardio easier, which also increases our cardiovascular capacity and burns more fat cells as well.

8. Deep Breathing gives you energy. Drawing air deeper down into the lungs greatly increases blood flow as this is where the greatest amount of blood flow occurs, according to the American Medical Student Association. This increases energy and also improves stamina. The higher oxygen content of the blood, which cleanses the body and all its cells of debris and toxins, along with better circulation, better sleep, stress reduction, your body working more efficiently, and all that goes along with these naturally gives you lots more energy.

9. Deep Breathing improves your digestion. More oxygen is supplied to the digestive organs and thereby helping them to work more efficiently. Deeper breathing also results in an increased blood flow, which in the digestive tract encourages intestinal action and will further improve your overall digestion. It addition, deeper breathing results in a calmer nervous system which in turn also enhances optimal digestion.

10. Deep Breathing strengthens the major organs of the body, such as lungs and the heart. Deep breathing expands the lungs and makes them work more efficiently. It also brings in more oxygen to the blood which gets sent to the heart and makes it so that the heart does not have to work so hard to deliver oxygen to the tissues. Also, with the lungs working a little harder pushing out oxygen into the blood it eases the pressure needed by the heart to pump it through the body. This improves your circulation and gives the heart a bit of a break.

Bonus: 11. Deep Breathing helps to regulate weight. If you are underweight, the extra oxygen will help to feed the cells and tissues. If you are overweight it will assist with weight loss. The extra oxygen in the body will help to burn up excess fat more efficiently. When we are stressed, and most of us live day to day in a fairly stressed state, your body tends to burn glycogen instead of fat. Deep breathing triggers the relaxation response which encourages the body to burn fat instead.

Deep Breathing improves overall health and lowers our chances of sickness or disease. Breathing deeply helps to clean our blood by removing the carbon dioxide and increasing oxygen. Most diseases in the body begin with having unclean blood. Blood that is clean will wash the cells and tissues and remove toxins and waste so that illness and disease will not develop. The increased oxygen supply that comes from deep breathing also improves our nervous system, which interacts with all parts of the body, thereby improving our overall health.

More benefits?

Deep breathing helps you to sleep better.
Deep breathing lowers blood pressure.
Deep breathing increases circulation

Deep breathing is one of the easiest ways to improve your health dramatically that you can easily do from anywhere, at any time. It costs nothing and takes very little effort. Take a little time each day to practice it and it will greatly reward your efforts.

Breathe deep and be happier and healthier!

Pilates therapy

Pregnancy and Exercise Myths

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It’s natural for newly pregnant women to be concerned about the health and wellness of their developing babies. However, some nervous new moms believe myths over facts and subsequently miss out on many benefits of physical activity. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that pregnant women get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity every week. Here are some popular myths about exercise and pregnancy that need to be debunked:

Myth: Exercise increases miscarriage rates.

While about 10%-20% of early pregnancies end in miscarriage, studies show no correlation between low to moderate intensity exercise and miscarriage. On the contrary, physical fitness is a protective factor.

Myth: During pregnancy a woman’s heart rate should never get above 130-140 beats per minute.

There is no one target heart rate that’s ideal for every pregnant woman.

Myth: Exercise leads to dangerous overheating and dehydration.

It is true that overheating is dangerous for a baby’s development, especially in the first trimester. However, pregnant women simply need to star hydrated and take a few basic precautions.

Myth: Lifting weights is dangerous for both mother and fetus.

Research shows that stronger moms have shorter labors, less chance of preterm labor, few complications and shorter hospital stays.

Myth: Pregnant women shouldn’t start working out if they weren’t previously engaged in an exercise program.

A healthy woman may continue with her regular exercise regimen or begin a new program during pregnancy, with proper modifications. In fact, a recent study found that exercise during pregnancy may program a baby’s heart to resist cardiovascular problems later in life, because blood vessels will be stronger.

 

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