Pilates is an holistic and global method, which means you will work all of the parts of your body deeply during a single session.
The focus is on the core. All parts of your body will be utilised and activated differently. It all depends on your body, your history… and of greatest interest to me – YOU.
Because everyone is different and needs something specific, I try to find the best way to provide good balance and energy to your body.
Before being a Pilates instructor I was an actress. I played a lot of very different characters. I had to ‘find’ the body of my character who was sometimes a teenager or a young energetic child, or a fat girl or someone fragile and skinny, a precious and elegant princess, even an old woman, and on occasion an animal as well. I also often played in theatre as a clown in a show without words, using only my body language to express the story.
I found a specific posture for each of my characters.
Every time I started with a neutral alignment and looked at how I could deconstruct my body to be more in tune with this character and feel their emotion.
I tried, for example, to move the shoulders so they were round or open, buttocks back, chin up, chest forward, side crooked, belly out, legs in or out, body more in the air or more down to the ground… each time playing with different levels of energy – high, smooth, hectic or low.
This work helped me to become totally conscious of my body’s state, and in particular taught me how important the link is between a body posture and our emotions.
Now, with everybody I meet I am instantaneously provided with an indication of their character by their body posture.
The big difference is that in the “theater life” we are conscious of the deconstruction of the body and we are free to choose our new body.
In real life it’s quite different and we usually don’t choose the transformation of our body – we let life’s burdens decide for us.
When I teach Pilates I work with you in the reverse way to that of the actor.
My job is to help you become conscious of your current body, and to return to a good and neutral alignment. From there you will be able to choose what or who you want to be, how you build your body, and use it as you wish.
And so begins a new chapter for you to write…
Christine Wurm
Romana’s Pilates Instructor at The Field – Training Lifestyle Centre