Give the man his due
when E=mc2 becomes obvious you have to give the man his due.
when the idea in pilates becomes obvious you have to give the man his due.
The mat sequence of Joseph Pilates is no less of an equation.
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The truth is what it is
"there are many approaches to Pilates and its about embracing them all."
There are many approaches to Pilates, but there is one that rises above the others because it makes better sense than the others.
Joseph Pilates expressed a clear and concise truth, embodied in his definition, his promise, and his documentation.
If you don't understand the idea in the original work of Joseph Pilates, all the other approaches loose their significance.
It's not about embracing all approaches to pilates equally, it is about evaluating approaches to pilates that make the most sense, that bring you to a deeper sense of ownership of what the essence of pilates is and how you can best share that with others.
Pilates is unique. I have been pointing to that for years. Approaches are one thing; what it is, is another.
The truth is out there, world wide, people are now hip to the notion that pilates is an idea, that it makes sense, and that understanding the idea is the critical point of comprehension.
No matter how you choose...
Whether you expand pilates or you clarify pilates, it will always be what it is, regardless of who you are.
That's why pilates transcends aristocracy.
The fear of being boring...
I hear a lot of new instructors expressing a fear of being boring. So they do all kinds of things that get in the way of not being boring.
The reason the fear exists is because there is no sense that there is an essence to what they teach, and that they understand that essence.
I'm writing this for you, the teacher that is afraid of being boring. When you understand the idea, and you teach the idea, that--can never be boring. Far from it, teaching the idea is the only way to validate the tradition and add something meaningful, an expansion or a clarification of the idea.
Coaching Mat: Silence is golden
Instructing a mat doesn't mean non-stop talking. Instructing means issuing an instruction, and then giving a pause of silence so your mat class can have a chance to do what you instruct, to listen to their own effort without continuous words from you that distract them from listening to themselves. Instruct, and pause, instruct and pause, instruct and pause.
It's not about you, the teacher; it's about them the students. It's about their chance to listen to their own effort after you've issued an instruction. You must give the class a chance to listen to themselves. If you do non-stop talking, your talking is a distraction from their effort to concentrate on their intention, and to feel what you want them to feel.
