Hi folks 

hope you are all well and looking forward to a wonderfully busy 4 months to the end of the year. 

From September to November we have a fantastic range of workshops / master classes and courses for you – full details are  in the September newsletter & also the web.  

There are some new workshops not previously presented and some that by demand you have requested – these include a full day on AIS stretching and of course the Pilates for Breast Cancer Survivors – your feed back on the last course was just wonderful. 

See full newsletter here

So have a read and to book just call the studio at 01 868 4600 or email training@bodyfirmpilates.com 

wishing you all a sunny September 

Regards Joyce

Just a quick note to all of you who completed our July 4 day intensive Mat Instructors course. (it was fantastic both myself and Mathew had a blast working with you) 

September 4th (exam day!!) is fast approaching and I hope that training is going well - any questions / assistance you need for Sept 4th assessment just give us a call.

See you all soon Joyce 

The workout beyond workouts – for those of you who want a tougher more aerobic class this is the ultimate BODYFIRM Pilates BOOTCAMP is fusing the TRX Suspension training system the Pilates Method & Core Ball

Designed by Joyce Gavin Pilates Master Trainer – This class is revolutionary and a unique BOOTCAMP fusion class to BODYFIRM Pilates Ireland

This class will in 40 minutes challenge your

• Core to the max
• Your Balance and flexibility
• Increase your Cardio capicity
• Increase you strength and tone

So come on down – improve your fitness, your tone, your sport – your overall well-being !

Small numbers in this unique Pilates Suspension BOOTCAMP

Pilates experience neccessary

Class times Wednesday  @ 6.00pm & 6.40pm Starting Sept 1st

Call 01 868 4600 to book – space limited

further details 01 8684600

As mentioned we will be in touch with any updates

Cheers Joyce

Below is a sample

Petra Barnes Many thanks to Joyce, Emma and Bernie for all the hard work you put into preparing and delivering an inspiring workshop on such an important topic. When I was working my way through the superb manual again I only realized how much material was covered, well presented and put into practice with a careful ecercise program that is so much n eeded by a vulnerable group of women. I always feel uplifted after Bodyfirm workshops and confident to pass the knowledge on to the world. Keep up the good work in the same warm caring and humourous way as always

Julien Joly Fab workshop, really excited with the new material and look forward to putting it into practice, gently and with great care. Thanks Joyce, you’re a starˇ

Mathew Stevens Excellent workshop. Very informative. Thank you both

Eileen O’sullivan My brain is buzzing, so much to take in, I want to replay the day again in my mind, so I haven’t missed anything. Feel humbled by the courage and bravery of these women, I aspire to that . The manual has already been read and will be re-read… Your ground work in this has been superb, will enable us to teach with integrity, thks Joyce & Emma

Hi Folks, just a quick note to thank you all for your attendance and feed back on

our Pilates workshop for women living and surviving breast cancer.

It was great to see old faces and welcome new ones to our studio. It was  a pity about the ash, as we missed Rachel from London, (understandably she could not risk it just in case! ) we look forward to seeing her again soon.

Your feed back was fantastic, Emma and I are both trilled you enjoyed your day, the hard work and effort was well worth it.

Remember do come back to us with any questions you may have, and remember take your time with the material, it is complex enough.

We will keep in touch with you about the future developments on the course.

Yours Joyce

On may 8th we are running an informative workshop for suitably qualified Pilates instructors  on Pilates based restorative movements for women recovering from breast cancer – this is not a substitute for any medical / therapy treatment -

our mission with this workshop is to work with the  growing support for research that suggests moderate exercise can aid post-operative breast cancer recovery and improve quality of life for women who been through a breast cancer operation.
In the field of health and fitness, as its main focus is to ‘building body core strength and stability’, Pilates is acknowledged as an accessible form of training where exertion is considered to be relatively moderate.
Employing Pilates to aid recuperation is not a new idea. Specific Pilates programs have been successfully employed to aid recovery and recuperation in many health conditions.
Progressive Pilates for Breast Cancer Rehabilitation is devised on the central Pilates principle of building body core strength and stability.
This advanced Pilates program is sensitively designed to assist breast cancer survivors with a comfortable recovery and resumption of a more active lifestyle.
The holistic program is designed to aid the restoration of harmony, strength and mobility as well as range of motion not only in the shoulder girdle but in the entire body. It also addresses muscular imbalances due to specific surgeries.
Our workshop will provide the instructor with the knowledge and skills to assist women who are in post-operative recovery and help them in rebuilding their strength, self-esteem and quality of life

Instructors  join us on May 8th at our workshop it promises to be an inspirational day.

Joyce @ BODYFIRM Pilates Ireland 01 868 4600

full details can be found on http://www.bodyfirmpilates.com/blog/instructor-up-skill-workshops-master-classes/

Irish Times article

www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/magazine/2010/0410/1224267997487.html

Year of the Dragon Boats , Irish Times on Sat 10th of April by  CHARLOTTE COLEMAN-SMYTH

ACTIVE APPROACH: Up to 20 women, each one a survivor of breast cancer, will make up Ireland’s first dragon boat team

BODYFIRM Pilates studios urge you all to check out

The dragon-boat open day is on April 17th, 11am-1pm, at Waterways Ireland Visitor Centre, Grand Canal Quay, Dublin 2. Admission is free.

or www.plurabellepaddlers.com

.

Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness. Our interpretation of physical fitness is the attainment and maintenance of a uniformly developed body with a sound mind fully capable of naturally, easily, and satisfactorily performing our many and varied daily tasks with spontaneous zest and pleasure. Joseph Pilates

What a wonderful statement ‘a sound mind fully capable of naturally, easily, and satisfactorily performing our many and varied daily tasks with spontaneous zest and pleasure

This encapsulates why people enjoy participating in Pilates, it is a physical system (and remember it is a system built over mat and many varied Pilates machines) that is about posture – bringing us back to 8 loadable joints, that is not just about physical fitness, jumping, higher, driving the ball further, staying injury free, (while you get all those benefits as well)

but is about having a body that is in balance that assists you and how you live your life and lets you move with ease.

Since this wonderful system was developed our style of living has changed considerably, we have remotes for everything, drive everywhere, sit most of the time and forget that we are bodies of energy and movement for health and well being is essential. When we are not moving we become stagnant and this can manifest it losing flexibility and pain from postural dysfunction.

We owe it to our clients that spend most of their day in flexion to open them up, starting classes with some balance and breathing work, (open up and balance your clients they will love you for it)

Then some extensions work with our lovely swan dive, grasshopper or breaststroke, even the simple cat to camel. Open their chests to allow for the shoulder/scapular stability that we are all so conscious in our cuing; indeed open them up so they can breathe!

Our intention in our class plans should be based on who is coming to our class, not following the running order blindly, which as we all know is very flexion oriented in its first 9 or so exercises.

So take a moment think about your next course, pick exercises that bring your clients back into balance, opened up and feeling taller – they will love you for it and more importantly they will come back for more

If you are interested in becoming a Pilates Instructor or up-skilling workshops with up to the minute information then call the PROGRESSIVE Pilates Academy (ERPI M) Irelands Number 1 Mind Body Educator 01 868 4600 www.bodyfirmpilates.com

open up and balance your clients they will love you for it

Pilates and the Professional Sportsman

Tour de France

My response to this terrible misconception: “You choose to question the wisdom of sporting professionals who play international rugby, NFL and premier league soccer, not to mention members of GAA county football and hurling teams, Olympic athletes, Tour de France cyclists, professional golfers etc, the majority of who consider Pilates to be an integral part of their overall training regimes.

Exercising in a gym can be great for building strength and muscles, but top sports coaches and trainers understand that Pilates helps their elite athletes achieve greater postural balance in their bodies as well as considerably reducing the incidence of injury and pain.

So, if it works for the professionals, why are there still a few ‘Weekend Warriors’ who cannot see the benefit of this excellent system of movement?

The Simple Facts about Pilates and Men’s Health
I don’t have the answer to that question, but I would like to present some Simple Facts about Pilates and Men’s Health that show there is more to Pilates than meets the eye.

In addition to helping men who suffer the occasional twinge or knock from sporting activities, regular Pilates workouts can help build resistance to some very serious health conditions that affect men as well as greatly improve your overall health and quality of life.

Just take a look at Joseph Pilates, the founder of  Pilates techniques, he was still teaching and training in his 80s.

Meet ‘The Reformer’
If you are a man who thinks working on a mat is not tough – then let me introduce you to The Reformer; a customized piece of Pilates resistance equipment.

Working with the principles of Pilates and resistance, a Reformer Workout tones muscle and helps to create a masculine streamline shape while simultaneously improving posture, stability, flexibility, mobility and co-ordination. The beauty of a Reformer workout programme is that it works your body as a whole, unlike individual exercise machines that can be found in a gym.
As I have stated in earlier blogs, Pilates works to create a balanced body – right left, front back.

Pilates provides:

• – Improved Stability
• – Increased Mobility
• – More Fluency of Movement
• – Better Co-ordination and
• – Greater strength

– All the components required for living injury and pain free.

So, in terms of  physical workouts, Pilates offers men an opportunity to build a better-balanced body with more strength and muscular endurance and create a flexible masculine shape.

Pilates and male medical conditions
Erectile Dysfunction
At BODYFIRM Studios we see the Pelvic Floor as essential part of both male and female health. Most men do not realize how important their Pelvic Floor is to their overall health. However, we have in the past had men referred for PF (pelvic floor) work to aid with Erectile Dysfunction.
Prostate Cancer
In more recent times with the apparent increase in the incidence of Prostate Cancer, Pilates has been acknowledged as a movement system that can play a big part in helping men fight the possible onset of the disease.
Deterioration of the Pelvic Floor has been cited as a contributing factor to the contracting of prostate cancer. By working with Pilates movement, becoming aware of Pelvic Floor activation and strengthening, the risks of contracting prostate cancer can be reduced.

Want to give Pilates a go?
Pilates is a movement system that has much to offer men looking improve their fitness. It is a programme that combines both mat and resistance machine exercises with great results

So, come and give it a go.

I think you’ll find you can be man enough for it…

Joyce

——————

Click here to book a course or learn more about what Pilates can do for  you.

Call Bernie on 018684600 if you have a specific Pilates query.

——————-

Images courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net . Tour de France Photograher Tom Curtis Worker waistcoat – Photographer: Suat Eman

Just a short note to keep you updated on the next few months

• On Feb 13th Master Classes in Mat and Reformer
• On Feb 13th Workshop on the 30minute BLITZ workouts
• On March 6th Master classes in Mat and Reformer
• On March 6th Workshop in AIS stretching and Foam rolling

For full Master Class and Workshop details click here

Please note a date change and apologies for any inconvenience caused

the workshop :Breast Cancer Exercise Rehabilitation based on Pilates Principles is now on May 8th & 9th full details click here

Due to a date clash with the 6 Nations Welsh game we have changed the PPM1 course in March to April  full details click here

On March 6th we are adding a workshop on AIS stretching (active isolated stretching) and Foam Rolling- these two systems are fantastic for assisting with clients who have restricted movement due to postural deviations full details click here

I look forward to seeing you soon

Regards Joyce