I was cruising around on the net and found a completely new (to me), and unique idea–Pilates via Skype!! That’s right, a personal Pilates lesson over live-video!! A Brooklyn, New York based company called MyBOD Wellness, founded by Denise Posnak, has initiated this idea, and has been operating since January 2012.
Always on the prowl for an enriching scoop, I contacted Denise and asked if I could write an article about her. Her response was immediate, generous and positive, truly warming the heart of this guy just starting to write articles. Big hug, Denise!
Oops, got a little carried away there, let’s get back to Denise!!
Denise is trained in the classical Pilates method under master teachers Romana Krysanowska, Sari Pace and Janice Dulak, and continues her affiliation with Romana’s Pilates. She has complemented her studies with other somatic and body techniques such as the Alexander Technique, The Feldenkrais Method, Laban/Bartenieff Fundamentals and Anusara Yoga. (Pilates Intel will soon host a guest writer with an article on about Feledenkrais. Her work has been covered in the press often, including in Glamour and Cosmopolitan.
Denise and I get to chatting on… Skype!
Immediately what comes to my mind as an instructor… how can you manage without your hands?
“That is a great question!” exclaims Denise. “In the style of Pilates where I was educated, showing exercises was a real no-no, manual touch was the way to do it… and I want to put my hands all over the client on the other end. But this is the exciting thing, I have to become VERY ARTICULATE, and I love that challenge. One becomes image oriented as well.”
Denise begins to become more demonstrative on the video screen.
“One thing I did the other day was to I put my hands on myself, and tell the client to put her hands in the very same place on her body. Now look, I tell her, move your pelvis just slightly this way, leveling it out a bit, and the client does it.”
When thinking about how Joseph Pilates would react to this Skype Pilates, Denise responds with “Pilates would have done this” explains Denise matter-of-factly, “he noticed the need for a physical experience that is concentrated and intense in the busy everyday life, and this is a great medium to do just that.”
“With technology and computers, we as a population are leaving our bodies, I want to use technology to bring us back into the body. And this of course gives you that personal touch, far beyond what a DVD would do for you.”
And this leads Denise to the next point, that this field is COMPLETELY new. Of course there are DVDs to give a video experience, but people tend not to know how to react to live video. It can be surprising, the reactions of fear and confusion that arise. Part of Denise’s passion in doing this work is to explore what she expresses as a new psychology.
There are challenges for the instructor as well, even beyond the hassles that the occasional low quality video can deliver. Citing that there are times when certain body parts are not in Denise’s video screen, she says that you start to gain sensitivity for what unseen body parts are doing by the quality of the body parts that are visible.
Another challenge with working on video is connecting with clients at a personal level. “I need to make this 2 dimensional video into a 3 dimensional experience. Clients return because of the connection that is created between us.”
Denise has clients in Isreal, California, the southern states, and a few just down the block, to name a few. She is confident that ANYONE can benefit from this service. “Yesterday I taught a lady who was 80 years old. I of course need to get some background information about you before we start a session, I want to know where you are, and your emergency contacts in case they are needed, etc. But by moving slowly can carefully, which is anyway my style, I can teach anyone. I could teach a blind person!!” The calm confidence she exudes and her articulate manner of speaking make me believe that she could.
About Pilates Intel, Denise states “I love the openness and generosity of the information sharing, and I think that we could all stand to open ourselves up to the way people are teaching, there is so much to learn.”
“MyBOD Wellness and Pilates Intel have common ground, in that we are using technology to reach out to a lot of people. Look at yoga, it is so big, Pilates can be like that, the idea of Pilates can grow. I think it is exciting.”
And with that, we realize that time has flown and it is time to go on to other things in life, too bad, I would have loved to go on another half hour. My impression? I like Denise, and enjoyed the contact we had over the video, it was a fulfilling, interesting, and fun 3 dimensional experience.
Learn more about Pilates initiatives at http://www.pilatesintel.com a bi-weekly newsletter covering subjects relevant to the Pilates instructor and Pilates lover, as well as any fitness buff.
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