Jumping Jelly Beans - wait, how many calories is that?

I was just thinking about how much we have food in every day phrases, and just thinking about this concept started to make me hungry. How many calories are in jumping jelly beans? Answer is as many as you put in. That got me thinking about how many other cute catch phrases are food related. Just a few to get started:

"How about them apples" yum, totally makes me want to go apple picking and make apple pie. Definitely a lot of calories there...

"Want any cheese with that whine" - Um yes, actually I do, and I'd like a glass of red wine to go along with that cheese thank you. Goat cheese please, since I am allergic to cows milk, plus, I think there may be less calories.

"Kill two birds with one stone" - why stop at two, let's just kill three birds and have fried Turducken...yum.

"When Pigs Fly" it will rain bacon, ham and sausage links... Everyone else will get the calories there since I don't eat pork - too cute.

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch" - just make eggs! Over easy is relatively healthy, or boiled is always good. Maybe even have an omelette, then you can add veggies and be really healthy! Just be careful, they can also be used to make mayo and meringues.

"Don't put all your eggs in one basket" unless it's Easter and then by all means put them all in my basket and make them Cadbury style!

"Get your Ducks in a Row" gladly, medium rare preferably breasts with a nice creamy red wine reduction. Or even better, fois gras....

"Busy Busy like a Bee" - and honey is amazing so keep on truckin'. Eat it raw, drink it with your tea, or even better... baklava!

"If life deals you lemons, make lemonade!" Or just make tons of lemonade, with lots of sugar. Why stop there, add strawberries, pomegranate and rasberry. Fruit is healthy or is sugar just empty calories...?

"Like a fish out of water" or on my plate. Protein!

Add more through the awesome world of comments! Thank you.

Pilates Neutral Rib Hip Connection

As I've been teaching, I'm noticing a problem in helping clients maintain their neutral rib-hip connection.  Mostly, client's are having trouble breathing in while maintaining this neutral.  The trick, is learning how to breath through our side bodies while maintaining proper form.  It's super hard.  Learning to zip up through the pelvic floor and to maintain the connection during an inhale is difficult and takes time.  Clients have to remind themselves how important it is to extend through the crown of the head and grow during the inhale.  This will allow clients to maintain this neutral.

What's funny, I have one client who is into Yoga.  She doesn't understand how keeping the neutral will allow her to get taller.  I worked the entire class, limiting the weight and explaining everything.  I honestly kept having to tell myself to be patient.  It's hard to explain something that is now so mundane to someone who's never experienced this connection.  Plus, the neutral in Yoga is completely different.  I couldn't figure out how to explain how to get taller and maintain the neutral rib/hip connection.  The client was starting to figure it out, but kept letting her ribs pop open and fall into her old habits of belly breathing.  Finally, at the end of the session, I took her onto the barrel to do some extension work.  When I had her slide her ribs to hip to get back up, like an ab curl, something clicked!  I had her stand, do her pelvic rocking standing, and had her close her ribs to extend taller within her neutral.  I explained finally that by keeping her neutral rib to hip connection (not jutting out the front ribs) will allow her to extend her spine, allowing her to lengthen, "Audrey Hepburn" style.  This was verbatim my cue.  I had my hand on her head and kept saying, "Think of Audrey, be Audrey, that's right Ms. Hepburn".  Finally, she felt the difference and was able to finally close her ribs without hunching her shoulders forward or overly tucking her tail.

Although Yoga and Pilates are so similar (Joseph pretty much stole everything from the 1000 year old art), he put his own spin on it.  The meat of the difference is the breath patterns and the art of engaging that perfect rib to hip alignment.  Let's see how my session goes next week with my Yogi.  Hopefully now, with the cues like "Widen your collar bone while maintaining your neutral rib/hip connection" will allow her to keep the connection, grow and have that feeling of euphoria and growth once the session has ended.  Let's cross our fingers!

Pilates Success Story - From pain to normal

I was a gymnast and was diagnosed with RSD, reflexive sympathetic dystrophy at age 14. I was hospitalized and told I would never be active again in gymnastics or any other extreme high impact sport.

At 16 I took my first mat Pilates class from a fitness show at 3am on TV. I did everything wrong, but got a great work out and loved all the core strengthening. At 18, I went to my first real Pilates class in Boulder CO. It was amazing! I completely fell in love. It wasn't until then that I realized all the similarities between my gymnastics conditioning programs. The only difference, was the new sit-ups, crunches and swans were slow, controlled and methodical. there was a reason for each exercise.

The more I practiced the less pain I felt in my joints and extremities. In high-school, I had started to get into break dancing, but kept hurting myself due to the RSD, now known as chronic pain syndrome. What was crazy, the more I did Pilates, the less I hurt myself in dance. However, I was only doing mat Pilates and had still not addressed the most serious of my issues, my ankles.

At 24 I started working at the Commonwealth Sports Club. They had these crazy machines we had just bought called Pilates reformers. At the time, I had no clue about Joseph Pilates and his inventions. The reformer was Joe's last invention he developed after immigrating to NYC. He happened to live right next to the New York Ballet. This is what he used to rehabilitate all the dancers in his home.

Like most people, I felt nothing during my first session. I couldn't figure out the rib hip connection, I couldn't isolate my abs and I basically couldn't do anything right. As a good instructor, Maria encouraged me with positive feedback, and scheduled me for a second session to try it again. This time, something clicked. It worked! I felt longer, stronger and could really feel the difference in my ankle stability, the area where I'm the weakest.

I ended up purchasing my first package and was hooked ever since. At one point I had to take a break due to financial reasons. As soon as I did this, I got hurt and the RSD flared up. This is when I truly understood the importance of Pilates.

I am now a Pilates instructor at the Commonwealth Sports Club and another studio closer to where I live. I practice Pilates regularly and have hurt myself within this time (being stupid - I tripped and sprained my ankle and break dancing I dislocated my collar bone). The craziest thing happened. Neither injuries caused me to have a flare up. I associate 100% of my success to Pilates reformer and my Pilates training. Knowing how to engage my muscles, working my ankle stability with footwork and my scapular stability with arm work has given me the tools to stay injury free, or RSD free. I continue to dance and work out, living an active high impact lifestyle. At the age of 28, I'm in the best shape of my life and practice Pilates regularly.

I recommend Pilates to everyone. I even work with my mother who has scoliosis, planters fascitis and tons of other structural mis-alignments. Pilates has helped her control these issues and has made her daily life easier. By working your smaller stabilizing muscles, Pilates will align your spine in a way that your body will maintain this alignment (unlike chiropractics). If you haven't yet tried Pilates, definitely give it a shot, and comment on how Pilates has helped you in your daily life.