Finding Your Pilates Community

Get connected to your Pilates community! This week I share some ways to find some like-minded Pilates folks, both in person and virtually, and grow together. Tune in!

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Show Notes:

Join Maria Earle's book club here: http://mariaearle.com/index.html Just click Schedule Appointment and it's right there.

Check out Martin Reid's Core Conversations show on IG here: @personalvictory

Sonja R. Price Herbert runs the Deconstructing Racism in Pilates (DRiP) here.

Sign up to be a member of the Kinexology Lab here.

Support the podcast:    

Visit https://links.oliviabioni.com/affiliates to take advantage of some sweet savings!

Episode Music:

Tracks: Tobu - Good Times, Tobu & Itro - Sunburst 
Tobu Official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tobuofficial
Itro Official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/officialitro
Released by NCS 
https://www.youtube.com/NoCopyrightSounds

Transcript

[00:00:00] Welcome to Pilates Teachers' Manual, your guide to becoming a great Pilates teacher. I'm Olivia, and I'll be your host during the conversation and the Pilates community on Instagram at @pilatesteachersmanual and visit buymeacoffee.com/OliviaPodcasts to support the show. Today's chapter starts now.

Hello, hello everybody. Welcome back to the [00:01:00] podcast. I'm so excited you're here, and I'm really excited to share this episode because this episode is about finding your Pilates community and I've had so many positive experiences uh, very recently with regards to finding my Pilates community. And I just want to share, uh, some resources and some potential connections that you could make really from anywhere in the world. Because I mean, that's one of the greatest things about the digital age is that you can connect with people all over your country, all over the world. It doesn't need to be just down the street from where you live. It can really be anything. 

So, as I've mentioned before in previous episodes, one of maybe the shortcomings or one of the cons of teaching Pilates as a profession is that it can be kind of lonely in that it's unlikely that two Pilates teachers are in the same room at the [00:02:00] same time. You know what I mean? Like if you're there to teach class, you're there to teach class. Other teachers who teach at the studio, maybe they'll take class. I love when that happens. You might be holding the fort down by yourself, or maybe there's someone in the private studio teaching, but you're not really interacting.

It's not like a shared work space. Like if you are in an office and you could just go over to someone's cubicle and be like, Hey, what's happening? How was your week? That's just not that kind of environment. And that can be a little bit lonely. It can feel a little bit isolating that, you know, there might be 10 Pilates teachers, I know where I teach there might be 10 Pilates teachers. And I think I saw one of them and some of them I've never met and partly, yeah, a part of that is COVID and not being able to, you know, do teacher get togethers and stuff like that. 

But yeah, it's just, how do we connect with other teachers? We love Pilates. We have that much in common. So how do we connect with other teachers? How do we find these amazing community [00:03:00] hubs that, um, I'm going to share with you, but there's tons of ways to connect virtually and also in person, I would say now, um, I feel like I'm not great at in-person adventures. Virtual adventures are kind of my jam, but there I do have a couple of recommendations on things you can do in person to kind of build community in your area as well. I can't help you as much with the in-person stuff, but if you're in Chicago, you can always come hang out. 

So, first thing I want say is, guess what? You're already part of a super cool Pilates community and that's the Pilates Teachers' Manual podcast communities. If you're listening to this, know that you're not alone listening to this, that there are hundreds of other teachers around the world. And like literally the world we're talking like Australia, we're talking the UK, we're talking the United States. We're talking Canada. There are listeners in south America. And in Asia, I was just talking to someone on Instagram, who is a Pilates teacher. Who wanted to know if they could use [00:04:00] one of the episodes and they're sharing with a Mandarin speaking community. And I'm like, that's amazing. Cause movement doesn't really have a language. Movement is universal. Pilates is universal and that's incredible. I'm all about that. 

So you're part of this amazing podcast community. You can always reach out and connect on Instagram. You can reach out. On email, you can share this episode. It is a conversation starter. I hope share it in your teacher training or share it with your Pilates teacher friends that you already have. Like that can be a source of community, I hope. That's a little bit of a goal. 

There are lots of virtual opportunities, like Momentum Fest, that is happening right now, this weekend. Which I'm so hyped about. I won't be able to do the episode talking about Momentum Fest for a couple of weeks, because I also want to catch the replays and I want to digest and hopefully also connect with some of the teachers whose workshops I [00:05:00] adored. 

And I will say in 2021, let's normalize talking to teachers about their classes and connecting with them. And telling our movement teachers that we appreciate them and their time and their craft, especially if you're attending Momentum Fest, but really anytime you attend that as a teacher, for sure. But also as a student, like tell people that you value them. I think that that's wholesome and we should do that.

So I'm so excited for Momentum Fest and a lot of the teachers who have been on the podcast, I was able to connect with because I took their class and I took that leap and reached out to them on Instagram. I know I tell you all the time, like teachers are just people. Like we're teachers and we're people. Um, but it, it feels different when they're like these Pilates teaching superstars, but they really are just people and they will appreciate you appreciating them. So there's a way to build community. Or be part of a community. And I can't wait until next year when I [00:06:00] can attend Momentum Fest in person and just like take a week and do things. Oh, I'm so excited. I mean, I'm excited for the one that's literally happening right now, but I'm also really excited for next year. 

Another really great virtual resource and virtual forum is the Deconstructing Racism in Pilates forum and that's facilitated and moderated by Sonya R. Price Herbert. She's been on the podcast and she is a rock star of Pilates and issues of race in Pilates in fitness. She has multiple articles and runs amazing workshops that I've definitely shared with you in the past. She has a paid Mighty Networks forum that is a space to discuss issues of race in Pilates and offers, you know, education conversation, really just an open place to talk about that. [00:07:00] If your passionate about, you know, creating change in the industry and being part of the change, like an active part of the change. I think that that is a really incredible network to be a part of. 

And really important if you care about your students, if you care about everyone being safe and healthy. And it's a really powerful forum for change and for being an active agent of change and making your communities, your studios, your cities, a better, more inclusive, safer, more welcoming space. So highly recommend that you check that out. There's a free trial period, and then it's a paid forum. 

Another paid membership adventure is theKinexology Lab. So Kinexology is a studio that's based in Washington, DC. It has a virtual studio that I am a teacher for, and it [00:08:00] is also debuting it's brand new in-person physical studio location as well. There are continuing education courses that are part of the Kinexology method. And then there is a teacher network community called the Kinexology lab. 

That's run by Chelsea Corley, who's the founder of Kinexology. She offers little mini courses that are like hour long discussions about a given topic, whether it's, I mean, they're mostly motor learning based because that's her research, but it could be dealing, you know, with the best ways to give feedback or working with older clients or there's lots of topics and I'm sure even more, that's just getting started. She also does office hours where you can pick her brain where you can chat and talk about what you'd like to see more of. And that's a really great opportunity I think, to learn together. So that also has a private [00:09:00] Facebook group and that's a learning community that is really great and really awesome to be a part of as well.

And it's, it's really awesome because the material is there for you to talk about it. Like we're all learning together. You know, it's easy to ask questions because we're asking questions, we just learned this thing, you know? Coming up after the break, I've got even more resources for you to connect with other teachers and go on some wild Pilates-y adventures. That's coming up next.

Hi there. I hope you're enjoying today's chapter so far. There's great stuff coming up after the break, too. Be sure to subscribe wherever you're listening and visit buymeacoffee.com/OliviaPodcasts to support the show. There you can make a one-time donation or become a member for as little as $5 a month.

Membership comes with some awesome perks, including a shout out in the next [00:10:00] episode, a monthly newsletter, a monthly zoom call with me and more. You can also visit links.OliviaBioni.com/affiliates to check out some sweet deals on products I use and love. Now back to the show.

Another great way to connect with other teachers and share common interests is Maria Earle is a fantastic teacher who, if you don't know, is a student of Kathy Grant, who is a student of Joseph Pilates. She is an incredible Pilates teacher based in Barcelona. In addition to hosting her Advanced Mover Series, which [00:11:00] is a paid workshop series where you're diving into the mat, work, the chair or the reformer, she's also been hosting a book club where there is a new book every month or every other month. She just sets up a zoom meeting and you can read the book and then share. 

We do a discussion of the book we talk about- we do a little synopsis of the book. It's an absolute party. And so we just had a, this past week, the book club about, uh, the book, the Joy of Movement, which is a little bit of science, a little bit of storytelling, a lot of amazing, incredible movement anecdotes, and very much movement science and neuroscience, and really a cool book, uh, that we discussed.

This was a situation where she's also hosted a book club discussing Return to Life and discussing Caged Lion. And I was so bummed that I wasn't able to attend those two [00:12:00] because they were on days that I was teaching, but this one at worked out. So I tuned in and saw some familiar faces and got to talk about this really cool book.

I think it's amazing that Maria is doing this because it really is a beautiful, fun community where there's no competition. We're just sharing, you know, what resonated with us and what we learned and what we thought was cool. Like how fabulous is that? Like, I'm honestly considering starting a book club or a something for teachers just at the studios that I work at, where we might even be able to meet in person, because it's so cool.

But it's something that you could definitely do in your personal community at your studio. Like I'm, uh, is it more things in my biting off more than I can chew? Um, but it's something that I would consider, like even proposing to my studio. That's like, Hey, do we want to talk about this? Do we want to do something [00:13:00] about this? Do we want to do a workshop or something where we get together and move and, and chat? I think that that's incredible. I don't think the next book club has been announced just yet, but definitely keep an eye out on Maria Earle's Instagram and on her website, because it was so much fun. And you get to meet people all over the world and talk about Pilates. Like what a dream? Love that. And I'm so grateful to her for hosting that. 

Another thing that you can connect with almost daily, I do not know how Martin Reid does it, but Monday through Friday on Instagram live on his Instagram, @personalvictory. He's hosting the Core Conversations show. Some of those conversations go on to be episodes in his podcast, Core Conversations.

But he is talking to regular people and famous people, and regular people like me, and talking Pilates with them and asking questions and hearing what [00:14:00] makes them tick, their experiences as an instructor. When I was on, I ended up talking about plants for a lot of time, but I think it's important that you see the person behind the business. It's reassuring and comforting to know that there's like a human being behind the Pilates teacher, you know. Like our students see us of course, in like a very specific environment. We're always wearing like workout clothes and not being glamorous necessarily. And it's really great to hear about people's families and people's, you know, what they love and you know, what drives them as humans, not just as Pilates teachers.

So that's on Instagram live and you can just, I mean, possibly potentially be on the show, or I don't want to speak for him, but you could talk to Martin if you'd like to be on the show. You know, chime in. He does, you know, when he doesn't have a guest, he just does freestyle where he, you [00:15:00] know, has a thought that he wants to share. And there's people just, again, all over the world tuning in sharing their 2 cents, having this conversation. I think Martin has done so much in terms of just creating a space where a conversation can happen. 

Because that's what the book club is. That's what going to a conference is that's what being part of a forum or a, a membership to a site, anything like that, is you're creating an environment where you can have a conversation and you can just hold space for that connection to happen. Really grateful to everyone who's put a conference together or a workshop series together, or a book club or a, a show on Instagram live because it's really easy to get, you know, in your bubble and not venture out of it and so to have a place to venture is incredible. 

And if you haven't checked out his show and his podcast, Core Conversations, [00:16:00] you should. If you enjoy reading books and talking about them, check out Maria Earle's adventure of book clubs, Advanced Mover Series, check out  Sonya R. Price Herbert's Deconstructing Racism in Pilates, Mighty Networks forum. The Kinexology Lab is a great motor learning theory based learning experiment. And Momentum Fest, I know you can't sign up for it anymore because it is literally happening right now, but conferences like that create an opportunity for you to connect and connection could be going out on a limb and it can be nerve wracking and it can be nervous, but just know that everyone's in that boat and that you're definitely not alone.

One thing that's really fun that I do with one of my friends in Chicago is we go to a different, you know, fitness class or a different Pilates studio. And we're lucky again because we're in Chicago. So there's a lot of classes and studios and [00:17:00] movement opportunities to choose from, but we'll take a class together and then go out for lunch or go out for coffee and talk about it. You never know, like maybe you connect with this amazing teacher who is in your neighborhood. And I said that I wasn't going to talk about in-person stuff because I don't know, I'm a big fan of the indoors, but you know, that's something that, that you could do even just reaching out to a teacher that you think is cool on Instagram, like taking their class.

That's why we're always posting about them. You know? Like we want people to take them and especially people who are going to appreciate the work that we put into what we do. And there's no one who can appreciate it more than someone who does the same thing. 

So, yeah, there's lots of opportunities. 2020 has definitely opened up an entire virtual world of connections and as more things are opening up, hopefully there are more opportunities to connect in-person as well. I don't think I can go so far as to like start a meetup group or do something so systematized, but I'll definitely send someone a DM [00:18:00] and be like, Hey, I want to take your class and yeah. We'll see what happens.

Super excited. If I'm not around on Instagram so much this weekend. It's because I am Momentum Fest-ing it up, but I can't wait to share more about that with you. Just a reminder that next week's episode is going to be out on Pilates Students' Manual. So tune in over there, and there will be some more Pilates goodness from a student perspective. I'll be back on Pilates Teachers' Manual in just a couple of weeks. So have a great day and I'll talk to you again soon.

Thanks for listening to this week's chapter of Pilates Teachers' Manual your guide to becoming a great Pilates teacher. Check out the podcast Instagram at @pilatesteachersmanual, and be sure to subscribe [00:19:00] wherever you listen. For more Pilates goodness, check out my other podcast, Pilates Students' Manual, available everywhere you listen to podcasts.

The adventure continues. Until next time.