The Midterm

We are on our way to modules 4, 5, and 6 of the Foundations Apparatus Training. I feel the 3-4 week break between modules was perfect. I took some time each day to read a chapter from the Study Guide or watch Pilates Interactive. I also offered free Private Pilates sessions for family and friends. I did my best not to skip ahead in the study guide and really focus on what I had already been taught. I also took advantage of youtube and google. If there was a word or concept I didn't understand I looked it up. 

I am feeling more relaxed this weekend than I was the first weekend. I am excited to meet our instructor and I am nervous for the midterm. 

I am now at the host studio. It is so nice to see everyone again! Making friends has been so easy. We have all connected so well. Our new instructor has arrived! I can already tell he is going to make these modules so fun! One step in the room and he has us all laughing! He seems very genuine, passionate and powerful! I can tell he has been an instructor for a long time. He is very relaxed and knowledgable!

I just finished module 4. This weekend has been amazing so far! These modules are great. Course, I think every module is great. The midterm is tomorrow. I feel like I have prepared to the best of my ability. My husband and I decided to go to dinner and meet with some friends. Sometimes it is best to take a break and relax. I love how our instructor constantly reminded us that the intent of the midterm and final exam is not there to trick or make us fail. BASI wants to see us succeed. The faculty are our friends, not our enemies.

Just finished the midterm. I felt it was spot on with where we are/should be. The questions were great. I reminded myself to take it slow and read the questions carefully! What a load off. It feels wonderful to be done with that! Our instructor also made time at the end of the last module to practice for the Practical Exam. I thought that was very helpful. 

We learned so much this weekend and I am excited to go home and start more practice! I feel very ready to continue onto the Comprehensive training. Hopefully I will be able to!  I am grateful for this break and the option that is given to hold off or continue on with training.  I am beyond impressed with how seamless this training has gone. I did it! Thank you BASI for one of the greatest experiences I have ever had! I hope to have many more experiences to share in the future!

Foundations Apparatus Training Program

It is the night before The Foundations Apparatus Training Program through BASI Pilates! 

The car is packed, the kids are sleeping, my husband is finishing up some last minute work. We are about to get on the road and head six hours south to San Antonio, TX.

I should be sleeping. We will be waking up at 4AM. Training starts at noon.

I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve night. So much excitement and anticipation. I've dreamt of becoming a Pilates instructor for over ten years! I don't remember the last time a day has passed that I haven't thought about Pilates. I'm so strange!

My heart is full of love and gratitude. What an amazing opportunity. I was awarded a Kathy Grant Memorial Scholarship to attend this training. I want to do my best to show my gratitude to both BASI as well as Kathy Grant.

We arrive in San Antonio. The traffic was not as bad as we had predicted. Thank goodness we have some extra time. I am still in my pajamas. I grab my change of clothes and realize my pants I had washed the night before are still wet! Seriously?! Mental check. It takes more than 24 hours for Lululemons to dry. Oh well! Wet pants it is!

We grab some lunch and head to the host studio. I'm feeling excited, anxious and nervous. My husband takes my hand and tells me how excited he is that I am finally starting this journey. He tells me he is proud of me and that I am not to worry about the kids.

We say a quick prayer and thank heavenly father for the opportunity to learn and grow. We pray that I will be able to retain the information that is being given. We also pray that I will be able to bless the lives of those around me with the knowledge and talents I will be receiving and developing.

I walk up the stairs to the studio. One by one the studio fills with other students. 

I anxiously watch for the instructor to arrive. I secretly think about what I would do if Rael Isacowitz walked in. How would I refrain from acting like a teenage girl meeting Justin Bieber?! haha

Our instructor arrives. She has beautiful brown hair, an adorable button nose, big eyes and long lashes. She looks so confident but also kind and humble!

We take roll and introduce ourselves.

I love hearing about all the other students. We are all so different but yet similar.

Everyone has such great respect for Pilates.

We begin. I am handed a huge stack of manuals! I am grinning ear to ear. I feel like the Pilates Vault just opened and I snatched all those treasured manuscripts!

The manuals are very structured, full of information and easy to read.

I can't believe how much we fit into one weekend. I am also surprised at how much I was able to retain.

Before I knew it the training came to an end. The time went by so quickly. I was impressed by the instructor as well as the other students. There was no competing, no judging and no belittling. Everyone is looking to improve and become better.

I am headed back home. No study buddy or BASI instructor close by. But I have my manuals in hand, Pilates Interactive just a click away and a Facebook page full of BASI graduates willing to respond to my messages.

I've started my observation hours and recently started working at a local studio. Modules 4,5 and 6 can't come fast enough. Nervous for the mid term. Trying not to be! Wish me luck!

Why I Chose BASI

I never thought I would be as passionate about a Pilates Training Program as I am about Pilates! When I decided to become a Pilates instructor I searched for the most well known program. I thought I had found the right one. It was very well known, main stream and professional. I never fell head over heels in love with the founder or even the Program, but didn’t think much of it as Pilates is what I wanted and that was what I was going to get!

When I started looking into BASI I researched the program, then I researched it a little more. Soon I found myself reading about the history, the studio, the creator and past graduates. The more I learned, the more I fell in love! 

Here are the top reasons why:

1. I quickly connected many dots and found that many of my favorite Pilates instructors were BASI graduates
2. I felt BASI was built upon the science of Pilates but also the art and passion
3. Rael Isacowitz, the creator, has worked very closely with a wide variety of the Pilates Elders
4. I have never seen anyone move the way Rael moves. 
5. When Rael teaches he has a way of getting inside of your mind and helping you to understand Pilates like you never have before
6. BASI offers scholarships
7. The BASI Block system is the greatest thing since sliced bread and I can’t imagine life without it!
8. BASI trusts their students and wants them to succeed.
9. BASI knows that we are all individuals and gives their students the tools to think for themselves and trusts them to do so.
10. BASI is truly a family.

I have personally sent many Facebook messages and emails to BASI Faculty members and graduates asking them questions about Pilates, equipment, motherhood and education. I was received with open arms and many of them went above and beyond to help a girl like me whom they had never met! 

I love BASI and know I made the right decision for me and where I plan to go with my education. I wear my BASI gear proudly and just as much as I love the question, “What is Pilates.” I love the question “What is BASI?!” If you are on the search to find the right training program for you may I highly suggest looking into BASI!

What is Pilates?

"What is Pilates?' 

Oh, the question. I hope I'm not the only one that finds it hard to answer this. How do you even begin to answer this question in a decent amount of time?  

I think it is hard to answer because Pilates is very individual. It may mean something to me and something else to another.

I like to think of Pilates as the ABC’s of movement. 

When a child is born they look to their mother or caregiver for everything. Soon they start to coo and imitate words. Later they sputter out full sentences and phrases. By the time they are old enough to attend school they are speaking fluently! 

Why then do we teach them Language as a core subject?

Language is taught and emphasized to help students understand the why’s, the hows and dont’s of communication. Whether a child decides to become a Language Professor, a Scientist, a mother or Astronaut their study of language will help them in all aspects of their lives. 

I believe it is the same with Pilates.

A newborn child comes into this world full of wiggles and kicks. Soon they crawl. Later they walk. The movements we continue to display are simply imitations of what we have seen because we were never specifically taught how to move. 

Why then do we not emphasize and teach the whys, hows and dont's of movement as a core subject? 
Do we not all communicate AND move? 
Whether one chooses to become a pilates master, a golfer, an actor or doctor, Pilates can help.

Pilates has a way of working on an individual from the inside out. The method helps a person become more in tune with their own bodies. This in turn helps us to achieve our goals and receive physical benefits during normal day to day activity. 

Pilates teaches us how to move and how not to move! Pilates is about respecting your body. Pilates is healing and beautiful! No matter who you are, I believe Pilates can mean something to you as well!

Try it!

You May be a Pilates Nerd if………

1. You have spent countless hours practicing Pilates, but even more hours reading, studying and learning everything you can on the subject!
2. You hear the word Cadillac and think Springs and pulleys while others think engines and tires!
3. Someone simply asks “What is Pilates?” and you try with all your might not to regurgitate every ounce of information you have gathered on the topic.
4. You would rather be featured in "Pilates Style" Magazine rather than the Italian "Vogue"!
5. Your bucket list reads, "Meet (insert favorite Pilates guru here)"
6. Your Friday nights consist of Pilates Anytime documentaries.
7. Your DVD collection contains more Pilates DVDs than actual Films!
8. You are fascinated at the bodies capability to move and the Pelvic Curl never gets old
9. Your dream home consists of Wood floors, mirrors and Pilates apparatus
10. You are passionate about sharing the gift Pilates has to offer with everyone around you!

If you answered "Yes" to more than half of these examples, its about time you enroll yourself into a Pilates Teacher Training course! See my post on why I chose to train with BASI Pilates!