[AASI]

In the AIM Academy Forum, I am attempting to bring to light issues we face as teachers that seem to dovetail into major community concerns. A major concern is the defining of pilates and how our decision on that, either by entering into conversation or deferring to others (whether consciously or unconsciously), will ultimately affect our future as teachers of the method.

Michael Miller posted on Pilates Pro yesterday (7/25/09) in answer to Alycea Ungaro's question re: Fitness vs. Bodywork.* Specifically, I am asking for feedback to the following in relation to the concern above:

Mr. Miller writes on Pilates Pro** 7/25/09:

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Last year probably the best thing that came out of my mouth is that the core is a condition not a location. This year, I’m finding resonance with the suggestion that Pilates is a two way street: the majority of the Pilates community takes everything they know towards a client’s issues. (because that’s the only perspective they have) If Pilates were only a tradition, this is where we would all be headed, towards being a PT and taking what we know to help a client with their issues.

Fortunately, there is another direction of traffic: that of taking any client with any issue towards the performance of the mat. That, in my book, is being a Pilates teacher. (taking a person into the state of being in the moment of the doing that Joe referred to as the complete coordination of body, mind and spirit, which I call fluorescence.) Once you’re aware of the two directions, you’re free to teach creatively and appropriately to the body that is in front of you, knowing your target, and how to hit it.

Have at it! and have a good day!
: ) Carole

*Alycea had also just written a piece on Daisy Fuentes and the Wii, which I think might have prompted Mr. Miller to address Alycea: click here to view.
**To view the full Fitness vs. Bodywork discussion on Pilates Pro begun by Alycea Ungaro: click here.
Also, there's a discussion of Mr. Miller's assertion that "Pilates is an idea" here on the PCDB: click here to view.
All of these are interesting to note.

PS Michael Miler writes:
"My historical impression of Pilates Forums is lackluster. In a scaled down version of what Facebook has become, a small group of people have too much to say about too little."

Really? That hasn't been my experience. Anyway....

UPDATE 7/30/09:
Here are links to entries on Michael Miller's blog that reference comments from this Post.
Click on the title to view the entries and comments:
The Defining of Pilates 7/27/09
The Common Ground is the Idea 7/29/09

UPDATE 8/2/09:
I posted a reply on the AASI Contributions Blog entitled Surviving in the Pilates Jungle

Please take the time to read all of the responses here on the PCDB...wonderful food for thought. I'd love to hear from everyone.

UPDATE 8-10-09:
DancingPilatesMama began an amazing discussion, The Whole "flat Back, "neutral' Thing..., on 8-02-09. Just fabulous. We're getting to the common ground issue, imo.

For me, so many issues and conversations have dovetailed. Please see my entry today on the AASI Contributions Blog, PPro, AASI Blogs, PCDB, AIM Academy Forum Dovetail!

This post has been edited by AASI: 09 October 2009 - 05:22 AM

[AASI]

What's really on my mind:
Of course, I have my own view of the statements made. In posting this topic, however, what is really on my mind is the fact that I am not the only one with that view. I'd like to hear it from you all and be validated on that, as I have many times before.
Please say it a hundred different ways, so that many different ears can hear it.

[LAville]

Big inhale here.....Ummmm...... .... I know Michael............ bigger exhale here........ahhhhhhhhh.

I have taken privates with him and attended several workshops. He was, back then, a real person and taught me some really great stuff that I use to this day....

He is unique and approaches the work of Jos Pilates as the living breathing embodyment of the man,. as though the words of Joe have been handed to him on stone tablets.

Michael teaches that the IDEA of contrology put forth by Jos Pilates is complete coordination of mind, body and spirit. He teaches this IDEA, (not to be confused with ideas) as part of the Michael Miller Brand of which flouresence is the key to understanding the sequence of the progression of the MAT. (uniform usage creates uniform balance.)

The truth is that his privates sessions were really awsome. However in the last several years he has come to defiine himself as the last and only word in teaching the method and even it seems tries to channel Joe while he is speaking. Is this a Patriachal view taken to it's zenith? I wonder...

It's too bad as he does have really good things to say, but To be be fair I have not seen him in person in quite a while. Its his youtube video's that are just sooo annoying.

BTW I did tell him the same thing I am saying here, that the whole marketing and branding of himself is what I have a gripe with, and this is addressing the Daisy Fuentes, Wii Pilates post made by Alycea on P-pro.

This post has been edited by LAville: 26 July 2009 - 12:16 PM

[PilatesTCI]

I too have known Michael for close to a decade and also know Alycea. I have had some wonderful sessions with him, but have veered away from his teaching in the past few years as he has fallen deeper into his own Joe cult, badmouthing those who disagree with him. It's his way or it's not Pilates.

I come from a classical background and also do teacher training for PhysicalMind. I love classical classes from Alycea and the more therapeutic (but still hard) work I get from Erika Bloom & Lesley Powell.

When I teach mat to our guests (different group every day, different size classes, different injuries, and I cannot kick people out of class unless they are pregnant as they are all paying a lot of $$ to be at Parrot Cay) I am amazed at how many people have never even seen the actual swan dive and think the full exercise is like a yoga cobra, or how many have never attempted the push ups, or true swimming.

Most people have no idea that Pilates came from Joseph Pilates, that the focus is more strength than simple flexibility, and that we work the back body as much as the front.

Pilates to me is fitness, but also has the beauty of therapeutic application when necessary.

[Pilates Core]

Hmmm. I say split the difference.

1. Not every client will ever be capable of doing the full mat. Some issues actually DO mean you can't or shouldn't do certain movements.

2. I value the apparatus more than Michael Miller does - why is the complete mat a mightier feat than Balance Control on the Reformer? Or Airplane on the Cadillac? Tendon Stretch on the Chair? Teaser on the Barrel?

3. Getting an injured part of the body back to health can often be an important step on the road to the Advanced Mat.

4. What are your client's goals? Do THEY want to work towards the advanced mat? Or do they want to regain health and get back into functionality? Or condition themselves for a specific activity?

I dunno. I don't tend to agree with Michael Miller.

[reinbeau]

Pilates Core, on Jul 26 2009, 06:21 PM, said:

Hmmm. I say split the difference.

1. Not every client will ever be capable of doing the full mat. Some issues actually DO mean you can't or shouldn't do certain movements.

But I do believe far more will be able to than won't. I'd rather they keep trying than keep them from every succeeding. I know success is your goal, too.

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2. I value the apparatus more than Michael Miller does - why is the complete mat a mightier feat than Balance Control on the Reformer? Or Airplane on the Cadillac? Tendon Stretch on the Chair? Teaser on the Barrel?

Mat is open chain, and much harder, than the apparatus. Sure, there are challenging moves on the apparatus, you mention Balance Control on the reformer - properly done Balance Control on the mat is much more challenging, in my experience.

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3. Getting an injured part of the body back to health can often be an important step on the road to the Advanced Mat.

4. What are your client's goals? Do THEY want to work towards the advanced mat? Or do they want to regain health and get back into functionality? Or condition themselves for a specific activity?

My clients' goals are all the same, to an extent, to explore their limits and learn to excel in Pilates. I really don't like to think of them having limitations, but having new stages to attain and goals to reach. They are on the road to Advanced Mat, why not? They may or may not reach it, but they'll enjoy trying.

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I dunno. I don't tend to agree with Michael Miller.

I see his points, but I don't agree with his delivery.

[Pilates Core]

reinbeau, on Jul 26 2009, 10:00 PM, said:

But I do believe far more will be able to than won't. I'd rather they keep trying than keep them from every succeeding. I know success is your goal, too.

Well yeah - but someone with disc herniations just can't do rotation and flexion simultaneously. It's dangerous. I don't mean lack of physical fitness, anyone can get fit eventually. I mean people who's concerns genuinely prevent them from performing the exercises no matter how strong they get.

[DancingPilatesMama]

Personally, I think his description is too wordy and confusing. I teach the client in front of me, keeping in mind that person's issues. At the same time, I advance the client safely and logically when the time is appropriate. Some people will never do the advanced mat and that is fine. I think it is important to teach mat consistently with the hopes that the client will eventually do self workouts in between lessons; to make it a lifestyle. That's how I got stronger. The apparatus helps to strengthen the mat work (I assume that all instructors know this already). It really all fits together beautifully, the full method, in my opinion.

As for how Pilates will be defined? It's already so diluted. People need to know that Pilates was a person, not just an idea. My hope is that the consumers will start doing more research and read up on the history.

This post has been edited by DancingPilatesMama: 26 July 2009 - 10:47 PM

[LAville]

I read the entire post by Michael on P-Pro and I agree with much of what he is saying. We can't help the fact that Pilates is out there, and in fact if it were not, we wll probably would not be working with as many client as we have. I rememebr when most people had never heard of Pilates or called it Pilots.

What is the destiny of Pilates? Did Joe imagine that his work would be so widespread. I was at a workshop presented by Jay Grimes in Dallas, last week, and he said that Joe died depressed that he did not get the recognization he felt he deserved. Is he getting it Now? Is what we are learning and teaching what he envisioned as his work? Acording to Jay, much of what is being taught now, is not Pilates and many of the exercises we as teachers think are Pilates, Joe would never have taught and never did? Where did they come from?
Michael teaches some of them, so I guess Joe is not whispering in his ear.

[AASI]

reinbeau writes:

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I see his points, but I don't agree with his delivery.

Thanks to Ann for making the “delivery" distinction.
The message can easily lose credibility when the delivery is questionable.

LAville writes:

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Is this a Patriachal view taken to it's zenith? I wonder...

IMHO, it’s very important to note this. I don’t know Michael (I have only spoken to him once long ago over the phone), but I am certain that one idea of pilates is that it’s not necessary to be following a guru. Are men more prone to falling into that trap than women?
Thanks to Lee for letting that cat out of the bag. I think a discussion of the patriarchal view will lead us to knowing that we all owe a lot to Clara.

PS Lee, I've seen the youtube videos, and your "Big inhale here.....Ummmm...... .... I know Michael............ bigger exhale here........ahhhhhhhhh" I have to say, really gave me a good chuckle (sorry, MM).

This post has been edited by AASI: 27 July 2009 - 05:20 AM

[Edgar]

On patriarchy: it appears that MM's irony sensors are off.
"you got to speak out against the madness, but dont try to get yourself elected.." Crosby Stills Nash and Young

[AASI]

I think some clarity is needed for Michael Miller's statements.

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This year, I’m finding resonance with the suggestion that Pilates is a two way street:

I agree; I teach pilates in a reciprocal learning environment. Years ago, I started reading about it in educational writings and I resonated with it, so that's what I call it.

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the majority of the Pilates community takes everything they know towards a client’s issues.

I can't really say I know what he means by this, especially as it follows the last sentence. I wouldn't disagree with this taken on its own. It's not that classical teachers are ignoring their clients' issues. It's that we have a different orientation towards them.

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(because that’s the only perspective they have) If Pilates were only a tradition, this is where we would all be headed, towards being a PT and taking what we know to help a client with their issues.

Perhaps he means that the majority of teacher trainings have been influenced by the medical, PT, and biomechanical models? Maybe this is the dominant tradition in his eyes?
Personally, I made a conscious decision to forgo the PT route.
Many other mind-body traditions have been around waaay longer than the medical model.

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Fortunately, there is another direction of traffic:

Well, yeah, Joe followed the Greeks, for one....

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that of taking any client with any issue towards the performance of the mat. That, in my book, is being a Pilates teacher....

Ok, and how is that different from what DancingPilatesMama says?:

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The apparatus helps to strengthen the mat work (I assume that all instructors know this already). It really all fits together beautifully, the full method, in my opinion.

Dare I say that the classical style is finally coming into its own? That the paradigm has felt the shift? That some teacher trainings are definitely true to the classical form and dynamic? That no matter what training you took, you will eventually find your way to your most dynamic self?

Miller goes on:

Quote

Once you’re aware of the two directions, you’re free to teach creatively and appropriately to the body that is in front of you, knowing your target, and how to hit it.

So, here, I'd say that what Lynda, Emma, and Ann are discussing that our teaching needs to be appropriate. And Emma brings up the very important concept of what is easy for one may be difficult for another (this is HUGE Emma, and I'll start another topic on it at some point).

Getting back to Michael's statement, I hear his generosity in being inclusive of all ways. However, I believe we need to take a stand and decide to say what it was for Joe...and call that pilates...to have a common ground.
Can we say that to JHPilates, it was the Mat?

Otherwise, will the PT model override us?

[pilates07]

Wow, lots to read and digest, going back to the 2006 thread. I want to preface this post by saying that my thoughts are a work in progress (my own personal dogcatelephant passes in a blur, remember .

So what do I think Pilates is? Body: the exercises. matwork as the ideal, apparatus to help us get there; Mind: the mental sharpness to organize our body (organize your body, organize your life!); Spirit: the coordination of the previous two simply puts makes us emotionally uplifted.

The combination of the above, working toward developing an ideal human being, strong and healthy in all it's aspects. That in itself can lead us to being better and more productive members of society (a goal of Joe if I'm not mistaken, from Your Health).

The principles in the Friedman and Eisen book (CCCBPF) and Classical courses (at least the one I took) can be applied in literal and figurative ways to all of it!

Biomechanics. Anatomy.

Meeting the needs of the physical, mental and emotional human being in front of us.

The art of communicating and understanding to bring us full circle to "Body: the exercises..........." as posted above.

Pilates is a DISCIPLINE (a "method") which BALANCES of all of these, is it not?

THE WHOLE IS GREATER THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS.

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will the PT model override us?

Only if it is allowed to be broken down to it's PARTS. Take away ONE aspect, or emphasize ONE aspect to the degradation of the others and it is no longer the DISCIPLINE (The Method) of Pilates. ("The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning")

Perhaps I'm over simplifying it, but it really does seem that simple to me. *shrug*

This post has been edited by pilates07: 27 July 2009 - 07:53 AM

[AASI]

Edgar writes:

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On patriarchy: it appears that MM's irony sensors are off.
"you got to speak out against the madness, but dont try to get yourself elected.." Crosby Stills Nash and Young

Edgar--looking forward to hearing more gems from you at Big Bear.
I posted on AASI Contributions today about this post. Please click here for a Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young youtube treat!

This post has been edited by AASI: 27 July 2009 - 06:26 PM

[CRobbins]

It's interesting to me the parallels between my old sport, dressage, and pilates. In dressage there is also a "classical" school and a "contemporary" school. The two are always at odds. Within that community there are the gurus of either method. Within that division are more subdivisions. There always seems to be the trainer of the moment. There always seems to be the "out-there in la-la land but still has a following" person of the moment. Often this person is male and has a large female following (just sayin').
So pilates has its classical adherents, and there are people who use the pilates exercises (or sometimes "pre-pilates" exercises) to improve the functionality of a client before they do the actual exercises. Some people just do the exercises. Then there are the contemporary people and their subdivisions. Then there are the la-la people.
I do not know this MM person at all, never heard of him before this conversation. I went to Ytube and watched ONE video (the longest one I could find). Like Reinbeau:
I see his points, but I don't agree with his delivery.
There is nothing completely wrong with what he is saying in that video. He just comes across like he's been born again. He gesticulates every word, like he's playing charades. It was odd. I found myself disliking his appearance (maybe this is a personal thing but ponytails on guys older than 10 just bug me). I looked in vain for a video that showed him actually working out and could not find one. Is there one? I would not last ten minutes in a workshop with a guy like this. Sorry.

[LAville]

I have seen MM work out and and he did the mat and reformer very well. I worked with him when I was in training and he did help me find a deeper connection in my own body and deeper understanding of Pilates, and what he says makes sense. ( that is his slogan Michael Miller Pilates makes sense) His website is Hermit.com.

I hasten to add that I have not worked with him in more than a decade and in that time, the pony tail has become thinner but his persona has indeed morphed as he sold himself and his brand.

It's a shame really as now he seems a parody of a Guru, like somthing you might see on a Saturday Night live skit.

This post has been edited by LAville: 27 July 2009 - 11:19 AM

[Geniusall]

I don't know the man, so I can only take from his words, which sometimes are not a good expression of the thought. I honestly do not know what he is talking about. I have always had a two way street with my clients. "The core is a thought not a place?" I guess I am just shallow in my teaching. Like Jay Grimes said, "trust the work". To me, it's not about me or Joe's work, it's about the client. If they can't feel their body, how are they going to grow in their movements? I was taught you may have clients who will always be at a beginning level (lord you should have heard Jay Grimes pontificate on the "levels" !!!), but you can still keep them challenged and diving deeper into the work. I am really tired of the exclusiveness of the Pilates community. That is why I love this forum, a place where we can all talk and not bash one another. I want to see a future where we explore the common ground in our teaching.

[LAville]

I was speaking to a PT today who's wife is a Pilates teacher and a client of mine. His feeling is that Joe was a genius and the PT community is learning to embrace the work that Joe developed more than 100 years ago and are now beginning to understand what he was saying. He feels Pilates laid the groundwork for what is being taught in the PT field today, and the Medical model is still way behind the expansive language developed by Joe. So we need to stay the course and teach our clients what We know, and not worry so much about specific issues, There are specific adaptation for them in the work of Joe.

[AASI]

pilates07: Simply is sometimes the best way! Great summary, imho.

CRobbins: Love the parallels...permission to use the "la-la" characterization? It's priceless.

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There always seems to be the "out-there in la-la land but still has a following" person of the moment. Often this person is male and has a large female following (just sayin').

Did you happen to see the rest of the lyrics Edgar quoted:
"If you do you had better cut your hair." : )

Lee...yeah, I just don't get the whole branding/licensing thing at all....

Deborah (Genuisall): Seems I gave too much credit to what Miller might have meant about pilates being a two-way street (I'm often prone to that, always giving benefit of the doubt, and I'll probably continue to be). After I watched his youtube video on the solstice, I understand that his idea of a two-way street is not the same as a reciprocal learning environment. (Actually, I can't really say I understand what he means at all; how does it help saying that you either go in the direction of the client or in the direction of the Advanced Mat---what??? )

Many teachers that I speak with these days are all about the client, as you say, Deborah, and not in the way that Miller says. Which goes to show you how tricky words can be....

Isn't the whole point of pilates to demystify life in the body, not make it more philosophically confusing? Can't we come to agreement on a common felt-sense and let minds be minds?

Lee: It seems we might be finally talking to the right people.

Thanks to all of you for sharing your views.

[pilates07]

Hi Carole, what I heard in "two way street" was "two paths we can choose". One would be the PT path of fixing a client's issues. The other path is the way of Pilates as a holistic exercise system, and take any client with any issue in the direction of the ideal version of the mat, understanding that the advanced mat is a goal we reach as a result of practicing Pilates. That goal may or may never be fully realized by all, but on the journey we will all get as close as we can!