Thursday, 18 February 2016

NYFW STREET STYLE - SNOW, FUR AND LESSONS IN LAYERING

While you'll have had your fill of catwalk trend overload from this year's NYFW (swoon @ Michael Kors, DKNY, O'2nd) let me serve you up with my favourite off the runway action. 

New York Street Style is pretty amazing on any given day but enter the bloggers, models, editors and influencers for fashion week and the streets may as well be converted into live runways. Animal hoodies are replaced with fluff and  bold fur, bottoms are either wide and tailored or skin tight and tapered,colour is only to accent the dominant neutral and Paola Aberdi can seriously do no wrong. 

The near blizzard conditions and freezing temperature ain't no match for these hot sirens in the concrete jungle.























 



Images: NYTimes, theimpression, blankitnerary, jeffthibodeauco

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Monday, 15 February 2016

RETURN TO CONTROLOGY

  
My Pilates addiction began a long time ago, when I hesitantly migrated to a mat class that had replaced my lunchtime Vinyasa. Two things were particularly clear after that class, firstly that my dome of so called core muscles needed a drastic makeover, and secondly that the pelvic floor arena was certainly not a mythical creature that was loosely mentioned at the beginning of every ashtanga class.


Over the years my body has been made stronger, leaner and taller thanks to the conditioning and challenging nature of this exercise. From practicing to a YouTube video on my living room floor to scooter lunges in the gym group reformer classes to  confronting the Cadillac in private studio lessons, Pilates has become an essential part of my exercise routine. I never stop learning and leave every practice feeling elongated and centred.

While I’m certainly a creature of habit in all other respects, exercise is something I am incredibly fickle with and I’ve gone through various phases of running, yoga, dance, Kayla routines and even a very short lived boxing phase (as much as I wanted to look like Lima and Gigi in training for the VS show it’s never going to happen, props to the bad asses who can jab hook and weave relentlessly and not feel like their body has been hit by a semi trailer the next day).

For me, Pilates is the only exercise that manages to be relaxing and challenging at the same time and most important of all delivers RESULTS. And on that note, allow me to share the key 6 insights in the hope to dispel any common myths and misconceptions and get you booking into a reformer session stat (if you’re not already!).


                              1.    IT’S ALL ABOUT THE POWERHOUSE 

    The movements in Pilates are based on the philosophy that the core (glutes/pelvis/abs and thoracic region) is the origin of all movement, strength and balance, so the idea of focussing on core strengthening exercise is to make you strong from the inside out and improve your performance as an athlete or training in other sports.

For me it’s meant that I’ve gone from a shaking mess to rock solid form in planks, push ups (almost), hundreds and other intense weight bearing exercises. I’ve had friends who’ve done body pump and weights at the gym for years who’ll crumble and quiver through a Pilates session because they’ve never properly activated and used their core. A strong powerhouse (as Joseph Pilates called it) also helps prevent injury and muscle strain when you are doing more intense training (again obvs not me but explains why Olympians and heavy weight athletes use and practice Pilates).



                                        2.    PILATES IS FOR EVERYONE

    Yes people, Pilates isn’t just for dancers or for yoga enthusiasts and certainly not exclusive to women, Pilates is for every body form and all genders.  It was after all created by a man, the legendary Joseph Pilates who was a professional boxer and self-defence trainer. I took my hubby along to a reformer workout this week and although bemused by terms like “magic circle” and cues like “imagine you’re wearing a stiletto heel” he found the class as tough as nails and worked muscles he didn’t even know he had (hello inner thighs!). Pilates can be done (and is even recommended) pre and post natal and for people ridden with all sorts of injuries. If your instructor is comprehensively trained (and the best ones will have done a 400-600 hour qualification and will have a phenomenal understanding of anatomy) they should be able to adjust and program a routine for just about anyone and still ensure that person gets a workout.



                                             3. CLASSICAL v CONTEMPORARY 

     Have you noticed the constant emphasis on “neutral spine” in Pilates classes? It was news to me that there are 2 major schools of Pilates, the classical (although they’ll tell you they don’t like being called classical or traditional and there is simply Pilates and everything else!) and the contemporary methods. Classical Pilates teachers will only teach the original exercises in the exact technique and order that Joseph Pilates prescribed (and that’s where we get Controlology from ;)) in classical there is an emphasis on a flat or imprinted spine and glute engagement, it’s a much stronger workout too.

 joseph-pilates-11.jpg

Then you have the contemporary which while based on the original exercises is modified to be in line with exercise science that’s developed since Uncle Jo came up with the method. It's more dynamic, promotes use of the neutral spine and will introduce non-Pilates movements. The vast majority of Sydney, (and Australia generally) teaches contemporary and you won’t find many classically trained teachers here but see section 6 for some awesome classical studios to try here. Back in New York where Pilates was born and developed, the majority are purists and often even quite protective about the original method. For me I’ve had phenomenal workouts in both but I do love the more dynamic and creative side of how Pilates can be done so slightly favour contemporary more at this point.

                                            4.    THE BARRE EXPLOSION 

    I don’t think my legs have ever worked as hard as they have than in some of the barre classes I’ve tried. And over the past couple of years there’s been an explosion of the ballet inspired workout in Sydney and abroad. Did you know that barre is essentially a fusion of standing Pilates, yoga and ballet technique? Maybe as a dancer I love doing any exercise that doesn’t require shoes and demands technique but the more I do barre the more I love it. The only thing that unsettles me from time to time is that unlike Pilates and yoga, there are never enough adjustments or detailed cuing for form and before you know it I’ve thrown my back out from hyper-extending in leg swings! If you guys know of a barre studio you love then defs drop me a line.


      









                              

        

 

   5. SCULPTING & LENGTHENING


   Probably my favourite thing about Pilates, the changes in the body that you see happen almost immediately. All that “navel to spin” and “draw the tummy in” cueing is definitely not just instructor racket, your stomach literally gets flatter after every session, my butt and thighs are like 110% more toned when doing Pilates regularly and after so long I’ve actually got proper bicep and tricep strength from all of the reformer exercises with hands in straps. There’s also so much more work on obliques with side line series and inner thighs so you are actively sculpting your body.

This is in contrast to my experience of high intensity interval training where I swear all of the plyometric lunges and sprinting were bulking up my thighs. I should clarify that Pilates is not for weight loss per se and isn't designed to burn fat so you'd want to supplement your routine with cardio. 

Pilates is designed to lengthen and stretch the muscles, so there’s a snowball’s chance in hell that you’ll get thicker and a guarantee that the elongating of the muscle fibres from regularly doing Pilates will make you feel and look taller – now to just cut down on all of the crap I eat to actually let some of these mythical muscles show!


        6.    WHERE TO WORKOUT 

      I’ve definitely been to my fair share of classes and various studios and gyms. For me it's always been more about the instructor than the studio but as a general principle it will always  be hit and miss at the larger gyms and more focused and higher quality training at studios.

  Here’s a list of my favourites:

     FOR A DYNAMIC WORKOUT

     KX Pilates – think Pilates on steroids with high energy music and super motivated instructors - it’s all the rage right now and literally the hardest I have EVER had to work in Pilates, the KX classes are super dynamic so you’ll be doing anything from flying splits to jumpboard Pilates to reformer squats with Dumbbells, I couldn’t recommend it more as an effective all rounder for muscle building and toning which also gets the heart rate up pronto. But I definitely recommend it with the proviso that it is for fit people and not the type of Pilates you seek out if you’re recovering from an injury or looking for more focused stretching and conditioning type work.

FOR HIGH QUALITY AND PURITY 

     Cynthia Lochard’s Pilates Method – A humble yet thriving studio in Surry hills, this is the only classical studio with a direct link to New York’s infamous Romanas Pilates studio (Romana Kryzanowska was one of the Pilates “Elders” and was trained by Joseph Pilates himself) where NY born Cynthia Lochard is one of only 3 handpicked Master trainers worldwide in the original method. I did some privates and duets here and the quality of the teaching is insanely high, it was (as my yogi friend who is also a Pilates teacher that went with me) meditation for the body. For any Pilates enthusiast thinking of snubbing the purists, book yourself in for a lesson here and you will totally get what all of the fuss is about. Authentic Pilates studio in Lilyfield and True Pilates Sydney in Surry Hills (both owners trained by Cynthia) are also great options.

    

     GYMS AND HEALTH CLUBS 

    These are definitely more budget friendly. I went to reformer classes at Virgin Pitt St for years and was totally attached to one of the instructors who was a studio teacher that came there part-time. Elixr also has excellent classes and run group reformer pretty much every hour at the Bligh St club (I've found so many teachers in smaller studios are elixr trained and are solid)

      SUBURBAN STUDIOS 

    The Fit4Life studio in Rozelle is literally at my doorstep and they run some strong   workouts on the STOTT machines (and host STOTT training and workshops). BodyEthos  in Balmain is also great and offers barre and yoga too. I've also heard great things about Fluidform in Waterloo (Elle Ferguson's habitat), Flowathletic in Paddington and Powernouse in Balgowlah.

      Have I missed any? I'm always looking for a delicious pilates workout so do share :)

    CM x


*Images are borrowed*




















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