Thinking Pilates Podcast

Grown Women Dance Collective creates cross-cultural, intergenerational, and cross-class connections, encouraging dialogue, empowering thought and action, and building cross-racial alliances through concert dance and wellness programs. Mature dancers challenge the stereotypes of aging and create artistic work that is relevant, accessible and inspiring to diverse and financially challenged audiences. We promote mind and body healing through health and fitness programs and create economic opportunities for young people.It is my pleasure and honor to be able to end our sweet podcast after five years with a series of three episodes dedicated to highlighting and elevating some of the visionary warriors in our movement community. In this episode I'm talking to a long time colleague and friend, Tonya Marie Amos, one of the fiercest, most dedicated, and driven people I've ever met.Tonya is a force and her vision to positively impact and change her community from the inside out through Pilates teacher training educatio

If the right way is not my nervous system’s way in this moment then I’m going to override what my nervous system is telling me and I’m going to suffer both physically -- physical injury -- but my psychology also suffers because I’ve now disconnected and thought what my system is telling me is not okay.My work was always with complex trauma survivors and so isn’t that what they bring? They’ve been told that what's happening in here either really isn’t happening, because what you see out here is not going on, or what’s happening in here is not okay, you need to disavow it. -- Deb DanaI'm always amazed at how synchronistic life is. When I'm feeling anxious, pushing, worrying that I haven't done something in the "right" time, I'm rewarded by relaxing and simply being present with what is. That's how this interview manifested. Talking with Deb Dana couldn't be better timed although for a long time I'd wished we'd have gotten to it sooner.After listening to the interview again, I'm confident that it will be ey

Movement is life. If we go to all life forms, there's movement even breathing in the cells of our bodies -- or in multi-celled creatures -- there’s always movement and vibration and the movement of fluid. It’s through movement that we meet the world and the world meets us, and we have a chance to interact and grow. -- Mariko TanabeThis conversation has been a long time in coming with Mariko Tanabe, Body Mind Centering Faculty and Program Director of Esprit en Mouvement in Montreal. James and I recorded this interview many months ago and because of the world being on its ear, we've simply been delayed in giving it to you. You're really going to enjoy this conversation about the "spark of human movement" and the journey to connect to it with Mariko. James and I had the pleasure of working with Mariko last March (2019) at a BMC workshop.Listen. Move. Breathe in. Breathe out. You. Are. Alive.More About Mariko TanabeMariko Tanabe is inspired by the healing powers of human movement and expression. She has been

Why should we care about embryology as movement educators? Why should we care if all of our cells are in a creative mode or not? Is there a history in us from the time of the moment of our making that can inform how we express our bodies today? Join me and Debora Kolwey with Body-Mind Psychotherapy creator, Susan Aposhyan, for this wonderful conversation that kicks off our final season.The way I define embodiment is on a cellular level. Cellularly we can be in a physiologically creative mode or be in more of a routine, somewhat shutdown, minimally functioning mode. It used to be that people were saying a lot of “I was my body, I was out of my body,” and I’d say it’s not that simple, that’s not helpful to reduce embodiment to a binary set of states. But if we think about it on a cellular level…out of our 37 trillion cells how many of those cells are in a creative mode and how many of them are in a habitual mode? That’s how I define embodiment. If you look at every other creature on the planet they’re hove

The first question I wanted to ask Yoga Tune Up creator, Jill Miller, but didn't was how do you perceive your level of success?I didn't because there wasn't a natural opening that wouldn't have left you all feeling like "Why the hell is Chantill derailing this conversation". However...we DID talk about Korean natural gardening, bulimia, hip replacements, learning to walk, and many more strange and offbeat things that are sure to leave you feeling like you just watched a Wes Anderson movie. (Good thing.)How does someone who's made a life in movement and movement education hold kind and compassionate space for her own pain, dis-ease, recovery, and rehabilitation? It's a story I think will resonate with a lot of you.And in between we GEEK out on connective tissue, the vagus nerve (her starstruck moment with the man himself, Stephen Porges), current research, and being with people. It was a wonderful curiosity exclamation point to wrap our third and final (full) season. Read on. Listen. Enjoy. And be kind to your

Anna Hartman is the best of us. She is deeply intelligent and unfailingly kind. She is generous, curious, willing, open, and creative. She cares about people in a way I've seen few others. This interview is a wonderful opportunity to experience the potential of brilliance infused with a willingness to be wrong.Meet my dear friend and colleague, the tinkerer, Anna Hartman.Listen. Delight. Smile. Feel inspired and alive and renewed. Pass it on. {My work as I see it is to} ultimately, get people to appreciate and love the act of critical thinking and exploring. And actually it’s funny to say it but return to the foundation of the scientific method, which is to have a hypothesis and try to prove it wrong, or prove it right. Not feel like a failure when it doesn’t work the way you thought it would, but feel like that’s just more information and go from there.In teaching people that…often times people watch me practice or watch me work with somebody or explain what I do and will say ‘Oh, it’s very intuitive.’ It is

Out. Of. The. Box...And into the sun! Nadine Artemis (it's a name made in heaven), author of Renegade Beauty and Holistic Dental Care, and founder of the natural beauty and wellness elixir company Living Libations, joins James and I for a lively and insightful conversation about the sun, our skin, and our souls. It is sweet, eye-opening, fun, and in places startling -- in the "I'm smiling ear-to-ear because I can't quite believe what I'm hearing but I LOVE IT" kinda way.Listen and have your perspective on being more fully human (nurturing yourself and the environment you live in) cracked open just a little bit. Always pushing at the edges...Listen. Enjoy. Share. Get out in the sun without sunscreen for just 10 minutes! More About Nadine ArtemisFounder of: Living LibationsAuthor of: Holistic Dental CareRenegade BeautyConnect with UsChantill - chantill@skillfulteaching.com + (707) 738-7951James - j.crader@evolvedbodystudio.comEmail us at thinkingpilatespodcast@gmail.com or use the form below.Like

The point about curiosity is to be able to be okay with not knowing. If we cultivate the capacity for this -- and this comes from the listening -- we can actually be experiencing and appreciate our present moment reality, vs. the insistence on strategizing, fixing, etc. Then there is openness and even wonder and delight in our curiosity. -- Debora KolweyCuriosity can mean more than one thing?Curiosity can influence different states of being...free or stuck?What does it mean to listen?WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SPACE WE LEAVE WHEN WE STOP TALKING?Mmmm....this was such a heartfelt, thoughtful, and deeply rich conversation with our podcast mama, Debora Kolwey. I'm so glad we got to have her back on the show and even gladder ;) to be able to share her beautiful insights with all of you.If you like our vibe, don't miss the upcoming opportunity to be with us both in Vancouver (ish) BC this April (April 27th - 29th). Get the details below on this wonderful retreat: Pilates Beyond Boundaries. But for now...Li

There may be words somewhere, at some point, but I'm not quite sure what they are. James and I, along with two of our most beloved colleagues, Claudia Moose and Louise Johns, recently spent 4 days in Berkeley, CA with the soulful Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen. The topic of our time with her: Engaging Self and Other Through Embodiment. Phew. Yes. What? Shaking. My. Head. Head in hands. Tears. Knowing. Not knowing. This is one of our many "download", WTF just happened/is happening, could this be any more strange and amazing, conversations. This...is what happens when you find yourself in the right place at the right time being drawn into yourself, into others, and into the force that is your life NOT separate from everything and everyone else. Listen. Period. Then get your ass in a seat in front of this woman. xo"I don't know. I don't have the answer. Fortunately, I don't need to know." -- March 2019"One of the things I think is essential with sensing, is that we reach a point where we become cons

What happens when we don't strive for perfection but for finding the perfection in what is imperfect? Dr. Suzanne Martin shares with us her journey with scoliosis and how it's manifested in her new book "Spinal Asymmetry and Scoliosis – Movement and Function Solutions for the Spine, Ribcage and Pelvis." It's a clear, expressive, multidimensional, and expansive approach to working with asymmetries in the body especially those caused by scoliosis. The most refreshing thing about her new book is that it's not just another protocol to follow (although there are plenty of guidelines), but a way of seeing asymmetry and making space for creating harmony in the body as it is. Balancing the body and the person within a well-designed and thoughtful framework of: 3 E strategy: ergonomics, exercise and emotion Movement acquisition strategy for teaching: imagine, think and feel3 elements/stages of exercise: somatic, corrective and conditioning  And then there's a little about Keith Richa

We are many voices. Thousands more than can be heard here, but we've opened the door for some of those voices to come through. The Curiosity Mashup is YOU. It's what and who inspires you. Like you find yourself in our voices, we've found ourselves in yours. This is literally short and very, very sweet. And we're grateful to those who contributed. Listen. Smile. See yourself. Share."I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." -- Albert Einstein More About Our ContributorsBrooke Fricke - Re:Form Pilates, Richmond, VAI teach Pilates because I believe it will make the world a better place, one person at a time. If we can feel better in our bodies, move with more ease and resiliency, we can discover a gateway into a much richer experience of life. It is my passion to teach others that we can absolutely, without question, get better with age. That we can thrive, build unbelievable strength and agility into our 50's, 60's, 70's and beyond.I have a profound respect for the work of Joe Pilates

Wild woman. Wisdom body. The tube. Nervous system neutral. The sacred and powerful minute and a half.Meet Augusta Moore. Movement pioneer, Feldenkrais teacher, survivor, ballet dancer/educator, somatics cosmonaut, your guide to meeting yourself. This episode of the podcast is like reading a chapter from a wonderful and strange novel. It's a peek into the life and teaching of someone called to do the work of the body with arms thrown wide, eyes open and bright, and heart aflame. All of this and ZERO hesitation in pushing the edges of somatic exploration in the realm professional ballet. Why not?!Listen. Giggle. Shake your head. Raise an eyebrow. LAUGH OUT LOUD. Embrace and enjoy. Share."I’m really talking about a nervous system neutral.I’m asking the students: 'Let’s see if we can feel the pain for a minute and a half. I'm going to time us. Go to that place. And if you don’t want to feel the pain let’s spend a minute and a half contemplating that one day we might feel the pain.' Because it’s kinda crappy to as

What'd I miss? And what does soap have to do with it? Nothing. But it makes for a fun backdrop for some potentially juicy stuff: labels, identity, growth and learning, becoming discerning and losing our way, finding it again and discovering as if for the first time what it is we do. This is what James and I are up to in this episode. It's a refreshing and honest conversation about asking the WHAT and the WHY of what we do both on paper and in real-life in the studio everyday.We're mashing up the past three episodes and unraveling some of the ideas and mining them for all they're worth.Join us. Jump in. Question. Smile. Laugh. Enjoy! Share :)What's soap got to do with it?"I'm gonna make soap. The first one was like a soap volcano in my kitchen. There was a naivety there, an optimism of I have a little bit of training here, here are all of the components, I'm just going to do this, and the outcome was not as anticipated. So I did more research and I practiced again. And the second batch came out better. So I de

Heather Vaughan-Southard, an intuitive, expansive, creative, thoughtful, and powerful teacher touching people across many realms, professions, cultures and in deep and wonderful ways. If you've ever felt like your work is on the "fringe" or that you want to walk the line and push the edges a bit more but you think it'll never work or you have no idea how to get there this is your episode. Where the spark lies is not necessarily where you think.A little bit about the BIG things we dive into:Approaching social justice through movementWhat is movement design?Blending skills and converging fields + flexibility in moving throughWhere are the interesting questions being asked? Higher education or not?How is movement holding you back and where is it inviting more possibility?What does it mean to define "your work"?How we're being compelled to emerge into a different way of teaching movementReturning permission to people to experience themselvesMovement-based Mindfulness ™ + Creative Self-CareWhat is diversity in mov

Pushing the edges of how we view our human form and human existence in an ever morphing world. Meet Frank Forencich. Founder/creator of Exuberant Animal, health and human adaptation expert, author, and international speaker. Are we really separate from our environment or is nature just an external organ? Why isn't sapience a word we know and endeavor to achieve? How is the "short body" view keeping us held hostage to a diminishing return both physically, intellectually, and emotionally.Interested? Here are some of the questions we dive into:What is ancestral health?What is the "long body" view and what are the implications?What is sapience and why the hell don't we know about it/use it?!Movement v. exercise, physicality v. fitnessThe power of UmbuntuDescartes and non-dualismWhat is the resonance circuit?And so, so much more...Listen. Be wide-eyed, forced to take a deep breath, and inspired. Smile. Share."Exuberant Animal offers a uniquely integrative perspective on the human predicament, a new old way of livi

This is a wonderful and rich conversation that if you call yourself a Pilates teacher you DON'T WANT TO MISS. It's an iconic and critical dialogue with one of the teachers who has not only been trail blazing within the industry for 30 years, but is and has been deeply invested in understanding the Pilates system in all of it's power and uniqueness.If you're not a Pilates teacher but a movement teacher of ANY KIND -- or a Pilates enthusiast -- this is one of those conversations that will give you perspective on both how to go deeper into the method or modality you do teach, how to stay curious and committed to a personal path in movement, and give you lots of wonderful perspectives on movement and teaching in and of themselves.It's long and it's WORTH IT.Listen. Explore. Get quiet. Take deep breaths and GET CURIOUS...And SHARE.James: "When you read my piece, what did you read? Can you talk to me abut how that piece land with you?"Amy: "I just got very inspired and then I read the article and I thought here's h

I feel very grateful for the podcast. I'm very appreciative because I teach in Indianapolis and don’t always feel camaraderie. Sometimes I feel I'm kind of isolated with my ideas or my thoughts or even with an every day things like, "Hmmmm, how could I teach that better?" Just simple things too. So then when I listen to the podcast I feel like I’m suddenly united with my people. And I have a community of people that I didn’t even know were thinking about things far beyond what I had imagined. It makes my world so much bigger. It makes my world so much better. I feel connected. And I’m so grateful! -- MJ Gregory, Owner Pilates 317, Indianapolis, INAll of these episodes, for me, leave me with a sense of hope and that’s a beautiful thing to be left with. Whether that’s because I’ve heard somebody’s story of incredible resilience and triumph. Whether we’re talking about body intuition and agency or empathy and connection and community. I feel like each of these episodes, in some way shape or form,

I find this very empowering. (Something Jessica said) It's very simple, complex in practice, but so simple to tell somebody…to empower other people; to tell them “You have to learn the rules and then open your box. Allow that lid to open and experiment and try things on and become the teacher you are, not the teacher I am or the teacher someone else is. I think that is such a beautiful way to approach learning.Yael Japha Trainer, PMA®-CPT, Owner of Terrafly Pilates, Denver, COAbout the ShowDeep inhale. Slow exhale...These next two episodes are like the season's big, deep sigh.They're an opportunity to see and feel what seeds were planted in the last seven months. It has, at times, felt a bit self-indulgent to take soooooo much time to rehash what happened in the podcast this season, yet as we allowed the conversations to flow -- and in the re-listening during production -- it became obvious that standing in all that was shared was and is important.Standing still, looking out to survey what has shaped, inspire

Getting to the end and looking back and going: We have absolutely created a season of podcast shows that reflects our vision. Maybe that doesn't feel like a big deal, but to me it just feels like we are totally doing it. We are absolutely100% totally doing the thing we said we were going to do. -- CLWhen you're within the episode, in the conversation, then sort of on to the next it seems like little islands. To look back on it and be like that told a cohesive story, there was a thing that happened there and that season fits into the greater story and the story yet untold but it also lives on it's own. If you just kind of follow that season, all the way from Brooke to Chandler, there's a story that makes sense. -- JC What We're All About in This EpisodeIt's a wrap!Well, almost...This is a reflective and sweet episode looking back on what we put out into the world this past season. Here's a look at the shinanegans:Making lemonadeNot only tackling the shift but BEING the shiftMaking shit happen: New we

Chandler is: A true champion of being human, in a human body, in a natural world.Q: What does coming home to your body look like?What I’ve been clicking with more and more lately is something like -- I just call it a practice of sensory stories. It’s like "Hey, think about your favorite smell. Now tell me a story about your favorite smell."Oh, my gosh, I think back to... I was in this bog in Vermont for a field project and we were walking around on this carpet of moss and all around we could smell these pines and these firs. Wow! Relating this story I get in to my body in some fundamental way. That seems to be nice kind of bridge to take to say: "I notice that I feel better when I talk about my favorite sensory experience."Huh? I wonder why that might be. Maybe because your sensory experience is actually how you make sense of the world. It’s a fundamentally physical thing. There are visceral sensations when we get into this juicy sensory stuff. Ummm...I think “come home to your body” is even an interesting ph