Anna Pilates

It was a very hot day to run 50km with 1675m elevation! Fantastic event with fantastic people. Thank you so much The Blackall 100 and Run Queensland

In with the new and out with the old! Shoulder rests replaced thanks to my little handyman! 😊

A very special to thank you all who donated. Between us we collected a very large amount of essentials much appreciated by Centacare 😊🙏😊

Chronic pain is complex and affects people in varying degrees. What we do know now though is that:

(1) pain is not a signal originating from bodily tissues;
(2) pain is not an accurate measure of tissue damage;
(3) the plasticity of the nervous system means the nervous system itself is a viable target of treatment. 

Exercise is an important and effective treatment strategy for managing chronic pain by reducing pain sensitivity. This effect is not solely due to musculoskeletal factors but other factors such as self-efficacy and central nervous system adaptation.

Understanding some of the complexity of chronic pain and the potential benefits of an appropriate exercise program appears an important key to moving beyond the pain.

Healthy feet are vital for mobility. They are one of the most complex areas of the body being made up of 26 bones, 33 joints and many muscles, ligaments and tendons. The muscles of the feet help adapt the foot to changes in position and terrain. Some of these muscles are internal to the foot and some are external, crossing over the ankle joint. The foot relates to and interacts with the rest of the body during movement. Keeping your feet healthy and happy is definitely a worthwhile investment 👣

A few weeks ago I suggested running some circuit based classes to create a higher tempo class and/or classes that are focussed on building strong bones. I have had a number of people interested so I will be adding these to the timetable on demand. Please let me know if you are interested and we can get started 😊

‘The pelvic floor is a RESPONSIVE system.

If the abdominals are loaded the pelvic floor will respond ✅

If the legs are loaded the pelvic floor will respond ✅

If the spine is loaded the pelvic floor will respond ✅

Pelvic floor training can easily be dynamic and holistic.’ TOM WALDRON

I’m super excited to be starting a six week Pelvic Floor course next week with .move

Loving every minute

Kinesiophobia is ‘‘a condition in which a patient has an excessive, irrational and debilitating fear of physical movement and activity resulting from a feeling of vulnerability to painful injury or re-injury’’. Or more simply a fear of movement, due to the fear of re-injury. I definitely think there are varying degrees to this condition. Post injury it is almost normal to have a bit of apprehension about reinjurying an area, especially if the injury has caused a significant negative impact to their quality of life. However, if this fear takes over and starts to impact our daily behaviours it can be problematic. In fact, pain-related fear is proven to be a predictor of ongoing disability in those with persistent pain, and is more predictive than the pain intensity or structural findings.

Physical exercise has been found to be one of the most effective measures to deal with kinesiophobia, especially when done in an environment that feels safe and trusting.

I see this ‘fear of reinjury’ in the studio in varying degrees often, and have personally experienced it, making me especially aware of the importance of understanding your pain, and creating a nurturing, safe space where you can express your fears openly while also working through them at a pace that feels manageable.

Realising that you can move freely without fear is one of the most liberating feelings you can have 🕺

Thank you to everyone who came along to either of the two Osteoporosis seminars this week. It was a fantastic turn out and I hope you all took home lots of new tips on how to make your exercise sessions even more bone boosting!

Beautiful morning run with the fantastic Photo credit thank you

And just like that we are into 2024!

I hope you have all had a fantastic break. I am very much looking forward to seeing and moving with you all next week.

Ax

Happy New Year!
Wishing you all a fabulous 2024

🌟💜🌟💜🌟💜🌟💜🌟

A beautiful rail trail cycle to start ‘The Big Walk’ from the bottom to top of Mt Buffalo. Stunning and steep climb up. Not sure if the tight rope walkers (funambulists) at the top are amazingly courageous or totally insane!! Either way their concentration, balance and focus is utterly remarkable.

Exploring Mt Buffalo

Indigo Epic mountain bike trail out of Beechworth. A definite test of the nerves for me but we all got back with smiles 🚵🏽‍♂️

Challenging what the mind thinks is possible!

Blackall 21km (actually it was 22km!) with 825m elevation done and dusted!

Youngest client on the reformer this morning! As I always say ‘Pilates is for EVERYONE’!!!

When you have a visitor from Panama and she wants to play on the Caddie 🤗

Moving freely is a huge virtue.

Movement is medicine

Tom

Rock climber? Wind cleaner? Pilates student?

More seriously though the versatility of all the Pilates apparatus is fantastic. On each apparatus you can work standing, sitting, lying, side lying, kneeling, split kneeling, forward facing, rear facing. And on each piece of apparatus there is a way to work every single bit of your body in many different ways. This makes the apparatus suitable for EVERYBODY including those with injuries or a physiological condition 😊

The intrinsic muscles of the feet are the muscles that are located solely within the foot. There are twenty of these intrinsic foot muscles and although small they serve many important functions including:

BALANCE: Intrinsic foot muscle activation and strength has been shown to correlate with balance performance in older adults, and strengthening of these muscles has been shown to improve balance in older adults.

MODIFY LOAD ON OTHER STRUCTURES WITHIN THE FOOT:
The intrinsic foot muscles can modify the energy absorbed and generated within the foot. Poor intrinsic foot muscle activity may therefore affect the load on other structures such as the plantar fascia, plantar fat pads and bones of the foot. Further, contraction of the intrinsic muscles that create tension along the long axis of the foot may help reduce load through the plantar facia. Strengthening these muscles may be useful in the treatment of people experiencing plantar heel pain.

The more I learn about the feet the more I appreciate my own feet and give them the time they deserve in the studio even if I do have curly middle toes!!