The Burrow

GRIN 's legwork and Body Works Pilates 's teachers and Balanced Body 's equipment have given the girls' Sports Fitness Class at Amphi Middle School  professional Fletcher Pilates  instruction, within the curriculum. That may not seem like much, but I am here to tell you that it is a monumental achievement.  Without the support of the school's administrative staff, without their determination that the program would succeed, without their fearlessness in the face of insurmountable (to me, anyway) obstacles, they tweaked and poked and prodded and together we came up with a solution that worked for everyone. It's been going on since April 13, 2012 .  That's 9 semesters of work, 9 semesters of girls who've gained strength and control, noticed by their Coach and classroom teacher, verified by those who've gone before them.  We've done research and measurements on physical and psychological dimensions over the years, and now, with the help of the f...

It takes a village to raise a generation. My village is doing quite nicely, thank you very much. GRIN 's partnership with Body Works Studios and Amphi Middle School is at it again. This public/private/not-for-profit collaboration started its second year this morning.  The swept and cleaned Dance Room at the newly renovated Amphi Middle School campus was the scene, equipped with mats and magic circles courtesy of Balanced Body, Inc. The girls in Coach Powell's  Sports Conditioning Class  were the participants. The girls were a bit skeptical at first. Kyria got them off the mats and onto their feet. They were amazed at the amount of work it takes to put your feet firmly on the ground. Hands placed on the front of the hips lets you feel how open they are, how you can raise your ribs and settle your pelvis and feel taller. These girls have long, aristocratic necks without even trying. Hands on the hips, not in anger, but in service of crea...

"I can't wait to see what a Pilate is." Today was the day that she found out.  Ten girls from the Sports Conditioning Class and ten girls from regular PE joined Kyria Sabin, Fletcher Pilates Master Disseminator and volunteer extraordinaire, for an adventure on the floor.  And what an adventure it was.   After some initial paperwork to support the program evaluation component, the girls were introduced to their bellies and their feet. Rocking forward and back, finding the spots beneath the ball of the big toe and the pinky toe and the center of the heel, challenged balance and got the students up and moving.   Curling into a little ball loosened and stretched the spine.   Kyria demonstrated the Pilates way to get to supine on the mat. and down they went. They made X's on the floor while Veronica showed them how to st-re-tc-h and thought about using their abdominal muscles to flatten out the curve in the spine. It...