Tag Archives: Rehabilitation

New Pop-up Pilates Tutorial – Taking Care of Your Neck

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As voted by you, the next online pop-up PILATES X MELISSA tutorial, the second in the series is on the most moveable section of the spine, the neck.  It will take place on Thursday 20 August at 1900.

During the course of the 30-minute session I’ll take you through a short programme of exercises to help strengthen, stretch and improve the range of movement of your neck.

Who the tutorial is suitable for

The session is open to everyone except those based in the US and Canada who for insurance reasons I’m unable to teach.  Sorry about that.

For those with osteoporosis or osteopenia, certain exercises will not be suitable for you.  I will make it clear during the course of the session which ones you will need to miss out.

If you have any healing fractures or new sprains or strains affecting the neck, shoulder or upper back for which you’re seeing a health professional, please just watch rather than joining in with the exercises and maybe take notes.  The exercises should help you once you’ve completed treatment with your health professional.

How will you benefit

The exercises over time will assist the proper functioning of the neck by improving the strength and flexibility of the key neck muscles, ligaments, tendons and membranes.  This will in turn…

  • release tightness in your neck, shoulder and upper back area thereby avoiding pain associated with misaligned spinal vertebrae and compressed vertebral discs;
  • help you to maintain the 15-20 pound load of your head in equilibrium;
  • improve blood flow to your brain thereby avoiding migraines and headaches;
  • improve your balance mechanism.

What you will need for this pop-up Pilates tutorial

To get the most from the session you will need:

To attend this pop-up Pilates tutorial, please register here with Zoom. Once you have done so you will automatically receive a confirmation email from Zoom (please check your spam folder if it doesn’t arrive straight away in your inbox), which contains a link that only you can use to attend this tutorial. On the day of the session, 5-10 minutes before the start time just click on this link to join the tutorial.

Before the tutorial, if you’re using a tablet or mobile to take part you will need to download the Zoom App from the App store, which is free. If you’re using a laptop and want quick and smooth access to the session, download Zoom Client for Meetings for free from their website. You don’t need any kind of Zoom account to attend my online classes and pop-up tutorials.

Please help me to help others by sharing details of this pop-up PILATES X MELISSA tutorial, inviting any friends, family members and work colleagues you think might be interested in registering to attend.

The pop-up tutorials are free.  There is an option after the session to pay what the tutorial was worth to you or what you can afford.  How to make such a contribution, for those interested in doing so will be explained in the confirmation email you will receive  after registering.

Pilates to Rehabilitate

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The 1230 to 1330 online class on Mondays has more of a rehabilitative focus.  Anyone can attend the Monday lunchtime session of course. It will just be a bit less physically demanding with the emphasis more on beginner, improver and intermediate level exercises.  For full details about the rehab Pilates class including who might benefit most from it and what to expect from the session, please visit this new page of my website.

The above image is of Dr Gunther von Hagens’ plastinated gymnast from his Body Worlds exhibition.  I saw this in London in 2002/03.  I was studying anatomy as part of my Pilates Teaching Training course so it was the perfect opportunity to get under the skin (see what I did there) of the musculoskeletal system.   As those who practise with me know, the engagement of the pelvic floor muscles is a key part of the Pilates Method and this exhibition provided a chance to actually see them up-close. If I see a pelvic floor in the flesh again I’ll be surprised…and frankly disturbed.

To close, here’s a beautiful video from the Dutch National Ballet of their dancers performing at home in lockdown.  Pirouetting in socks on a tiled floor – respect!

Pilates at Complete Health Clinic

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Complete Health Clinic logo

Melissa is now teaching five classes each week at Complete Health Clinic in Clevedon. The schedule of sessions is as follows:

  • Monday evenings, 19.00 to 20.00
  • Wednesday lunchtimes, 12.30 to 13.30
  • Wednesday evenings, 19.15 to 20.15
  • Thursday evenings, 19.15 to 20.15
  • Friday mornings, 09,30 to 10.30

Limited to seven attendees and costing £8, these small group classes allow for a more hands-on, tailored form of teaching.  As such the sessions are particularly suited for those recovering from injury, or trying to manage an ongoing weak spot in their body.

To attend one of the weekly Pilates classes at Complete Health Clinic, you need to have either been taught by Melissa at one of the other classes she teaches in Clevedon or Bristol.  Alternatively, if you’ve done Pilates elsewhere, you just need to have one half-hour private i.e. one-to-one, beginner session with Melissa at the clinic costing £30.  If you’ve never done Pilates before, you would need to have two half-hour private sessions with Melissa at the clinic at a total cost of £60.

To book a place on one of Complete Health Clinic’s weekly Pilates classes, or to arrange a private one-to-one session, please contact the clinic via this link.

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