Studio Spotlight: Body Awareness Pilates

Body Awareness Pilates in Atlanta Georgia | Studio Spotlight

studio spotlight Nov 06, 2019

I recently visited Body Awareness Studio in Atlanta, Georgia. I took a konnected Reformer class with studio owner Leslie, met two instructors, Sara and Susan (19:15) and observed 81-year-old Pilates student Wendy's session. (27:00).

I was lucky to be able to take a Konnector Reformer class with Leslie to start off my visit. Following that, we had a great conversation about what Pilates can mean for people who haven’t discovered the method yet. The word “medicinal” was used. (5:00) I hope we don’t get into trouble with the Pilates police.

We both agreed that there is a lot of misinformation in the world about what Pilates is. (5:30) Some people think it's too easy for them and they don't want to try it. Others think Pilates is too hard from them, so they don't want to try it. The truth is that Pilates can, does and should meet each person exactly where they are. If that's not your experience, then you should try a different teacher, different studio or different style. Not all Pilates is created equal. Just like there are good Italian restaurants and not so good ones.

I told Leslie the story of how the Pilates Encyclopedia came about. Listen for that at 8:45.

We compared our experience with offering Open Studio. (12:15)

Leslie thought it's an epidemic of our culture, that we always go outside ourselves to look for answers instead of inside. (14:25) to which I wholeheartedly concur.

We as Pilates teachers don't feel what our students feel. We're not living in their bodies, so we can't be the authority over their bodies. We can only make suggestions and heighten awareness. (14:40).

I emphasized the importance of using our minds in mind-body exercises, such as Pilates. (15:25).