Chapel Allerton Pilates – Looking Back by Claire Sparrow
What an incredible and fun open day we had in september 2023. It was wonderful to welcome so many new faces many of which you, our existing and loyal clients invited along because you knew your friends and family would enjoy the benefits of Pilates with our expert team. It was also wonderful to welcome lots of you to classes you hadn’t tried before. One lady said “Now I love SpringWall too, I’ll just need come every day lol”. Thank you all.
Looking Back
I was also reminded how far we have come in the seven years in August since we moved and opened here at Chapel Allerton. I had imagined one day that Chapel Allerton Pilates would be home to a community of teachers not only providing thoughtful, expert tuition but also generously supporting and nurturing one another as much as they do for our clients and the wellbeing of the studio community. That was most defiantly what I witnessed on Saturday.
Sarah and Ria have been with me since day one when we Pilates Teachers were few and far between while I taught the next generation to join us on our mission. I often say that Pilates is in its infancy as a profession because it is only since the year 2000 that it was legally allowed to be taught and named Pilates, when the court case was won thanks to the maker of our balanced body equipment Ken Endelman and in part my mentor Lolita San Miguel. Anyway, that’s a long story, and you can read a bit more of it in my new book (sorry for the shameless plug).
I often think people don’t always know how young Pilates is and how much training time and investment goes into becoming an exceptional teacher of this wonderful method. It takes time to develop all of the skills that it takes to become an expert teacher. Self-mastery is where you embody the method and how it changes everything about you from the inside out. Teaching skills involve adapting verbal and tactile cues to suit the individual’s learning style. Understanding pain science, modern anatomy, and how to hold space for people through all seasons of their lives. It’s endless.
What we do is more than teaching a fitness class, and this Saturday reminded me of the depth of what we do, the community we have created and just how magical it is to see my vision unfold.
