Successful completion of Initiation 101, Initiation 201 and Practical Teaching is required to become a certified Mat Pilates instructor.

 

Fees:

Registration Fee: $125 + GST (non-refundable)
Course: $1,525 (if registering for all 3, otherwise please see individual workshop prices)
Materials: $170 + GST

 

Students may also register for any component separately.

 

Registration Form 

Initiation 101- Pilates Fundamentals and Matwork, is the first step to becoming a certified Pilates Instructor. The Physicalmind Institute approaches Pilates not just as a fitness regime, but also as a reeducation of the body through movement. Pilates is a preventative system that focuses on core strength, flexibility, and proper alignment.  This course prepares students for both Mat and Reformer Training Programs.  Students will learn, practise and teach 14 Matwork Fundamentals and 36 Classic Mat Exercises. They will develop a deeper integration of the repertoire into their own body, resulting in a more effective ability to teach.

Students will gain a deepened understanding of:

• The internal core muscles that form a cylinder of support around the spine.

• Breathing: How it relates to internal abdominals and movement.

• Correct body mechanics and postural alignment: Neutral spine and how this aids in efficiency, ease of movement, and injury prevention.

• Fundamentals: A movement language used to cue and help reorganize postural patterns.

• Increases in physical awareness.

• The benefits of Pilates: Increases in bone density, joint mobility, muscle tone, organ function, and overall strength and flexibility of the body.

• The original concepts and insights of Joseph Pilates: Concentration, control, centering, flowing movement, precision, breathing.

• How to take Pilates into the future: Creating an organic and intelligent workout.

Initiation 101- Fundamentals and Matwork are very practical and can be applied to any fitness regime. Completion of Initiation 101, Initiation 201- Standing Pilates®, and Practical Teaching is required to certify as a Mat Pilates instructor. These courses can be applied to BCPRA continuing education hours.   

 

Students will gain knowledge of the Matwork fundamentals that will strengthen their ability to assist clients to access their internal stabilizers which has been proven to reduce injury, create better alignment and to increase overall balance to the body by building core stabilization.  The fundamentals are very practical and can be applied to any fitness regime.   

Previous Initiation 101 or 201 students may review this course for an audit fee of half price. 

Initiation 201- Standing Pilates® is the second course in becoming a Mat teacher. Standing Pilates® adapts many of the classical Pilates mat exercises to take them into the vertical plane.  It provides the link between Pilates floor work and everyday functional movement.  Aiding in neuromuscular re-patterning of movement habits, Standing Pilates® moves toward better alignment and efficiency. Students learn how to maintain neutral spine while standing, sitting, walking, bending, or lifting; thus making it a truly functional approach to fitness.

Some of the many benefits of Standing Pilates® are:

• Proprioception enhancement: Balance is required, benefitting the aging population and those suffering from neurological diseases such a Parkinson’s.

• Deep core strengthening: The pelvic floor, transversus abdominus, multifidus and diaphragm form a cylinder of support for the spine, benefitting people with incontinence issues or postnatal mothers.

• Increase in bone density: Standing on one leg is equal to 4 times ones body weight, benefitting those with Osteoporosis.

• More “real estate”: Hips, legs and feet are areas of equal focus.

• More three-dimensionality: Includes the side body and internal spirals.

This technique is truly an evolution of Pilates, as deeper connections are required to perform these new, complex, standing exercises. 

 

Experience the 13 new Advanced Fundamentals. Finish with 24 of the Classic mat exercises reconfigured to Standing Pilates®. After successful completion of Initiation 101, Initiation 201 and Practical Teaching you will be certified to teach mat Pilates. This course can be applied to BCRPA continuing education hours.

Standing Mat was developed to teach correct alignment in functional positions.  It is a full body exercise that requires us to focus on how the body moves and reacts in order to balance.  Practice of Standing Pilates leads to neuro-repatterning that will translate into functional, correct movement in standing, sitting or bending to pick something up.

For more information on Standing Pilates please read the pilates.about.com article written based on an interview with Marta Hernandez. 

Standing Pilates vs. Mat Pilates:

Standing Pilates demands more brain activity than our regular Matwork exercises due to the increased amount of balancing.  As we approach our later thirties balance starts to decrease almost a percentage each year.  Standing Pilates is a practical way to apply pilates to everyday functionality.  It is also easier for clients who are not as flexible.

The Standing Pilates reptoire bridges the gap between lying down and standing.  There is more core contraction which equals greater joint stability.  Because pelvic floor engagement is crucial to perform the exercises, Standing Pilates also promotes a healthy pelvic floor. 

Previous Initiation 101 or 201 students may review this course for an audit fee of 50% of regular tuition. 

This course is a 10-hour experiential workshop that will prepare students with the knowledge and practice they need to confidently teach a Mat Pilates Class.

Topics covered will include:

• How to prepare for your mat classes


• Level 1 and Level 2 Mat classes will be discussed


• Exercise sequences and transitioning between exercises


• Review of fundamentals and exercises from Initiations


• Practice of hands-on cueing


• Practice with fellow students in groups and in front of the class


• Discussions on how to read the classroom energy, how to be in the moment and change the direction of the class if the need arises


• Individual feedback on teacher’s quality of voice and teaching style will be offered

We understand that becoming a teacher is not easy. This course will give students the necessary tips, feedback and encouragement to make the transition into becoming a teacher.

Course Requirements:  Students must have completed both the Initiation 101 and Initiation 201 courses before taking this workshop.

This 12-hour course is designed to give existing teachers a safe and functional repertoire to work with aging, pregnant and rehabilitating clients.  Students will learn adaptations to existing fundamentals and exercises, as well as several new exercises specifically designed with the modified body in mind.

Students will learn:

• 8 Fundamentals, 22 Exercises and 7 Stretches all relating to the body requiring modifications due to pregnancy, aging, and rehabilitation.

• What changes occur in the body, and how they affect posture, flexibility, strength and breath.

• Anatomy of the Prenatal Pelvis, tips for in the delivery room and postnatal recovery.

• Protocols for teaching a modified/prenatal class, including how to keep exercises safe, when to start doing pilates and when to stop.

• Sequencing a 5-week mat class.

 

Prerequisites:  For those who intend to teach modified and prenatal pilates, completion of Mat Certification is required and it is recommended that teachers have at least one year experience teaching mat pilates. However, anyone who wishes to deepen their knowledge and expand their personal practice is welcome to take this course.

Students knowledge of the Prenatal Mat Pilates will strengthen their ability to assist clients through a comfortable pregnancy and delivery.

Learn to Teach the Original Pilates Exercises Protocols on all the apparatus.  This comprehensive certification program trains students extensively on the pilates equipment & apparatus.

In this course students will learn:

• To teach and apply all exercises on the Reformer & Chair.    

• To develop the skills to effectively teach through course lectures, anatomy knowledge & extensive practice hours

• For each concept learned, students will have the opportunity to practice on themselves and with other students

• Practical cuing, modifications, variations

 

• Mat Pilates Certification

• 10 privates reformer sessions or equivalent

Concentration 201, Apparatus Standing Pilates® is a one day course for certified Pilates Instructors looking to expand their understanding of Pilates and improve their teaching techniques.  Clients who are working at a intermediate/advanced level may also benefit from this course.  Based on the Standing Mat Pilates, these new exercises are transferred to the Reformer, Cadillac and Chair.  This technique is truly an evolution of Pilates, as deeper connections are required to perform these new, complex standing exercises.  With a focus on movement functionality, balance and weight bearing work, Standing Pilates not only addresses and prevents osteoporosis but many other symptoms that face our aging population.

“ Third Level” Technique, can be characterized as having:

• Deeper connections...not just contractions
• Pelvic Floor engagement: multifidus, diaphragm and transversus abdominus form a cylinder of support for the spine.
• More verticality: reduced forward flexion, more extension/rotation.
• More “real estate”: hips, legs and feet are areas of equal focus.
• More three-dimensionality: includes the side body and internal spirals.

With its focus on decreasing effort and increasing ease, Concentration 201 takes Pilates into the future. 

Concentration 301, Pilates Protocols, is a two-day course taught by a Physical Therapist and Certified Pilates instructor. Students learn how to train clients with impairments and injuries based on the concept that alterations in muscle performance are the underlying cause to their limitations. Case studies form the basis for learning. Through group discussion each case is analyzed first to learn how to detect the problem, second to identify it, and finally, to develop possible solutions. Focus is on healthy joint movement and correct muscle action.

Students will learn contra-indicated exercises and protocols for: Rotator Cuff Disorders, Shoulder Instability, Frozen Shoulder, Scoliosis, Adaptive Muscle Changes, Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction, Piriformis Syndrome, Bursitis, Hip Replacement, Knee/Leg Disorders, Patellofemoral Syndrome, Meniscal Injuries, Anterior Cruciate Ligament Tear, Plantar Fascitis, Inversion Ankle Sprains, Osteoarthritis, and Rheumatoid Arthritis.