Alexa Bergs Portfolio

Next to come in my pilates journey now that I have completed all 3 of the reformer training courses and the Movement Principles workshop, will be completing the rest of my required teaching hours and my final test-out. All of the work I have done so far has built up to my final practice and test. I have worked very hard to balance this course and my practice hours alongside my school work. Though it has been a very busy process I am so grateful for this experience along with what is to come in the future.

My final required teaching hours are coming to a very close end. Throughout this process, I have focused on balancing a good flow to ensure that I was keeping up with my required personal practice, observation, and practice teaching hours. Now that I have completed all of my personal practice and observation, I am able to focus solely on my last few teaching experiences and the preparation for my test-out. During my last few teaching practice hours, I have made a goal to teach a few larger groups, utilize some of the new lesson sequences I have created, and attempt to work with more diverse bodies, such as older people, men, and less experienced individuals to give myself a broader range of experience. These teaching hours have provided me with more experience than I could have imagined and I am so thankful for all of the family members, friends, and other individuals who have allowed me to teach them and have contributed to my learning experience.

Following the completion of my last few teaching hours, the last thing I need to do before I am certified is my final test-out. The test-out entails a 50-question multiple choice and written test responding to questions surrounding moves, safety, pilates knowledge, injuries, and much more. Alongside the written portion, there is also an observation test of your teaching in which one of the professionals of the course watches each and every aspect of a 1 hour sequence that you create from the exercises they provide you. In this observation, they are looking to see if you are able to follow the proper safety precautions, modifications of springs and other pieces of the reformer, proper flow, smooth instruction, and any other important aspects of teaching. Once you have completed your test-out, depending on how you did will determine whether or not you pass or fail. If you fail, you are able to do your test-out again at a later date, and if you pass, you gain your pilates instructor certificate and can become a certified teacher.

I am very proud that I have reached this point in my practice, and I am very excited to see what opportunities will come from this in the future.

This weekend, I completed my reformer 3 training. This weekend marks the official end of my Reformer Pilates Training with Balanced Body. This is a very exciting moment for me as I have worked extremely hard to complete all of these programs and reach the end of this journey. Though I still have some required teaching hours to complete it is an amazing feeling to be able to solely focus on what is needed to reach my final pieces of this process.

This weekend in my reformer 3 training, we focused on a broad range of exercises and anatomy which correlate with the core advanced processes and practices of pilates. Each of the steps within these processes(reformer 1, 2, and 3) all focus on developing an intense understanding of the body and the movements that it allows us to do. As future teachers, we are taught the in-depth knowledge of the process of each movement, how they should be taught, and how they should be performed. Reformer 3 entails the most intense and technical movements that you learn as a pilates instructor. Though the exercises within the reformer 1 and 2 programs are still very intense and advanced in their own ways, they are made to be more accommodating to the individuals who require or are interested in more foundational movement. Many of the exercises within reformer 3 are very familiar to aspiring teachers as they are often more advanced versions of foundational exercises which provide teachers with knowledge of how to intensify and challenge clients and classes.

Since many of the exercises in reformer 3 are made for a much more advanced and skilled individual, there are many safety concerns to be aware of. Within the reformer 3 curriculum, there is a very strict informational piece that is required, which is highly focused on anatomy. As we did in the following courses, there is a very intense focus on injury-prone individuals. We dive deeper into individuals who may struggle from health concerns, muscle or bone deficiencies, pre/post-natal individuals, and much more. These are all very important individuals to be aware of within your practice. The anatomy portion informs teachers of what to be watching for, how to modify movements to assist clients, and what movements should not be attempted by certain individuals. Having this knowledge as a future teacher can provide less of a chance of experiencing injuries, hazards, or concerns within your own practice and your client’s practice. Learning about anatomy not only allows us as teachers to be more cognizant of injuries, etc, but it also informs us of the pieces of the body which are being worked. We gain an understanding of the muscles, bones, and other aspects of the body that are allowing us to perform each movement. Gaining this perspective allows maximum execution of the strategic movements of the reformer 3 practice and provides teachers with an abundance of knowledge on how to explain/demonstrate safe practice to their students.

In conclusion, finishing my pilates training with reformer 3 was a great way to end my final training portion of the program. Through these in person courses I have learned an abundance of new information that I am now able to carry throughout my future teaching career.

This past weekend, I finally completed my reformer 2 training. It was a very long weekend involving the integration of many new moves, building on old moves, further understanding of the body, and practice teaching. The training course was broken down into two 11-hour days. Within each day, we focused on many of the essential movements of the reformer 2 level meanwhile integrating many other important tips and strategies to help us throughout our training process.

Day one began with a very brief introduction of everyone’s experience thus far in Pilates. Many people were very new, some had brief experience teaching, and some were advanced in other types of teaching such as personal training and mat pilates. Whether you are experienced in other areas, there is still an abundance of things to learn. After our introductions, we began exploring our workbooks, which discussed the many different body types, injuries, and clients we may encounter in our practice. Though this may not be the movement piece, many could argue that this is more important to learn. As I am interested in teaching group lessons rather than personal lessons, I must develop the knowledge of things I should be cautious of in a group of clients. Teaching, correcting, and observing clients at the same time can be quite difficult. It is very important that you clients are safe and prepared to avoid injuries. As the morning moved along, we began to hop onto the reformers and practice many moves that are very standard for this level of teaching. Some were growing on moves we have learned in reformer 1, and some were very new to me. Perfecting these moves and understanding how they feel and work in your body is very important. Though I have been practicing Pilates for many years and am very familiar with these moves from my practice, focusing more awareness on what I am doing can make such an amazing difference. Recognizing and feeling all of the little muscles working can enable you to visualize how it should look and feel to your clients.

After learning so much the first day, I felt extremely tired and burnt out. I also left feeling a lot of anxiety as teaching is much harder than it may look some days. I went home contemplating whether I was going to be a good teacher. Following the first day, I went into the second morning very discouraged. I felt extremely anxious about practicing my instructing skills. During the day, we resumed the focus of practicing new exercises and discussing more in-depth tools for our instructing practices in the future. I wrote as many notes as I could to ensure I was getting the most out of my practice and had many resources that I could use in the future. Nearing the end of the day, we were each given a sequence that we were meant to teach from start to finish in front of the class using 4 of my peers as “clients”. I was the first to teach my sequence. I felt self-doubt and insecurity in my abilities, which made my anxiety much worse. As my peers hopped on their reformers, I began my instruction and ran through my sequence. When I was completed, I got tons of feedback. I convinced myself it would be negative, but to my surprise, there was nothing but positivity from my mentors and peers. I received compliments on my instructing voice, calmness, and preparedness. All of the doubt and anxiety I had been feeling washed away and gave me the reassurance I needed. This experience made me recognize that I am in control of the positivity and belief I have in my abilities. I recognize the work I put into the things I am passionate about, so my next steps are to develop the faith I have in myself. I am very excited to continue this process and I am curious to see what will happen next.

Observational hours are another one of the key required steps during the process of obtaining a Pilates instructor’s certificate. Completing your observation hours entails a bit of work before beginning. A few very important first steps are finding a teacher who suits your style, energy, and has the same aspirations as you. The most challenging part of this process is that finding a mentor teacher may be difficult. The goal is that you find an instructor who is able to provide you with the support and conversation that you require. While being an observer, you will be sitting in on your mentor teacher’s instructional time, you will be asking your teacher various inquiries, and possibly taking advantage of the use of their studio to explain/demonstrate their teaching. This is why I impose such a stress on the fact that you need to align value-wise with your teacher. This is such a personal process and it is important that during these 30 hours you are receiving all of the experience you require.

During observation hours, it is important that you gather as much information as possible to ensure all of your questions, comments, and concerns are seen and answered. The observational hours may seem daunting as it is a 30 hour requirement, but it will go by very quickly. I have discovered that during these hours you will learn more than you could ever imagine, and you will definitely have some very overwhelming moments. Throughout this process you will see the different strategies and techniques that your mentor teacher uses to guide their lessons and communicate with their students. These strategies may be ones that you choose to implement in your future teaching, but you may also find that these implementations may be something you will not take as a tool. It is important that you are able to identify what works for you and what doesn’t. When you are teaching your own practice, you need to use the tools and methods that work for you in order to have a successful class. Your class will not flow as positively as you want it to if it doesn’t correlate with you. While observing I am now able to recognize when a teacher is trying a new strategy or a move. This is shown through the comfortability that the instructor has while demonstrating or integrating it into their flow. Pilates is a lot of trial and error, even if you are very experienced. It is comforting to see that your mentors are always still learning as well.

In conclusion, I believe that your observation hours will continue throughout your whole pilates journey. You are always learning and observing, even if that is not from another teacher, you can learn through what you are implementing in your class and visualize it through your students. As a teacher you are always adapting, changing, building your skills and strategies to become the most universal and knowledgeable teacher you can be.

Personal practice is a very significant part of becoming a Pilates instructor. When gaining your certification you are expected to attend 30 hours of personal practice through instructors and studios of your choice. This personal practice provides you with the experience of learning how the movements feel, how they are cued, and how a class is executed. This experience is vital to your teaching progression because without experiencing the motions and movements yourself how are you supposed to understand how they feel, how to teach them, and what they entail? The basis of Pilates is the feeling and connection it provides you and as a teacher understanding this will allow you to share the connection with the students you teach.

A very important aspect of personal practice that may not seem significant at first thought, is the choice you make regarding whose class to take. There are many different styles, methods, and preferences which each teacher chooses to use when they teach. Some teachers stay constricted to the more strict and classical pilates style where as other teachers who may be considered more open-minded integrate newer, more advanced, and technical moves into their lessons. The classical Pilates approach is often taken by instructors who are in the movement therapy realm of Pilates or have been practicing this way for many years. Since I am a newer instructor in training and a much more physical person, I prefer to take classes in which the teachers align with my style and preference. Though sometimes it is hard to find the perfect teacher for you, the main aspect to look for is if the class is fulfilling what movement your body needs. What your body needs is individual to the person. This does not only take form in the characteristics I look for, it can also be taken from the point of view of someone who is focused on finding a more classical pilates approach whether that is due to health or preference. When I began looking for classes to take, I tried various teachers and studios until I found one or a few in my area. Victoria is full of very knowledgeable teachers and studio owners, so there is something for everyone!

During my personal practices, I ensure that I take mental notes of how the teacher is cueing, constructing, and adapting throughout the lesson. Now that I intend to gain my certificate I have noticed many different unique qualities and styles that teachers exert in their instruction. Through each practice I take I add another resource to my toolbox which I can attempt to use during my own instruction. Some of these tools may not work as well for others as they do for me but this whole experience is about learning to trust the process. One thing that I do intentionally focus on during my practice is to not overthink and compare what I do to what the teacher does. It is important to remember not to overthink during this process as this practice is for me. Personal practice is an opportunity to also understand how the movement feels in my body as that will help me further understand how my clients feel which creates a very important connection. I will have many opportunities to observe as that is another very large portion of my pre-required hours.

As I continue this journey I can not wait to continue my personal practice. It is always nice to have time to work on yourself as I believe that is what makes you better for the people around you.

This week the University of Victoria has one week off in the middle of the second semester to allow students time to catch up on assignments. Taking advantage of this week off, I decided to go home and visit my parents. I have been very dedicated to staying on top of my assignments throughout this semester which has benefited me greatly. Due to the fact that I am caught up on my assignments, I chose to take advantage of this time and begin the teaching hours needed to complete my Pilates certification. As I mentioned in my first few blog posts, in order to complete my certification, 90 hours of teaching experience is needed. This teaching experience can be friends, family, or a class, but it is extremely difficult to find an open studio or a mentor who will assist you. Back home I have a very knowledgeable, energetic, and generous teacher who I have been going to for years, she is very successful and now owns her own studio. Meanwhile being home she offered to have me observe her classes, ask her any important questions I have, and utilize her studio space to teach my close friends and family. I was so grateful that she was willing to allow me to use her studio space, so I ensured to take advantage of this opportunity and teach as much as I could.

To begin my first teaching experience I chose to curate a class for my mom. I chose to begin with my mom as she is familiar with the reformer but still getting to know the basics of Pilates. Because I have only completed my Reformer 1 and Movement Principles course, I only have full knowledge of the beginner foundational movement of pilates, so my knowledge is very aligned with what my mom is able to execute right now. In the workout I created I incorporated beginner foundational moves which were meant to be built upon to give her the option to either stay at the beginning or progress her movement to make it more challenging. Throughout the workout I tried to balance detailed instruction, memorization of my workout, and ensuring that I was supporting and correcting my mom’s movement to the best of my ability, but it was much harder than it seemed. Trying to remember so many things while ensuring that she was safe and correctly executing the movements was quite confusing. At times I felt that I was maybe over-correcting/overwhelming her, that I was getting lost and forgetting what was next, or maybe even making the moves too easy or too complicated. Due to the doubt I was feeling I began to get a bit overstimulated… My mom told me that I was doing great for my first time but to just calm down by taking a few breaths. She suggested that I try to just slow down my pace and maybe make only the necessary corrections and variations. We began from the top again and I took what she said into consideration. During the second round, I was much more calm which allowed my pointers to be more approachable, I recalled what the next steps were, and my mom felt less overwhelmed as I was more cognizant of my correctivness. After we finished I took notes of what went well and what needed more improvement and practice then had my mom reflect on anything I may have missed which gave me maximum reflective points. With this feedback, I created a more adaptive lesson that matched my reflection for the next class.

Throughout the week I taught a total of 5 classes, some being my mom, one of my friends, and the studio instructor! Each of these classes teaching different bodies at varying levels gave me some very good practice. I experienced more bumps in the road but also had some very successful moments. I reflected and gathered feedback from each experience to maximize my knowledge and use the feedback for improvements in future classes. This reflection and feedback will also support me during my observations or classes as I can listen and observe how the teacher I am with creates cues, instruction, or structures classes to answer my reflections.

All of these experiences are what will allow me to grow and learn how to be the best instructor I can be. I hope that I will be able to create an environment that is both calming but also energetic and motivating. An environment that encapsulates my personality and energy is very important as my nature is what I believe draws people to me. This will be a long process to achieve my 90 hours of teaching but it is what is needed to ensure I am ready to teach and achieve my goals.

In my most recent blog post, I discussed my most recent progression of obtaining my Pilates instructor certificate by completing the Movement Principles workshop. After discussing the methodology and importance behind this course I am going to speak on my experience. I will describe the structure and meaning of the course, provide a brief outline of my two days, and talk about what I gained from this experience!

Unlike the Reformer 1 course this course took place on Zoom rather than in person to accommodate the many aspiring teachers who reside throughout Canada and the United States. I was slightly hesitant about learning so much information and key movement through a Zoom network but having a very knowledgeable and experienced teacher made the process very smooth. The instructor had another trained teacher model the movements and give us a visual demonstration while she explained. By having this visual demonstration I was able to see how a real body could move, how to make corrections, and the anatomic and kinesthetic aspects of it all which was a very important learning tool for me. 

To begin each day we started with some essential foundational movements to get an idea of what types of action we would be practicing throughout the course. After a brief introduction to movement through a warm-up and description we stepped straight into the anatomy and kinesthetic principles behind what we were going to be learning. Throughout the two days, the focus on inner-body connection would foster an even stronger understanding of what I believed were the most simple movements. On the first day, we focused on whole-body movement which covers both simple movements such as stretching and as well as higher-intensity foundational dynamic movements. Whether you are performing a simple slow movement or a more complex fast-paced movement, both serve different purposes and are important in their own way. As we cycled through the movements we would take time to visualize the demonstration of how the skeletal and muscular system is involved in the movement. By taking time to visualize our instructor demonstrating and describing the movements I was able to create a deep understanding of the movement and consider any questions I may have. Seeing these demonstrations allows me to understand how to recognize when corrections are needed and where. While we performed the exercises we were split into breakout rooms to test our knowledge and practice teaching amongst other students. This opportunity provided me with practice to strengthen my confidence and allow my peers to give constructive feedback which I can apply in future teaching. 

Learning about the foundations of whole-body movement on the first day created a basis for a general understanding of how we integrate the skeletal and muscular systems into all movements. By beginning with whole-body movement the progression into the upper and lower body was much more structured and I felt that I had a basic understanding of how everything was connected. Learning about each body sector’s movement was quite a similar process following the manual. Each section went into great detail on the foundational movements of the focused region which we would practice very precisely and once we understood the movement we would break it down and look within to visualize how the bone and muscle movements correlate. Practicing the movement before understanding the inner system functions allowed me to feel how the movement targets different areas of my body that I have never noticed. Lastly, we focused on a slowed movement-based approach, similar to yoga, through cool down. Though we have all been told that cool downs are the most important part of our workout it still tends to get neglected. The foundation of Pilates is to lengthen, strengthen, and tone which does not mean we do not cool down but instead, we are always practicing the release of stress. Whether your stress is gathered in feelings or energy it is significantly released through this practice. Focusing on breathing and mind-to-body recognition is the most important part of ensuring your practice is successful and you have released what is not needed.

While reflecting after the completion of this course I am able to see the growth I made in just two days. I was able to understand the true meaning and importance that a mind-to-body connection creates. This connection is extremely vital to the growth of becoming an instructor and being an athlete. While processing through these exercises, being able to see the way everything within the body works together created a new perspective I have never known. The thing I doubted about myself as a teacher most was that I did not understand the anatomy and kinesthetic processes that were within each movement. After the practice of these movements I not only developed a deeper understanding of my body and how it moves, I gained a deeper understanding of how to apply this knowledge as a teacher. I now have confidence that I will be able to promote an environment where students feel safe, knowledgeable, and empowered to continue their movement journey with me.