Maggie Downie, Author at Personal Euphoria: Pilates & Fitness Classes in CT

About Maggie Downie

Thank you for giving your time to stop and read my blog. I hope it encourages you to keep moving. Move and the body will be happier. And when you're moving you can hike, run, swim in Jell-O, race over non-Newtonian fluids, travel the world or build igloos--if that's your thing. If not, you can watch me do it. This is just a spot to try and feel good about life.

On Death & Mourning: A Little Comfort

Not our typical blog, but if it helps you feel better, it helps you move better.

I went to a funeral the other day. The role of the priest, minister or rabbi is always a tough one when someone dies. They have to console the inconsolable. The priest at this funeral wasn’t great. He kept insisting that the dead person was just sleeping, and that it would be accurate to tell kids the dead are merely sleeping. As a child that would have terrified me. I’d never go to bed again.

But then he said something that filled me with happiness. Ultimately, his words were not overly profound, but I’d never had someone put death quite this way. Full disclosure: I’m not religious or spiritual—a fact people are often surprised to learn. I don’t have that gene. But like Mark Twain, I appreciate people who do. There are moments I wish I could believe in something to experience a glimpse of comfort when tormented by grief, but more often than not I’m happy believing in the fallibility of science.

I’ve heard many people say we should be comforted to know that when we die we will be reunited with the person whose life […]

On Death & Mourning: A Little ComfortMaggie Downie2017-10-25T14:26:32-04:00

Decisions, decisions, but will your remember in six months?

I have a new motto: “Will I remember six months from now?” I find myself using it a lot. Our world bombards us with choice. Options are good. I like variety, but many of the choices don’t matter a lick. That’s where my 6-month motto comes into play.

Should I have gluten-free pizza for dinner or g-free pasta? It doesn’t matter a lick.

I was finding myself getting hung up on stupid stuff and wasting time on decisions that just don’t matter, having mild anxiety over meaningless problems. So now, when I feel stuck, I ask myself, “Will I even remember this in six months?” Almost always the answer is no. And then I just make a choice. Because I know it doesn’t matter.

It works in other capacities too. I’d forgotten some leftovers that I was really looking forward to at my Grandma’s house. My mom and Grandma felt bad that I’d forgotten them. My Grandma partly felt it was her fault for not reminding me. Life is hard enough. That mild guilt isn’t worth it. None […]

Decisions, decisions, but will your remember in six months?Maggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:14-04:00

Muse Paint Bar West Hartford

You’ve been mooned by Personal Euphoria

The Personal Euphoria staff went to Muse Paint bar in West Hartford for our quarterly get together. If you’ve never been, check it out. It was so much fun. It’s wine and painting—both superbly therapeutic. Although I think I’m the only one who would take the painting over the wine. We get good attendance at all our staff events (I think we like each other), but this was our best ever attended event (I think the staff likes wine). Love all the colors!

We booked a private class and picked a painting. Because we had a private, when we got stuck the instructor came around to help us individually. At one point, she came to Barb, sitting next to me, and said, “Do you want me to talk you through how to fix that or do it for you.” Barb wanted the lesson. “Talk me through it,” she said. When the instructor came to me with the same question, I was going to be ready with the same […]

Muse Paint Bar West HartfordMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:14-04:00

The Pilates Sexter

Ever heard of chicken sexting? It’s actually pretty fascinating. When chicks are hatched they need to be sorted between males and females, but there is no way to tell which are which, unless you are a professional chicken sexter.

You see, no one who sexes chickens can tell you how they determine the sex. They just know. You become a chicken sexter through the following training:

You pick up a chick

You look at it and say male or female

The chicken sexter who already knows how to tell says yes or no

You keep doing that until you always (or most always) get the answer right.

You are knighted Professional Chicken Sexter

Maggie AKA Pilates Sexter AKA Muscle Whisperer

After seeing enough of them, something in the subconscious can tell you whether a chick is male or female, but you can’t verbalize it. This is true or I am just very gullible. It’s one of those stories that is so good, I want to keep telling it. Either way, I’ve taught enough Pilates that sometimes I feel like the Pilates Sexter, or the Body Sexter, or the Muscle Sexter—call it what […]

The Pilates SexterMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:15-04:00

18 Things Only Pilates Lovers Will Understand

Love to Move: Pilates Teaser

You’ve got your belly button pulled to your spine. And if you didn’t when you first read this you do now.
You know your butt is part of your core because you never get through a workout without feeling it.
When you hear someone say “100” even if it’s not pertaining to Pilates you want to run and hide. Since there is no escaping, you just pray your instructor counts fast.
Relax your shoulders…nuff said. You know you could do this more all the time.
That occasional foot cramp that comes out of nowhere. Ouch! Getting Longer!
You could always be reaching something longer.
The Full Roll Up is the bane of your existence.
You know how hard it is to breathe and move at the same time. In fact, you’re holding your breath right now.
Neutral vs Imprint. You know the difference, but at first you weren’t sure and just knew it had something to do with a teacup balancing on your pelvis. Why a teacup?
You’ve come to terms with the fact that none of the names for […]

18 Things Only Pilates Lovers Will UnderstandMaggie Downie2017-10-25T14:26:32-04:00

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