challenge

Conquer the Full Roll Up

The Full Roll Up is one of the Pilates exercises that frustrates people the most. So many people struggle with this movement. They get discouraged and blame their abs. Sure, your abs might be a part of the problem. They may need to get stronger to do the exercise, but they also might just need to learn how to fire properly—meaning they could do it if they understood what they were supposed to do. Most of us weren’t taught how to do a sit up or ab exercises properly. Many of us use other muscles like hip flexors or the muscles in the neck to try to pull ourselves up to a seated position. Your abs might be strong enough, but they’ve never had to do the work before, why should they start now? And it’s not just about your abs. Tightness in your back could be getting in your way. So, how do we break it all down so you can conquer the full roll up?
First, cut yourself some slack. Yes, it’s true, you might not be able to do this exercise right now, but that does not mean you […]

Conquer the Full Roll UpMaggie Downie2018-02-14T17:41:48-05:00

Client Corner: 100 Days of 100 Complete!

Sue doing the 100!

Sue has been taking Pilates in Glastonbury for over 6 years. While some people groan when it’s time for planks, Sue’s personal nemesis is the roll up. Her goal is to one day do it without using a flex band.

With that in mind, when her instructor Maggie mentioned an abdominal challenge in class, Sue was interested to see if it could help her build core strength for the roll up. She thought to herself “this is probably a challenge I should take on.”

The challenge was 100 days of the 100, where participants were asked to do the Pilates exercise the 100, one hundred days in a row. The 100 is an exercise that you’ll find in almost any Pilates class. It consists of lying with your back on the mat, upper body curled up, legs in the air (usually) and completing 100 arm beats while holding the position. It typically comes early in class and gets the entire body warmed up by getting you in tune with your breath and your blood pumping. To read more about why we do this challenge check out […]

Client Corner: 100 Days of 100 Complete!Maggie Downie2017-12-29T20:59:00-05:00

The Saga of the Microbiome Diet

I’m three weeks, two days, fourteen hours and fifty-three minutes (as of writing this) into my three month Microbiome Diet challenge. When this blog posts, I’ll be further along in case you just felt as bad for me as I did writing that.

Our obsession and need for food is fascinating. Obviously we need to eat to live, though I have always been someone who lives to eat. I love food. This may be the first time in my life I’m eating to live. I’ve cut gluten (which I’ve done for the past five years anyway), dairy, and sugar (including maple syrup and honey, but excluding fruit). Whole foods do taste good, but on this diet I never overeat, and I find I’m not actually that inclined to eat.

Here’s my problem. I love carbs and cheese. And apparently if I can’t eat them I don’t really want anything else. I would never have told you that I didn’t like meat, but I find myself having to force feed myself meat. I’ve discovered I don’t like chicken. I’ll eat it. Sometimes it even tastes good, like when it’s wrapped in bacon, but I could happily pass on the stuff. When I was […]

The Saga of the Microbiome DietMaggie Downie2018-01-13T16:18:32-05:00

Walking on Fire

The fire ablaze.

Why did I want to do a firewalk? That was the question everyone asked me when I mentioned I was doing one. I still don’t know the answer. Curiosity. An interesting experience. To know what it feels like. Conquer fear. Know that I can do it. To see how my nervous system responds. Those were all a piece of what intrigued me, but when I tested those answers on different people none seemed to satisfy anyone.

I don’t have an answer. What makes anyone want to do anything? I don’t want to bungee jump or cliff jump even though that might help me get over my fear of heights and would be an adventure. I’m not a thrill seeker. Firewalking isn’t like a rollercoaster ride. I don’t want to do an ultra-run, but I can understand why someone would feel compelled to run in an extreme environment for days. I hadn’t thought about the why at first because I naively assumed everyone wanted to firewalk. As it turns out most people don’t. I told

Walking on FireMaggie Downie2018-05-09T18:07:11-04:00

Come Purge with Me

Over the weekend I was in central Pennsylvania, which is known for the best potato chip. The secret ingredient is lard, which makes everything better. I know this because my Grandma’s pie crust has lard and it is delicious. Pie crust aside, I know this because I love food. I love it too much. So much that trying one bag of potato chips seemed insufficient, so my friends and I decided to have a chip taste test. Kay and Ray’s was the winner, but we got to go through multiple bags and multiple brands. I’m pretty sure I still feel the grease dripping out of my pores.

With this as just one example of how poorly I’ve been eating, I’ve decided it has to stop. I need to make a change for my waistline, but more importantly for how I feel. And even more importantly for the parts of me that I don’t feel—arteries, kidneys, liver—but that I want to fuel in a better and healthier way.

Starting Monday, May 9th I’m going back to my December Detox. See the link for full details. I’m making a few tweaks. I’ll be eating sweet potatoes, quinoa, some rice, and legumes if […]

Come Purge with MeMaggie Downie2018-01-13T16:22:55-05:00