private sessions

"I loved getting the extra special private Pilates lesson — you are such a good teacher, your studio is beautiful, and you have inspired me to get healthier!!!!!!"
— Kathleen D. PhD

working with the whole person

We work with the whole person: body, mind, and inner self. As a Certified Pilates Instructor, Bartenieff Fundamentals Practitioner, and Laban Movement Analyst with advanced degrees in theatre and dance, Lucille offers a uniquely integrated approach to designing your fitness program and working with you to meet your individual needs.

Because it is more than just movement, you develop an awareness of what is moving and how you are moving. Through awareness you discover habitual movement patterns that may be the root cause of joint pain, weakness, or stiffness. We focus on correct alignment and sequencing of muscles and, through practice, most people can re-pattern habitual movements into ways of moving that are more comfortable, more effective, and more expressive of who you are.

Movement is fundamental to life. People of all ages and body types can benefit from greater ease of movement, flexibility, and core strength. We know, because we've experienced the enormous difference Pilates and Integrative Movement can make in our lives. Once you feel it, you'll know too.

Why Natural Bodies Pilates?

When you come to the studio, you can truly focus on your health and wellness, because that is what your instructor is focusing on: how to guide you on to a path that leads to health and wellness through regular exercise. At Natural Bodies Pilates we are interested in whole person health and wellness. Just as Joseph Pilates believed, we believe that exercise is not just for the fit. People with chronic pain, scoliosis, fibromyalgia, arthritis, can all benefit from modified Pilates exercises. You do not need to be in shape, or lose weight, before you begin. Beginners are welcome.

"Lucille is a skilled and motivating instructor. She works with you from the ground up as you develop your program." — C.C.

Real Change Starts Within Us

All true change begins on a deeper level, within us. More and more today, we are lured into buying things that are not very good for us, things such as liquor, sweet and fatty foods, or toys that require sitting around for extended periods of time. Every day I hear people who feel they are stuck in lifestyles that inevitably result in chronic pain, suffering, and illness. To remedy the effects of this lifestyle, we are sold medications, make-up, and skin plumping lotions. It starts, for some, to feel like decorations; as if we are decorating ourselves so that nobody, not even ourselves, will see how weak, stiff, and out of breath we are.

As a fitness professional I have talked with hundreds of people about their lifestyles and have always wondered why — when we learned basic daily grooming, general cleanliness, and good habits — daily exercise was excluded. I began to wonder when it was that people started complaining about having to exercise, and what I could do to help people change their habits to include exercise. Every day I hear how challenging it is to incorporate exercise into people’s lives, and when we look at where their lifestyle is leading it isn’t healthy. It is clear that no matter how many decorations, face lifts, or beauty products we use, if we are stiff, in pain, and have chronic conditions, nothing can cover that up. For myself and many of my colleagues and clients, the answer is a balanced approach to whole person health, a way of moving that is restorative, fortifying, and invigorating. In other words: Pilates exercise with Integrative Movement.

The Moment of Choice

With all of the attention on "Resolutions" and the advice that goes with it, I am reminded of some thoughts of Joseph Pilates:

"Daily, from sunrise to sunset, the radio, newspapers and magazines broadcast to the world how to maintain health, how to regain health - what to eat, what to drink, and even about what to think… [misinformation that] not only results in the squandering of untold millions of dollars, but, what is more serious, results in actually shortening, instead of lengthening, the lives of uncounted millions who fall for this bunk." — Joseph H. Pilates, 1934

Mr. Pilates was, fortunately, very opinionated about fad diets and exercise regimens of the day. And today we are inundated with commercials for weight loss pills, super diets, and exercise gizmos without any real acknowledgement of who we are inside, or any guidance as to how to make small changes for the better.

One way to make changes from the inside is to notice the moment of choice. We often have a choice between something that is good for us and something not so good. When we notice that moment of choice, we begin the process of change. Often times simply taking the time to notice gives us the chance to make the better choice. Like putting pennies into a bank, those good choices add up to a healthy life-style, and often a happier disposition.

Anyone who has tried to lose weight, relieve stress, and get fit by studying diets and exercise programs has a wealth of knowledge from which to make healthy choices. Notice the moment of choice. Recognize the short and long term benefits of, for example, a short walk with a friend rather than sitting alone in front of the television. We really do have all of the information available for a healthy life-style — it is up to us in that moment to make the choice for the better.

Part of our success in living a healthy life comes from "paying attention." When we actively attend to our choices and choose wisely, we are, in a way, paying ourselves and reaping the rewards of that attention. When we don't, we wind up paying someone else, a doctor perhaps, to tell us what we already know; rather than seeking a quick fix pill to counteract the action of saturated fats, sugars, and lethargy on the body, that exercise and a healthy diet are the best preventative medicine.

Rather than waiting until we are broken — either with a sudden heart attack or the onset of a long list of preventable diseases — and spending countless dollars on hospital care, medication, stress reduction therapy, and lost wages, we have those moments of choice to exercise, share a good meal, speak truthfully to ourselves and others, and get a good night of sleep. Active attention to our choices, taking personal responsibility, and making alert decisions really can benefit our personal health as well as the health of our families and communities.

It is my wish to provide real benefits - inner and outer - to each person who visits the studio, and in some small way to help make the world a better place. I encourage everyone to find fun, enjoyable, and restorative ways to move every day for health, happiness, creativity, and independence.

Lucille Dyer CMA
Natural Bodies Pilates