“The seed of every habit is a single tiny decision.            – James Clear, Atomic Habits

Clear says that one of the most effective ways to build a new habit is by building “identity-based habits.  This month, I’d like to plant the tiny seed and suggest we choose to be the kind of people with excellent posture.

Follow these tips and let your new, taller identity take root. 

1. Distribute your weight evenly and point your knees and toes forward.
2. Legs are straight, yet the knees are soft.  
3. Level your hips and maintain the natural curves in your spine.  
4. The ribs are soft and recede naturally into your chest, yet your chest is open.
5. Shoulders are down and gently back, and your arms hang easily with your palms facing your thighs.  
6. The back of your neck is lengthened, and the chin is slightly heavy yet level.
7. The crow of your head floats up as if a stranger were pulling it up.  

We can help!

A few things that clients often ask when planning their schedule are: How often should I take class, and which classes should I take?

A few things to consider.
1. How fast do you want to make change happen in your body and how much time can you reasonably commit to classes? I always tell clients that maintaining consistency ultimately results in more success short term and long term, than sporatic bursts of attendance.

Enjoy Mary’s tasty and healthy Avocado Chicken Salad Recipe.

– As a main course salad over Bibb lettuce
– In sandwiches or pita pockets
– As a filling for lettuce wraps

Ingredients:

2 large cooked chicken breasts (Mary uses rotisserie chicken)
2 large avocados
1 cup corn or two cooked ears of corn cooked, chopped bacon
1/4 cup chives and /or green onion
1/4 cup chopped dill

Combine all these in a large bowl

Lemon Dressing:

Use at least:
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
3 TBS EVOO
Sea salt
Pepper

Toss into the salad. May need to add more dressing as salad absorbs. Cover with plastic wrap, and press down so avocados stay green. Garnish with hard-boiled egg wedges (optional).

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Yield: Serves 3-4 as a side dish

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 pounds (680g) broccoli, cut into florets of even size
1 small package of chopped Mushrooms
10 Cherry Tomatoes, halved
3-4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Juice from half a lemon, about 1 Tbsp
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
Freshly ground Black Pepper
1 inch of Ginger chopped
Splash of Tamari
Salt to taste

Preheat oven: Preheat oven to 425°F

1. TOSS
Toss broccoli and garlic with olive oil, lemon juice, Tamari, and salt: In a large bowl, toss the broccoli florets, mushrooms, tomatoes garlic, and ginger with olive oil. Sprinkle salt over the broccoli and toss to coat.
2. ARRANGE
Arrange florets in a single layer on a baking sheet: Arrange the broccoli florets in a single layer on a baking sheet that has been rubbed with some olive oil or lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
3. ROAST
Roast for 16-20 minutes: Roast at 425°F for 16-20 minutes until cooked through and lightly browned.
4. SQUEEZE
Remove from heat and squeeze with fresh lemon juice: Sprinkle with black pepper and toss. Enjoy immediately.

A client recently asked me, “How do I perform my favorite Pilates exercises at home when I don’t have a Reformer? Great question! You do it by adding what we call “Prop Magic” to your virtual class. Using a foam roller, a stretch band, and a ball, we transform an otherwise flat mat routine into an engaging and effective Pilates lesson.

If you’ve never done a virtual class, you can purchase your own “Prop Magic” from us on-line, set up a little space in your home about the size of a Reformer (3’x7′) and schedule a test call with us to help you get started.

Virtual lessons do more than strengthen and stretch you. They provide feedback, support, and loving encouragement. Virtual sessions are MAGIC!

So Lauri, if you’re missing your Pilates, join us for the magic of virtual! We’d love to see you!

How is your Pilates practice going? Have we seen you at the studio, or are you enjoying “take-out” virtual Pilates in your living room? What, you haven’t done either in a while? If this is true, all you need to know is that WE MISS YOU, and I’ll bet your core is missing us too!

Did you know that Pilates studios are considered “boutique” fitness”? Meaning we are custom, and appeal to a certain kind of person. Kind of like Tesla, we’re not your average sports car. We don’t need to rev people up and make them sweat and pant to be effective. Nope. Instead, we guide clients through smooth and intentional movements designed to balance the body. Don’t tell anyone, but at its “core,” Pilates is a body, mind, spirit practice. One day after a lesson, you know it’s true because you feel the difference.

If you can’t come to the studio, we’ll come to you. Seven days a week, we stream private and group Pilates classes. Feel skeptical? Take a test drive with us. Send me an email and we can set up a demo. Our commitment to you has not changed. You are part of our community, and we love you!

xoxo,

Lauri


We are super excited to be open again. Thank you for joining us online and in the studio! We love seeing and working with you! In addition to continued virtual classes all summer, we have a great line-up of in-studio classes! Here’s what to expect.

New Class Times: Monday – Saturday 8:30 am, 10 am, 2 pm, and 5:30 pm. Private lessons will be genuinely private, taking place before and after classes.

New Layout: We have just 4 Reformers in the studio now for an even more customize and personal approach.

Purchase your props from us: Purchase Foot/hand loops for Apparatus classes, and optionally a Foam Roller or Magic Circle for Cadillac class.

Wear a mask upon entry and exit, but decide whether to wear it while working out in your social distanced Pilates area.

Choose your Pilates Membership. While we honor all previously purchased packages with said terms, monthly memberships have replaced series packages. Decide the number of classes you plan to attend per month (4, 8, 12, or 16) and select the appropriate membership level. Monthly memberships of 12 or more receive a free personal training session with me!

Bring a water bottle and leave any unnecessary items in your car.

Stay socially distanced upon entry and exit from the studio.

Stay home if you have any symptoms related to and have not knowingly been exposed to COVID-19.

Disinfect all equipment after use.

Download our new waiver and bring it with you to your first class. New Waiver

We are super excited to welcome you back to Evergreen Pilates!

xoxo,

Lauri

This month, I discovered the Slackline. A two-inch-wide length of webbing that you tension between two trees in your yard.
The first time I stood up on the line, it began to tremble as if an electrical current was running through it. My leg started to shake wildly. Immediately I was flung off. Ouch! The ground is hard, unforgiving. Better learn how to fall off. I got on and fell off. On, off, on and off. Learning to stand on the line without the help of the tree was first. Balancing over one foot was second. Why was this so hard? Would I ever get across?

Slacklining is a simple and elegant metaphor. Focus on a single point in front of you and make a step by step commitment to it. Look around; you’re off! Look down; you’re off. How often do we derail ourselves from our goals because we don’t stay focused? Instead, we look at the flowers, the hummingbirds, and the people in the yard. Or worse yet, we let our fears and doubts bring us down. Either way – we’re off!

Two months ago, Evergreen Pilates “stepped up” and became a virtual studio. We learned to walk “online.” And just as we have found our balance. its time to transition again. Next month we plan to host virtual and live in-studio sessions. To support us, we’ve hired COVID Consultants, a team of board-certified Infectious Disease physicians and infection prevention specialists, whose goal is to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission. Last week Dr. Lerman came to the studio and performed an onsite inspection and created a customized “Recovery Readiness and Maintenance Plan” for re-opening Evergreen Pilates! By implementing their protocols, we feel confident that our studio will be ready to re-open! One step at a time, we’re focusing on our new direction. Together we’ll get to the other side. We’re grateful to all of you for your support and look forward to seeing you both on and offline.

xoxo,

LauriCOVIDConsultantsCertificate

This week I joined in on a couple of classes at the studio. I kid you not when I say I felt like I was at the studio taking a real live class as usual. The teaches did their thing, offering inspiring demos, spot-on cues, specific personal corrections, and lots of encouragement. I saw familiar faces and smiles, heard the usual laughs, and felt my abs fire up as I busted out exercises I haven’t done in 5 weeks. Yes, I felt like I was at the studio until every so often someone’s dog would lope across the room, climb on top of the owner, lick their face, and then be gone. Or a cat (I won’t mention names) would prance across its owner’s laptop, “purrfectly” obscuring the screen with its furry body. Puppy-lates and kitty-lates is hilarious! Think about it, for the first time; you can take LIVE class and have your pets with you! And while we’re at it – you can have your kids! Is it just me, or is there something adorable about seeing my 8-year-old son pumping his little arms and lungs while doing the Hundred? When you take a class with me, my third grader is bound to make a cameo appearance sometime in the workout.

I’ve had a lot of people thank me for the virtual classes and ask if we’ll continue once we reopen. The answer is YES! Virtual classes are fun; they are effective and super convenient. I’ve seen people exercising on their decks, living rooms, bedrooms, lofts, and even bathrooms. You get to exercise where ever your heart desires and have your pets and kids too! If you’ve not tried a virtual class yet, we’re offering $10 off your first lesson. Give it a try. Connect with us. And don’t worry, you can choose to be seen or to be invisible. When’s the last time you could do that anywhere? Just another perk of taking a virtual class.