News

Are you ready for a Membership upgrade? Your membership level demonstrates to employers, colleagues and clients that your hours as an instructor equate to valuable experience. It can inspire confidence in your ability as a well-educated Pilates Instructor. So, while you’re updating your bio and profile to add your shiny new online skills, why not make sure your membership level accurately reflects the work you’ve put in so far! 9 reasons to upgrade at every opportunity! We’ve already mentioned that it’s evidence of your experience as an instructor, but take a moment to consider these additional benefits: access to more…

Ben Rashleigh PAA Trainer Level 1, Co-Owner & Manager, Aligned for Life Pilates, VIC Instructor Name: Benjamin Rashleigh Studio(s) you work at: Aligned for Life Location: Melbourne Instructor training: Advanced Diploma of the Pilates Method (PITC) PAA level: Level 1 Trainer What originally motivated you to try Pilates and then go on to train as an instructor? I used to be a chef and being hunched over a bench for up to 70 hours a week really played havoc with my body to the point where I had to wear a back brace. Once getting into Pilates that all went…

Managing the Risk of COVID-19 in your workplace “What if someone contracts COVID-19 in my studio?” “If I ask clients to clean equipment and someone gets infected, will I be liable?” With the focus for many on returning to face to face teaching the PAA support team are beginning to field questions about liability and insurance. We posed some of these to BMS Insurance for their feedback: The members need to follow the guidelines provided by Government and Safework Australia and do whatever is reasonable to keep their workplaces clean and safe. If a client or staff member contracted the…

The low down on COVID-19 cleaning Many instructors are keen to get back to work, and restrictions across Australia are slowly easing. However, the dangers of COVID-19 have not yet passed, and re-opening will mean changing daily procedures to incorporate new cleaning processes and social distancing. There is lots of discussion about how this might look for our Pilates studios and workplaces. While applying it in your own workspace might be tricky, the protocol for social distancing is by now familiar and fairly easy to understand: allow 4 square metres per person, keep everyone at least 1.5m away. On the…

Pamela Lam, PAA Member Pregnancy & Postnatal Pilates during the Pandemic Pivot! Pivot! No, it’s not Ross Gellar trying to move a couch up the stairs, it’s not your year 10 netball coach shouting drills from the sidelines. It’s not even me cueing clients in a Barre Attack class. It’s what we’ve all had to do in these seemingly endless months since March. Pivot ourselves, our businesses, our clients, our families. The impact of the Covid-19 shutdowns was clearly felt widely across our industry. This was evident in talking to fellow instructors, studio owners and even clients. Facebook groups were…

Lisa Peresan PAA Trainer Level 2, Turning Pointe Pilates & Evolution Pilates and Physiotherapy, NSW Instructor Name:  Lisa Peresan Studio(s) you work at:  Turning Pointe Pilates & Evolution Pilates and Physiotherapy Location:  Dee Why and Annandale, NSW Instructor training:  Advanced Diploma of Professional Pilates Practice, PilatesITC PAA level:  Trainer Level 2 What originally motivated you to try Pilates and then go on to train as an instructor? I had returned from dancing professionally in Europe in the late 80s, and was finding it hard to get a normal job.  At the time, Pilates was not very well known and there…

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the COVID-19 Pilates Industry Impact Survey. We collected over 500 responses to the questions and a wealth of additional information was shared in all the comment boxes. The PAA Executive are working with Government Ministers, Health Ministers and Business Ministers towards a return to work for professional Pilates Instructors and have engaged the services of an Advocacy consultant to help target the message to government. The information contained in your responses provides a powerful tool for us to educate those in charge about the realities of the Pilates industry in Australia.   Here…

Research Committee still working in background We had been reporting on progress with the Natural Therapies Review but other health related issues have sort of gotten in the way. Whilst the review is continuing, it has taken a backseat to Covid-19. The Research Subcommittee (Hilary Bekmann & Natalie Murray) is still working in the background to be prepared when the important matter of health fund rebates comes back into focus. One major area where research has been conducted relates to breast cancer. A fabulous systematic review and meta-analysis was published in December 2018, entitled Pilates for women with breast cancer:…

Nadine Kent PAA Principal Member, Pilates and Movement, Marcoola QLD Instructor Name: Nadine Kent Studio you work at: Pilates and Movement Location: Marcoola, Sunshine Coast, Queensland Instructor Training: Polestar PAA Level: Principal What originally motivated you to try Pilates and then go on to train as an instructor? From 8-16 years old, I was monitored with a joint condition in my knee and then diagnosed with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome when I was 18. I had constant pain in my joints and was told to limit sport, but continued to dance, as I loved it. I knew I needed to find…

A very warm welcome to the new members (16) who have joined the PAA family since our March 2020 newsletter. Congratulations to all the students (5) who graduated and to the members (2) who have worked to achieve upgrades this period. We encourage you all to upgrade as you reach the next level, either by qualification or hours. For further information on upgrading please read about the benefits of upgrading and the upgrade process. New Associate Student Members (13) Angela Poplett Arzu Gokturkoglu Brittany Alexander Calise Goh Cassie Walker Chrysta Kuczmenda Diana Kartikawati Julie Sagnol Kasia Czambol Maree TanKiang Sandra…