Pilates Teacher Training

Educator Highlight: Nichole Anderson, NCPT

Polestar Educator Nichole Anderson has been teaching for 10 years. Her first comprehensive was with Bob Schroedter and Cynthia McGee LaPortilla in 2004. Nichole began as a Polestar Mentor under Educators Amy Broekemeier and Dannielle Holder in Salt Lake City, Utah where she taught group and private Pilates from 2010 – 2016. She has assisted Transition courses with Shelly Power and led her first Comprehensive in Miami 2018. Nichole is the assistant director of education for Polestar Pilates International and manages domestic education in the United States.

NA: I have recently been interested in visiting doing a tour of Norway. After getting into Norse mythology, I have been interested in seeing the landscape of the myths.

Polestar: What are your current inspirations?

NA: I am currently inspired by how magnificent and adapting our bodies are. The more I see and experience movement, the more I realize how infinitely capable our bodies are of anything and everything. Gone are the days of seeing people through the lens of their physical limitations, and I am excited to be a part of a movement that encourages people to move. I just finished a Yoga teacher training with Heather Seagraves which has served as another inspiration to my movement practice and teaching.

Polestar: What are you reading?

NA: I am always reading about 7 books at a time. Among them, I have been reading The Modern Herbal Dispensatory: A Medicine-Making Guide by Steven H. Horne and Thomas Easley, After the Ecstasy, the Laundry by Jack Kornfield, and Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. I can also always be found with a mystery novel for rainy days and airplane rides.

Polestar: What is your favorite Quote?

NA: One of my current favorites (poem) is “And For No Reason” By Hafiz… (Look it up!)

Polestar: What do you love about teaching?

NA: I love seeing people have that “aha” moment in their bodies. The moment when they realize they are in control of how they feel and move. When they take ownership of their movement and from that, open up into creativity with their bodies.

Polestar: What do you hope to convey in your teaching?

NA: I hope to convey that each person is the greatest authority of their body. I hope that students can feel empowered through listening and observing their bodies. Through this they can make decisions one where they can move safely with the most ease and freedom.

Polestar: Describe your movement style?

NA: I would describe my movement style as improvisational and imaginative. I like to include imagery and improvisation into my movement and I enjoy creating a space for people to improvise in their own bodies based off of images they create or images that are suggested. It is always impressive to see what movement comes out of it

Polestar: What is your favorite apparatus?

NA: My favorite apparatus is always shifting and changing. My current favorite apparatus is the trapeze table. I like the stability of the table combined with the freedom of being directly attached to the springs – how you can move your limbs independently from a pulley system (like the reformer).

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You can find Nichole on Instagram @nicholemoves

Graduate Highlight: Mara Sievers

“What really matters is that we feel good and that we can live our lives to the fullest. If we apply it correctly, Pilates is the tool to get there.

It’s the best tool I know.” – Mara Sievers

Mara Sievers is a Polestar Graduate, Practitioner and the creator of the Pilates Encyclopedia.  Read our interview with Mara and discover her thoughts on the body’s kinesthetic intelligence and what led her to Pilates.


Polestar: What do you love about teaching?

MS: I love that I get to know the whole person. Pilates gives me permission to take all aspects of a person into consideration… their body of course but also their emotions and thoughts. Feelings influence breathing and breathing influences movement. I love that my students leave the studio feeling better than when they came in. Often that’s my only goal for a session, especially for my clients with movement restrictions, limitations or pain. I work with a lot of people who’ve never experienced individualized Pilates on equipment before, and I love seeing their excitement when they realize that they CAN do this. That they don’t have to hurt and suffer to get stronger and move better with more ease.

Polestar: What is your current inspiration?

MS: My students’ activities outside the studio inspire me. I usually ask them what they’d like to be able to do outside the studio, in the real world. Often it’s hiking, skiing, tennis, gardening or playing with and lifting up their grand children. Once we have a goal that excites them we build the skills to get there and we find ways to mimic the movement in the studio in preparation for real world application.

If my energy gets drained from teaching a lot I make sure to take lessons from other teachers. Getting out of my head is important. Having another teacher look at my body and help me find better movement patterns is invaluable and incredibly inspirational. When my own body feels great I want to share this feeling with my students. Ultimately, Pilates teachers are practitioners first.

I live in New Hampshire, and we’re pretty outdoorsy. Moving in nature is the best meditation and inspiration for me. It helps me put things into perspective, clears my mind from clutter, and helps me focus on the essentials.

Polestar: Why Pilates?

MS: I used to be a dancer. Then I got injured and Pilates helped me get back on stage. I later started to teach all sorts of group fitness, aerobics, step aerobics and yoga. Eventually, I decided to fully focus on Pilates because it was the only modality that gave me the skill to work with everyone, no matter their limitations. You can’t be too inflexible, too weak or too out of shape to do Pilates. You’re out of excuses to feel better, stronger and happier.

Polestar: What do you hope to convey in your teaching?

MS: That Pilates doesn’t matter. What? Did I just say that? What I mean is that it’s not important to do Pilates perfectly. What’s the point in practicing a gazillion Roll Ups to “perfect” them if I end up with neck pain. What really matters is that we feel good and that we can live our lives to the fullest. If we apply it correctly, Pilates is the tool to get there. It’s the best tool I know. So in that regard Pilates matters. A lot.

Polestar: Where would you love to vacation?

MS: Any of the National Parks in the western US. I’m an avid hiker, and I’ve never been to Yosemite, Zion, Yellowstone, etc. I’m also getting more and more intrigued with Alaska.

Polestar: What is your favorite quote?

MS: “Everyone is the architect of their own happiness.”

It reminds me that it’s all about personal responsibility. I sometimes get the feeling that my desire for my students to get better is stronger than their own. Probably because I have more faith in Pilates than they do. I’ve seen with my own eyes and felt in my own body the power of the method. But ultimately, I can’t do it for them. The student has to believe in it, too. If you can’t believe it, then you can’t achieve it, right?

Polestar: Describe your movement style?

MS: Slow, precise, soft, gentle, and with intention. I came to Pilates through an injury due to hyper-mobility.  This set the stage for me to focus on exercising within my abilities and not pushing outside of my comfort zone until I’m able to fully control the movement. I focus on building a strong foundation first for each of my students. They want to see me do the most difficult exercises in the repertoire. But I know exactly what I can and can’t do (correctly). I know which exercises will help me and which ones I’d be cheating (compensating) my way through. I don’t care about showing off. Unfortunately most of us are very impressionable by the “shiny things,” the flashy exercises, the upside down ones. The subtle work that happens inside the body is often not visible to the outside (especially not to the untrained eye). But it changes everything. It makes all the difference.

Polestar: What is your favorite apparatus?

MS: At the moment the Ladder Barrel. Pilates can get a bit linear and rigid. The curves of the Barrel remind me and my students to keep the spine supple (as a cat’s).

The Oov has been tremendously helpful with this same goal. It provides a shortcut by helping the student feel a neutral spine position without having to explain so much. It’s a direct line to the body’s kinesthetic intelligence.

Polestar: What are you reading?

MS: I recently read Critical Hours: Search and Rescue in the White Mountains by Sandy Stott. As a hiker and outdoor enthusiast, I was humbled by how much effort goes into rescuing hikers who get into trouble. I learned a ton about how to stay safe.

I also highly recommend Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown for anyone who, like me, tends to have too many ideas and wants to do too much. Its philosophy of dropping all non-essential activities resonates with the “less is more” Pilates mindset. He calls it “less but better.” I remind my students that fewer repetitions but performed with more focus are worth more than 20 sloppy repetitions.  One of Joe’s quotes comes to mind:  “A few well-designed movements, properly performed in a balanced sequence, are worth hours of sloppy calisthenics or forced contortion.”

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Polestar Graduate Highlight: Amy Foster Berntsen

Dance, Yoga, Gyrotonic, Pilates…she does it all!  We interviewed Polestar graduate and practitioner Amy Foster Berntsen in Miami, FL.  Her unique perspective of movement informs her teaching and lifestyle -read more to learn about Amy! Catch her on instagram @amynamaste Polestar: What do you love about teaching? AFB: Teaching for me, is a service of giving back the wonderful gifts that were given to me by my teachers. I’m passionate about my work. Being a professional dancer in premier ballet companies around the world, I had to cultivate an awareness of how to care for my own body. Having battled many different types of injuries with the mindset “the show must go on!” I couldn’t let an injury hold me back from dancing. I first discovered Pilates and GYROTONIC® in my youth while training to become a ballet dancer. My teachers were strict and I was dedicated. I loved finding new ways to strengthen my physic and I absolutely fell in love with these two practices. With all the different modalities I’ve picked-up along the way, Pilates and GYROTONIC® methods contributed to faster recovery time when injured. Through my ballet career I developed a broader understanding of alternative movement modalities. Being a teacher of movement has been in my wheelhouse for about 20 years now. It’s very fulfilling and I believe it’s my dharma, my life’s purpose. I also teach yoga which deepens my spiritual practice and I meditate everyday to help me relax and connect within. I meet a lot of incredible people in my field and I’ve been fortunate enough to train with some great minds en route my movement journey. I’m always grateful and love to incorporate little tidbits of my favorite teachers style into my classes. That’s what keeps me growing. We learn from each other. We are all teachers and we never stop learning. To me that’s magic! Polestar: What are your current inspirations?​ AFB: I’m inspired by my students. How they show up to class. Ready to learn and take care of their bodies. It is a pleasure to see that and feel like my teachings makes a difference in their life. Polestar: Why Pilates? AFB: Pilates is a vehicle for everyday movement. It creates structure in the body, resets the nervous system and reeducates the tissues. Pilates keeps the body in-check with less aches and pains. As we get older it is important to find a movement practice if we want to stay healthy and rejuvenated. This is what I find to be true in my own body. I always tell my students “consistency is key”. Polestar: What do you hope to convey in your teaching? AFB: Knowledge and new skills through an experience of movement. I hope people leave my class happy and feel good about themselves. Polestar: Where would you love to Vacation to? AFB: Hawaii is the next place I’d love to visit or Italy, but Hawaii first. Polestar: What is your favorite Quote? AFB: This is hard because I have so many favs but here’s a potent one that I resonate with. “We may act sophisticated and worldly but I believe we feel safest when we go inside ourselves and find home, a place where we belong and maybe the only place we really do.” -Maya Angelou Polestar: Describe your movement style? AFB: Dynamic, poised, strong, challenging, flexible, mindful, graceful and chill Polestar: What is your favorite apparatus? AFB: Ladder Barrel. I love doing back bends on it every morning before teaching. And the reformer of coarse. Polestar: What are you reading? AFB: Currently listening to audio book: Mindfulness In Action by Chogyam Trungpa
Amy Foster Berntsen
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“The Constant” in Pilates

Becky Phares, PMA®-CPT is a Polestar Pilates Graduate, Practitioner and contributor to the Polestar Life Weekly Blog.  With more than 10 years of teaching Becky teaches at her studio The Body Initiative Pilates Studio in Lafayette, Louisiana.  Find Becky and her Studio on Facebook: The body Initiative Pilates Studio and Instagram @the_body_initiative_ .

“The Constant”

I have a new theme… “The Constant” . This term shows itself in multiple different ways throughout society. The dictionary defines it as occurring continuously over a period of time or unchanged through time and space. In math constants are parts of algebraic expressions that do not change. In science it is referred to as properties that do not change. If you were to google the word constant you may come up with: a constant burden, constant bickering or constant chatter. Constant is even a name given to babies; in 2016 it was ranked #16,656 for popularity for girls and #13,558 for boys. But what in the world does that have to do with Pilates? Well, it shows up EVERYWHERE in our system. Let’s take a look: In the exercise the hundred, the shape of your spine and legs stay constant as your arms pump. In foot work your spine stays in a constant shape as your hips and knees flex and extend, even though it is moving with the carriage. In rolling like a ball, the whole shape of the body is constant even though the shape changes orientation. But why is it important? I feel that this gives some of my clients feedback if I give them “the constant.” For example during long stretch the spine and pelvis stay constant. The first part of long stretch, the plank position, is fairly easy to keep the shape. However, once you stretch your body back and your arms forward, your spine and pelvis want to change. Because of where gravity is sitting, I get a lot of people who like to create a bigger, lordotic curve in this exercise. It’s understandable because the body goes in the path of least resistance. So could an instructor benefit from cueing the constant? Absolutely! It could help the client understand that the shape does not change even though the spine is in a greater challenge. The constant may change orientation, like tendon stretch and thigh stretch. Sometimes the constant stays in the same orientation but moves along with the carriage such as in stomach massage and feet in straps. Other times the constant stays absolutely stable in space and time but progresses in difficulty because of outside forces, such as leg pull front and chest lift. **see pictures below So is this a new theory? Absolutely not! I’m just sharing different terms that I am currently using with my clients. I like this word/concept because regular people walking through my door easily comprehend it. Other relatable terms are dissociation and stability. We all use what works for each individual client. Try this on and see if it works for you.

**The constant is shown in white**

Exercises that the constant changes orientation to gravity:

Thigh Stretch
Thigh Stretch
Tendon Stretch
Tendon Stretch

Exercises that the constant stays in the same orientation to gravity but moves with the carriage:

Feet in Straps
Feet in Straps
Stomach Massage

Exercises that the constant stays the same in space but grow more difficult through the series:

Leg Pull Front
Chest Lift
Find Becky and her Studio on Facebook: The body Initiative Pilates Studio and Instagram @the_body_initiative_ . Like our Blog? Subscribe to the Newsletter and be the first in the know!

Polestar Graduate Highlight: Vennesa Leopold

We sat down with Polestar graduate Vennesa Leopold to learn about her Pilates practice, teaching and what she does outside the studio! Polestar Pilates: What do you love about teaching? VL: I have a passion and heart for people. I love getting to know them and helping them get the most out of life. I love sharing my knowledge and restoring health. Pilates and movement in general is a way for me to help guide people. I feel like teaching is way of speaking with them without necessarily using words. I love when someone has an “ah-ha” moment, like they finally connected with a certain body part that hasn’t moved in a certain way in years! Polestar Pilates:  What is your current inspiration? VL: At the moment I am really inspired by my husband. He waterskis on a professional level and is currently training towards breaking the world record. To watch someone you love set their sights high and aim for the stars is incredibly inspiring. Polestar Pilates: What brought you to Pilates? VL: I took up Pilates 2 years ago during my pregnancy. I was very sick with nausea and vomiting for most of the pregnancy and every time I tried to exercise it got worse! Pilates was a way I could move without feeling sick. Also, I worked as a physiotherapist in Australia and saw the benefits of Pilates across all areas of health. Overall, I’m just so intrigued by the human body, the interaction between the anatomy, physiology and gravity… it’s just fascinating to me! Polestar Pilates: What do you hope to convey in your teaching? VL: For me when someone has that “ah-ha” moment and they look at you like, “Did you just see what I felt?” I get so excited. I hope to convey that movement is therapy, for the body and the mind. And that it’s never too late to start moving towards greater health. Polestar Pilates: Where would you love to vacation to? VL: I have always wanted to travel back to Santorini, Greece. It’s such a fun place to be- in the middle of the Mediterranean- amazing food, funny people, incredible sunsets and you can ride around on a donkey if you want. Polestar Pilates: What is your favorite quote? VL: I don’t really have a favorite quote as such, but I did hear something recently that really resonated with me. The pastor at our church said, “There is a reason why the rearview mirror is smaller than the front windshield. The past is small, distant and should not be your focus.  The future, however, is big, vast and right out there in front of you.” Polestar Pilates: Describe your movement style. VL: Athletically aware. Don’t even know if that makes sense but that’s the way I would describe it! Being an athlete on a pro level in a very technical sport you have to constantly be aware of where your body is in space. Small adjustments in body position make a huge difference to performance. Pilates is the same way. I like to move in a strong, intentional and athletic way on all pieces of equipment, just as I do on my waterski. Polestar Pilates: Do you have a favorite apparatus? VL: I actually really love the Chair. You can get a whole body workout and wake up feeling sore the next day! You don’t need weights, just yourself. Feeling sore is rewarding to me! Polestar Pilates: What are you reading? VL:  I like to look at books that have pictures in them, so I read a lot of children’s books to my 16 month-old daughter. You can learn a lot from Dr. Seuss! Like our Blog? Sign up for the newsletter – Polestar Life Weekly!

Injury Prevention & Pilates Teacher Training

Katrina Hawley NCPT, is a Polestar Educator and graduate of the Polestar Pilates Rehabilitation Program.
This morning I was working with a client who was experiencing shoulder pain due to swimming.  She asked me, “will my shoulder pain go away if I stop swimming?” I responded, “maybe, but do you really want to stop swimming?” She said no, and we then started the process of figuring out what was going on with her shoulder.  We spent the next hour using Pilates as a tool for problem solving. Her body’s motion was our research. We explored movement of the shoulder in different relationships to gravity. We moved through closed chain movements and open chain movements to increase proprioception, and we also progressed from exercises that assisted the shoulder to exercises that added gentle resistance.  But that’s not all, because our shoulder girdle moves in relationship to the rest of the body, we also looked at the thoracic and cervical spine as well as fascial connections throughout the entire torso.  Pilates became our method of change, and not only did my client’s shoulder movement change, but her entire emotional life was improved. Pilates is often thought of as a set of exercises, but if you attend the right Pilates teacher training, it becomes so much more.  At Polestar Education, Pilates becomes an avenue for critical as well as creative thinking and problem solving. The Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Teacher Training helps teachers learn how to see the body in front of them and then design a program based on their findings.  Pilates becomes a collaboration between two people instead of a script read by an instructor.  The Polestar Pilates Teacher learns how to cue movement using imagery and tactile cues as well as the timbre and rhythm of the voice.  All of this has the goal of creating a positive movement experience. What is the result of the Polestar Pilates curriculum?  Pilates teachers that are able to empower their clients to make change in the function of their lives.  Pilates teachers that can help an athlete enhance performance. Pilates teachers that can help their clients make an ache or pain disappear for more than just one session.  Pilates teachers that don’t have to say, “yeah it might be best if you stop swimming.” I love teaching the Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Series.  I get to see the “aha” moments when a teacher realizes, “oh there’s more than one way to do things.”  As students are mastering the different exercises and concepts, their bodies begin to change before my very eyes.  They tell me stories about how their life improves with greater movement, and then they tell me the story of how their heart grows when they are able to empower someone else.  I love teaching Polestar Pilates teachers because I know that more people will be able to keep swimming as long as they want!
Katrina Hawley is a Certified Pilates Teacher by the Pilates Method Alliance. She is also a graduate of the Polestar Pilates Rehabilitation Program. Katrina studied Somatic Movement approaches under Janis Pforsich, Aliza Shapiro, Charlotte Wile, Irene Dowd and Martha Eddy. From 2005-2010 Katrina was on the Board of Directors for the International Somatic Movement Education & Therapy Association (ISMETA) and now continues to be an ISMETA Registered Somatic Movement Educator (RSME). Katrina teaches Laban Movement Analysis and Pilates at the University of Hartford’s Hartt School in the Dance Division. Previously, Katrina was the co-director of Hawley Martin Dance (2001-2006) and she holds her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Temple University. She currently co-owns The Pilates Place in Hadley. For more information on the upcoming Comprehensive Pilates training in Hadley, MA or in a city near you, click here.