Allie Tichenor Of Pilates Punx On How Pilates Can Improve Your Health and Wellbeing
Pilates helps you look & feel younger. I cannot tell you how many jaw-dropping “No, you’re not!” reactions I have given to clients of mine who have been practicing Pilates for years and shock me with being much older than I thought they were. Pilates can be done at any age, so when you’re immobile, achy, and feel pain, you start to feel old. When you’re moving and feel good — you feel younger. I plan on doing Pilates for the rest of my life!
Pilates was invented around 100 years ago, and it is becoming an increasingly popular form of exercise. What exactly is Pilates? How is it different from other modalities like Yoga or Tai Chi? What are the benefits of Pilates? Who can most benefit from it? In this interview series, we are talking to Pilates professionals & practitioners who can talk about how Pilates can improve your health and wellbeing. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Allie Guillerm Tichenor.
Allie Guillerm Tichenor is the owner of Pilates Punx in Los Angeles, CA. She has been teaching Pilates since 2015, starting out with Classical Pilates, and then incorporating Contemporary Pilates through her years working and learning at a handful of Contemporary studios in Los Angeles. She opened Pilates Punx in 2019 because she wanted to create a welcoming studio that makes anyone and everyone feel comfortable — taking any of the intimidation out of boutique fitness, catering to the “other,” the counter-culture, the folks who don’t feel like they fit in at the average studio.
Thank you so much for joining us Allie! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’?
Igrew up in Northampton, MA having never heard of Pilates, it wasn’t until I move to Los Angeles that I discovered Pilates and that one of the Pilates Elders owned a studio in my home town! I stumbled into Pilates because I couldn’t find a routine that worked for me and a coworker of mine was getting certified to teach Pilates. The studio she was learning through opened a 2nd location on our side of town and she got me a free month membership “if I promised to take 3 classes a week” — it’s the easiest promise I was ever able to keep. Once that membership ran out and I had already fallen in love with Pilates, I realized that I couldn’t afford it. I scraped it together for one more month and then decided, after a bit of encouragement, to take the studio’s Certification Program to “learn Pilates really well and never have to pay for it again.” I initially had no intention of teaching, but I screwed up and fell in love with that part of it too. Fast-forward 8 years, my life is Pilates!
Can you share with us the most interesting story from your career? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘takeaways’ you learned from that?
There are so many fun client moments and interesting people stories along the way, but the biggest lesson that I learned was from the pandemic. I was in the everyday overwhelm of running a new business. 6 months into being open, we had to close, like many businesses. No one knew what was going to happen, how long it was going to happen. All I knew was that I had a skill that I could still offer to help keep people sane, I had all my eggs in the Pilates basket, and I just kept going. I wasn’t making money at that time, the workouts were free and I was editing videos that no one was buying — but it kept me busy and kept me from freaking out. Over what turned out to be 15 months of closure, I pivoted a lot. I watched studios announce their permanent closures, I watched the fitness landscape change. I got a crash course in my first 2 years of business and learned the importance of listening to clients and investing in learning more.
The biggest takeaway that I have from this whole experience is that times will change and you will have to too. As I returned to the studio from COVID, my once full schedule of group classes with the occasional private session has turned into a schedule of privates and duos with fewer classes. I learned to listen to clients, to keep my head up and keep looking forward, and to keeping learning.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Being persistent, passionate, and confident. I think one of the biggest things that I learned very quickly was that when you teach group classes, people sometimes don’t listen, do their own thing, and then at the end of class, complain. Confidence is the key to keeping your class working with you. When I was new to a Contemporary Studio, my Classical style was a bit “slower” than the clients were used to. I remember a class just falling apart, this woman was flailing about and had the gall to say “can you move a little quicker?” — this has taught me to cue my pacing a bit quicker, but my #1 command tactic, to regain my confidence if anyone in class is not moving along with the cuing is — an isometric hold.
Once I gained my footing and became a stronger instructor (which also just comes with time) I realized that passion was a key element to teaching. It’s such a physical job and the connection with people, taking care of them and their needs is not something for just anyone — you have to really care about what you’re doing to make a career out of it.
Any finally, persistence. You cannot be a business owner if you are going to throw in the towel at every bump in the road. I joke and I say that I’m still here after COVID because I’m stubborn, but the truth is that I didn’t stop. On Day 1 of shutdowns I went to my empty studio and made my boyfriend be the body in an Instagram Live. We did that every day for 90+ days. He actually still proposed to me and is now my husband despite me using him as a Pilates prop!
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that might help people?
I am launching the Pilates Punx Certification Program this year. This is a comprehensive Pilates Certification that is designed to help people deepen their own Pilates practice and learn to teach other people. Whether they use it for their own selves or start a new career, I’m able to help more people find a deeper love for Pilates. My goal is to spread the accessibility of the practice, since it is known to be expensive and there are some stigmas around it, and certain pockets have created a sort of “gatekeeper” experience. By teaching people this in-depth program from my perspective, I hope to not only help them, but to pass the passion and practice on to their clients, and so on.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of our interview about Pilates. To begin, can you tell our readers a bit about why you are an authority on the topic of Pilates?
I have been teaching Pilates since 2016. Through teaching, workshopping, learning from mentors and other instructors, as well as a ton of client experience, I’ve worked with almost every injury or special case. I truly love what I do because I get to help people. I have helped clients avoid needing surgery, alleviate pain, and feel amazing. I am always learning and plan to continue to do so throughout my life, and I am a true Pilates nerd.
Let’s start with a basic definition so that we are all on the same page. What exactly is Pilates?
Pilates is a system, invented by Joseph Pilates, that focuses on lengthening and strengthening. It is a core-centric workout where you enlist multiple muscle groups rather than working just a single spot at a time. There’s a focus on your spine, which is why a lot of clients are sent by doctors, physical therapists, and chiropractors to Pilates. There are a number of apparatuses that use springs for tension, which allow work in the eccentric and concentric part of a movement — so rather than getting work on just the lift and then dropping, you control both parts of the movement. Joseph Pilates actually called it “Contrology” — it’s all about controlling your body. It was renamed “Pilates” after his death.
How is Pilates different from other movement modalities that you have practiced?
Pilates lengthens and strengthens, helps posture, focuses on pelvic floor stability, and works muscles that support the joints, so it helps people alleviate pain. It’s really safe and there are modification for everything, so everyone can do it, no matter where you’re starting or what injury you have. I don’t think that this can be said for just any movement modality. Pilates is the most efficient workout that I have ever done. So many other modalities have a focus on individual muscles, or rely on getting your heart rate up. Pilates is a full body workout that requires you to turn on multiple muscle groups at a time. In the most extreme example, if you’re working on the reformer and don’t engage your core when kneeling, your balance will be thrown off and you’ll wobble off the machine.
I often hear “Pilates? That’s just like..Yoga, right?” Yoga doesn’t use apparatuses. While Mat Pilates may see some crossover, Pilates is strength and flexibility where Yoga is flexibility, then strength. Yoga has somewhat of a spiritual element to it as well, but Pilates doesn’t focus on that. Pilates teaches a mind/body connection, but Pilates is strength training, and at times closer to physical therapy than yoga.
On a personal level, what are the biggest benefits that you have gained from regular Pilates practice?
The greatest benefit that I’ve gained from regular Pilates practice is a positive and enjoyable connection to exercise that has nothing to do with weight loss. I started my exercise journey like many: a gym membership because I wanted to lose weight and look a certain way. Pilates has helped me get to a place where I exercise because I enjoy it, I feel better when I do it, I feel great while I’m doing it, and it clears my mind.
Oh an aesthetic level, I worked so so hard to have toned abs and Pilates is the key to what my teenage self desperately wanted. And I gained over an inch in height. No joke, I was 5’7 3/4 claiming to be 5’8 and in my 30’s I grew with regular Pilates practice to be a solid 5’9”
But the best part is that I have found a practice for life — the low-impact workout that has helped fo many of my clients is something that I can say I can do until I’m in my 90s.
Who do you think can most benefit from Pilates?
Literally everyone can benefit from Pilates. All people — young or old, any gender, people with injuries or people who are injury-free, athletes, people who are new to exercise, people who are pros at exercise — everyone! The stigma of “Pilates is just for women” or “Pilates is just for dancers” has got to go — whether you’re showing up because you’re looking to alleviate back/knee/hip/neck/shoulder pain or you’re looking to facilitate the other activities in your life — everyone can benefit from Pilates!
Pilates can sometimes be expensive. Can you share with our readers your perspectives on why Pilates is worth its costs?
Pilates is worth every penny, but one of my goals is to make it a bit more affordable. It is worth the cost, even the higher price point studios, because you are getting instructors who go through intense training, keep up with workshops, and are knowledgeable about modifications for injuries, can work with prenatal clients, and are able to deepen your practice. (Pilates certifications tend to be 450+ hours, 9–12 months while other certifications can be obtained in 1–2 days!)
Once you get used to Pilates and then you take any other class or private session, you can see the difference. You don’t get adjustments in a packed yoga class, you don’t see modifications for a variety of bodies in your HIIT class, you can hire a personal trainer who just takes you through the movements but doesn’t create a safe full-body workout.
Pilates classes tend to be small to keep them safe so that your instructor can keep an eye on every body in the room. You’re not being treated like a body just stuffed into a crowded room, so you pay a little bit more. I’d rather invest in a lifelong practice that I can due well into my old age than save money now to be forced to pay for private sessions later because I get an injury that requires it. But my cost-saving hack was just to get certified!
Based on your research or experience, can you please share your “5 Ways That Pilates Can Improve Your Health and Wellbeing”? (Please share a story or an example for each)
1. Pilates can alleviate pain
Pilates focuses on working the supportive muscles surrounding joints. I helped a client who rides bikes on long group rides go from needing a day or two to recover from these 20 mile rides to riding 100 miles and being ready to just get up and go the next day!
2. Pilates makes you stronger
Pilates is strength training. I watch clients continue to get stronger in their practice and gain strength outside of Pilates. I recently helped a friend move. I was moving more and moving things faster than any of the guys that were there
3. Pilates is good for your mental health
Movement and exercise in general help with our mental health. It is essential, it releases endorphins, and you really do get that mood boost. I personally learned this because I got used to my mental state with daily exercise and then realized when I don’t have the time or I fall out of the routine, I start to get a little depressed.
4. Pilates helps you look & feel younger
I cannot tell you how many jaw-dropping “No, you’re not!” reactions I have given to clients of mine who have been practicing Pilates for years and shock me with being much older than I thought they were. Pilates can be done at any age, so when you’re immobile, achy, and feel pain, you start to feel old. When you’re moving and feel good — you feel younger. I plan on doing Pilates for the rest of my life!
5. Pilates helps you to really be in tune with your body, learning a mind/body connection
People who regularly practice Pilates tend to be more in-tune with their overall being. Just an over-all awareness of their physical self in a way that people often don’t connect to. From understanding what certain foods do to their body, inflammation, amount of sleep, etc — Pilates practice is just like a continued check-in with your whole body and you develop a better understanding of how to have a conversation with your body.
In my own Pilates practice, I stress the importance of precision in Pilates. Based on your experiences and research, what are your thoughts about why precision is important in Pilates?
Precision is so important because some of the exercises are really nuanced. If you don’t set the exercise up right or you’re not moving quite right, it might feel “easy.” Add that little adjustment and all of a sudden you feel the exercise correctly. Classical Pilates only has 5–6 reps of most exercises, so there isn’t a lot of time to correct the exercise before moving on, so precision is necessary. You can go through the movements of any exercise and not be precise and give yourself a checkmark for the day, but if you take the time to be precise, you’ll see a world of change.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
My goal is to make Pilates accessible to EVERYone. If I could start a movement that would teach people that even if Pilates is not their ONE type of exercise, that it should be PART of their overall routine. Football teams should practice Pilates in between practices, people who lift should alternate Pilates into their routine, runners will help fix their posture and become more efficient runners, wrestlers could alleviate pain from their injuries, and so on. I would start a movement that would be “Pilates and” — and it’s not those BS hybrid Pilates studios, but legit Pilates and — whatever your other activity in life is — practiced separately, but fitting in to your lifestyle.
What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?
You can find everything Pilates Punx on www.pilatespunx.com
We have a YouTube Channel for shorter workouts: http://www.youtube.com/c/PilatesPunx
Instagram (for updates, laughs, and tips): @PilatesPunxLA for me, @PilatesPunxStudio for the studio
And Virtual Classes — hosted by Recess.tv: https://pilatespunx.com/virtual-classes/
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About The Interviewer: Maria Angelova, MBA is a disruptor, author, motivational speaker, body-mind expert, Pilates teacher and founder and CEO of Rebellious Intl. As a disruptor, Maria is on a mission to change the face of the wellness industry by shifting the self-care mindset for consumers and providers alike. As a mind-body coach, Maria’s superpower is alignment which helps clients create a strong body and a calm mind so they can live a life of freedom, happiness and fulfillment. Prior to founding Rebellious Intl, Maria was a Finance Director and a professional with 17+ years of progressive corporate experience in the Telecommunications, Finance, and Insurance industries. Born in Bulgaria, Maria moved to the United States in 1992. She graduated summa cum laude from both Georgia State University (MBA, Finance) and the University of Georgia (BBA, Finance). Maria’s favorite job is being a mom. Maria enjoys learning, coaching, creating authentic connections, working out, Latin dancing, traveling, and spending time with her tribe. To contact Maria, email her at [email protected]
