There once was a woman who dreamed of a life where she could quit her office job and run her budding Pilates studio (in a small college town where nobody much knew what Pilates was) full time. She would have nothing but joy in her work, helping others find their strength and ease of movement. She would move her own body around in all different ways throughout the day, be inspired by her clients stories of transformation, have flexibility in her schedule, and…well…be able to wear comfortable athleisure every day. Hell yes!
So she decided to take the leap. She gave her notice at the office, scheduled a teacher training to bring on additional teachers, started shifting her mindset and priorities to actually do this thing called small business ownership.
So, she did that thing…and then another thing – a really big, not exactly planned, thing.
While on a vacation, between leaving her office job and delving into her new role, this woman jumped off a cliff into a river. Instead of landing playfully in the water, she hit the bottom of the riverbed with extreme force and landed herself in the hospital with traumatic injuries to her right leg; injuries that would result in five surgeries, several months of painful physical therapy and pain killers. She would live with her family away from her studio during the worst of it while her new teachers would run the show as best they could while she was laid up. She would return and scoot up the extra long flight of stairs on her butt to her studio and teach sitting down. She would be embraced by the support of her teachers and clients, but pressured by others to do more or be more than she was able to at the time.
This woman learned what injury was like in the body…and in HER body she would discover that injury is not just physical pain, but also extremely emotional and mentally taxing. Due to her immobility, she learned how to use her words more clearly and concisely. She would learn all about the knee joint and compensation patterns. She would have a greater level of empathy for others’ pain and stories of their body. She would become a better teacher.
She would recover..slowly but surely. She would grow her studio into thriving Pilates business. She would realize that that flexibility in her schedule meant she would, in her comfy athleisure, work any time, day or night. The studio would evolve and grow into a larger space with more instructors and a larger clientele. She would find boundless joy in her work. Her passion for the power of Pilates grew even stronger as she used it to heal her own body, mind, and soul. She would find herself again, her joy for movement and living. She would bike. She would meet the love of her life. She would eventually say a bittersweet goodbye to the studio she built and move across the country. She would start a new story. And then another story.
This woman was me. This woman is me. This continues to be…MY story.
Just as every Pilates student has a different journey into and within the studio, each Pilates teacher has a story of how they came to be the teacher they are; what got them into the studio as a student in the first place, to register for that initial teacher training, and ultimately the wins, losses, and lessons that make them the guides they are today.
Last year, I signed up to attend the first annual Momentum Fest.
I had no idea what to expect, but ultimately discovered that it was a space where stories and journeys are shared. Of teachers and students alike. Where inspiration and community abound.
At Momentum Fest, movement is truly celebrated…in all forms. Teachers and enthusiasts from all of the world get to come together to sweat, be inspired, learn, laugh, and share their stories! Here, new ideas are explored, tears are shed, and shifts happen, both physical and mental. New connections are made and lives are forever touched. You will move and you will BE moved.
Sounds pretty incredible, right? It was. And it will be again this year.
We all have a story…a human one. We thrive in community, and THIS is our community!
As I write this, I am nearly bursting at the seams with a new exciting story that is occuring in my life. Alas, I’m going to save that for when I see you there in June.
Register for Momentum Fest 2019
Lexy Adkins is the Senior Instructor and Outreach Coordinator at Bolder Pilates in Boulder, CO. She has run her own studio for 5 years, completed intensives in functional anatomy and biomechanics, earned her 200 hour and prenatal yoga teacher certifications, and completed yoga therapy training. After enduring a traumatic accident in 2011 that resulted in 5 surgeries and a lot of personal experience with rehabilitation and compensation patterns, Lexy has a deep understanding of the physical, mental, and emotional aspects of being injured and finding your way back to movement. Lexy has a passion for working with people with injuries and improper movement patterns, competitive athletes, and those who are simply interested in learning about their body and having fun with movement.