I received my certification in 2003 at Drago's Gymnasium. I was known as an "Independent" study because I didn't bounce back and forth between Drago's and the studio on 72nd with Sean. When I went through the program, Romana was breaking her relationship with Sean. She said, "No one tells me no." I don't know much about the relationship. They collaborated for many years together. Honestly, I never had a good feeling about him even though we never met. I've never met anyone who said anything nice about him until this past year, and that person turned out to be unscrupulous, too. Sean seems to own a whole bunch of Joseph Pilates' belongings for someone who never met the man. Romana had many items from Uncle Joe's studio that seemed to fall into the hands of people who never met, studied or practiced with either him or his wife, Clara. Unfortunately, Romana had the reputation of trusting the wrong people. It had happened a few times. That's how she ended up at Drago's. Thank God he was a person of integrity. 

I'm mentioning this as I start my series on The Five Parts of the Mind because I learned it while in the program. I don't know where the original information came for these "five parts"? Did they come from Sean? I don't know. They seemed similar to stuff I remember discussing in school, but in a brief search, I can't seem to find anything about "the five parts of the mind".  We learned it as part of our curriculum, so to speak. It was a mantra we touched upon when discussing the methodology of Pilates. You may have a general idea of the methodology from the series I did on The Six Principles of Pilates. Another reason why I'm mentioning the split, Will. You have to have a strong Will to stand up for what you believe is right.

The Five Parts of the Mind in Pilates: Imagination, Intelligence, Intuition, Memory and Will. If you know me or have felt a sense about me, you can probably guess Intuition is my favorite! I may save that for last, we'll see. I'm getting called to Will for the start of our series.

A brief definition of the verb, Will, is used to indicate willingness. If you show up for a private or group class, you would think that you are there willingly. That is part of the work. I'd argue what are you willing to do? What is your commitment to the practice? What is your commitment to yourself?  What work are you willing to do? You may just show up and go through the motions. It's unfortunately how many people get through life. Are you willing to connect to your body? Are you willing to expand upon the exercises? Are you willing to see what you are doing differently? 

I'm reminded of a wonderful word Cynthia Shipley used when teaching me: Perseverance. I feel like this better describes the work we do with Will. Perseverance is: steady persistence in adhering to a course of action, a belief, or a purpose; steadfastness; the act of persevering; persistence in anything undertaken; continued pursuit or prosecution of any business, or enterprise begun. 

When it comes to learning and executing Pilates at an Advanced or Super Advanced level, you have to embody Will and Perseverance. In over twenty years of teaching, I wish I had a dollar every time someone said, "Oh, Pilates is hard!", I'd have a bougie vacation stored away. Most people just give up. Or they try a few times and then life is hard, and they don't return. As I just told a long-time client recently, working on yourself is F'ing hard work!!! You need to embody Will and Perseverance to make that happen. No matter what it looks like on the outside. No matter how hard it is to execute. No matter if you are being supported. Do you want it bad enough, whatever "it" is? You'll do it if you do, but most people don't make an effort. Pilates is hard work!

I have found there is a small percentage of people who really catch the Pilates Bug. Those who have one or two classes and can feel what it does for their bodies and minds, and they're hooked! They usually embody a strong intelligence (another part of the mind), probably an injury or aliment they wanted to work on and those who have had hard lives and persevered. 

Romana became a world famous despite a few disingenuous colleagues because she had the Will to keep going. I'd argue she also had the heart of lion, the talent of a rockstar and the patience of teacher. If it wasn't for her commitment to the work, or maybe just to life, we wouldn't have some amazing teachers worldwide continuing the authenticity and integrity of the work. 

Are you Willing to do the work? In Pilates? On yourself? In life? What would you need to make that change? Are there times where you feel you have more or less depending on the circumstance?

Shout out! I'll shout back….

Many Blessings,

Julia xo