Cueing for Maximum Impact
People always ask how a self proclaimed “ambivert” manages to run a Pilates studio and teach 20 hours a week.
One of my favorite ways to exist in this space as an ambivert while also prioritizing client needs, is to utilize mindful cueing. What this means, is that instead of a constant stream of cues, I am very mindful and aware of how and when I’m cueing clients.
Enhancing the Mind+Body Connection
We talk a lot about proprioception and the mind+body connection in Pilates. As a Pilates instructor, my job is to help guide you into deeper connection and help you develop those neural pathways between your body and your brain.
Every Pilates Native client starts their journey with an Initial Assessment. During this assessment, I learn a lot about your body and how it works. Each exercise is chosen because it allows me to assess specific movement patterns and reveals imbalances, compensations, dominant patterns and how you engage your brain to move the body. During the assessment, I learn whether or not you can actively engage muscle groups or control your body during specific movements. I also learn whether or not you have the current functionality, whether it’s stability, strength or mobility, to perform certain movements.
When cueing, I rely on what we found in the Initial Assessment to set cueing priorities.
I’ve found that the best way to cue, is to
1) make sure you’re aligned safely and
2) focus on what you can currently connect to and control in the exercise.
Our first priority is always safety. Prioritizing proper alignment as our first cue ensures you’re engaged in a safe practice that won’t damage the body.
Focusing our second cue on what you can connect to and control, develops confidence and body awareness as you are able to follow and execute the cues.
Being able to connect to a muscle group and execute a cue properly is what helps us develop or strengthen the neural pathways between brain and body.
Cueing with a 2 item priority list creates an environment in which you’re maybe getting 1-2 cues over a course of movements. This is intentional. If you are being assaulted with a constant barrage of words, it’s going to be nearly impossible to connect your brain to your body.
Cueing to Accommodate Individual Anatomy & Ability
Every body’s anatomy is different. Spines, for example, are unique to each individual, with their own unique curvatures. A deeper lumbar curve doesn’t necessarily mean someone is not in neutral spine. Their neutral spine may just have a deeper lordotic curve. Cueing this person to a flat back or a “neutral spine” may actually cause harm or misunderstanding of their own body. Likewise, cueing someone with a naturally flatter spine to exaggerate their curves, would be equally inappropriate.
Frequently, we bump up against an exercise or a position that just isn’t accessible for one reason or another. Depending on your IA results, we may need to spend time developing the strength or mobility needed or we might just need to spend some time building awareness around the movement.
Other times, we may just be built a certain way. As an instructor, I’m always mindful of not cueing what a client cannot currently control anatomically.
Cueing to your current abilities allows us to work in a space where we can slowly open up the stability, mobility, strength or brain space needed to get into other movements.
Developing Stronger Intrinsic Body Awareness
When cueing, an instructor is providing external feedback. If a client becomes dependent on instructor cues and external feedback, they lose the opportunity to trust themselves and develop stronger body awareness.
One of the most powerful aspects of mindful cueing is creating space for you to experience Pilates intrinsically. During your sessions, you should always be given room and time to think, feel and move on your own.
Without external cues to validate every movement, your brain and body have to work harder to connect with one another and you really have to focus to build the body awareness.
We want the work we are doing to become intrinsic to your body, so we (safely) remove as many sources of external feedback as possible.
Trauma Informed Safe Space
Pilates Native is a trauma informed studio. This means the studio space is purposely designed to be a safe space for folks dealing with various forms of trauma.
In addition to the usual culprits we associate with mental, emotional and physical trauma, there can be a lot of trauma involved with everyday activities; injuries, surgeries, child birth, falling, work stress, or returning to exercise after illness.
When done mindfully with intention, Pilates is a type of somatic practice. The repetitive gentle movements can provide a safe space for folks to physically release residual stresses and complete the stress cycle.
Pilates can also provide a safe space to start accessing and reconnecting with the body after trauma.
Being overwhelmed with cues that may or may not be accessible totally inhibits the ability to release somatically. If you’re coming in to the studio wired to the ceiling or stressed to the max, you will not be getting a lot of cues. Your practice will prioritize somatic release. You will be getting a lot of familiar slow repetitive movements and a lot of space to explore and play in your practice.
Similarly, if you are joining the studio as a way to heal from a body trauma, your practice will focus more on creating safe and positive interactions with movement.
Distractions
Some instructors cue every movement from head to toe.
“Take a big strong inhale through the nose, being mindful of the ribcage flair, activating through the core to initiate, doming up through the arches, balanced across the feet, hips and shoulders are stacked, pelvis is neutral, allowing that doming at the foot to come up through the pelvic floor and moving up through the diaphragm, shoulders down away from ears, shoulder blades pulling down towards one another, head up, chin lifted, as we exhale, we extend.”
I HATE this style of cueing, both as a student and as an instructor.
What is the priority in that long list? Which of those cues were safety or form related? Which of those cues was relevant to the listener in the moment? What is the focus? How do we make it through that big long list checklist before exhaling into another long checklist?
Over-cueing sucks because it’s distracting, doesn’t provide a clear priority, disrupts focus and pulls you away from your ability to tune in.
If you need this type of instruction, that’s totally ok. We just won’t be a good fit to work together!
Different Instructors
If you’ve taken other fitness classes or Pilates classes, you know without a doubt that each instructor is different. We all have different styles and while we try to be well rounded, depending on our individual backgrounds, we may be more inclined to watch and cue specific areas more than others.
One of my favorite things about taking a week off is having one of our wonderful team members work with my clients for the week. Having a different instructor with a different eye, a different style and a different focus can really enhance your practice!
Your brain may have to work a little harder to connect with their speech patterns and cueing style. They may describe familiar movements differently, prompting different brain patterns to sprout.
They may have a cue that really resonates with you or puts the final piece into the puzzle, allowing you to unlock another level of movement.
Putting it all together
Cueing is an important part of a Pilates practice. A clear communication pathway between client and instructor is paramount to setting a good foundation. Cueing mindfully allows your instructors to give you cues that matter and add value to your practice, rather than just filling the room with words. Intentionally allowing space for clients to explore and understand the movement on their own terms allows room for growth and true development of body and brain connection.
This wraps up part 3 of “The Method Behind the Madness”, a monthly blog series focused on introducing you to what goes on behind the scenes at Pilates Native. Join me next month for Part 4, where we’ll talk about “Unlocking the Body” with muscle memory and intentional exploration of movement.
Take care and see you soon!
-R