Pilates & Functional Breathing Workshops

Pilates Sessions for Sports Academies, PE classes including NCEA Levels

Sessions are tailored for the needs of the particular class and age. May include:
-Core strength
-Postural strength and awareness
-Muscle connection, activation & awareness
-Balance
-Functional Breathing
-Specific strength exercises for particular sports

Students learn about:
-Their muscles and how they function
-Where they are strong and weak
-Good posture
-Correct technique

For Sport Academies:

I grew up playing many sports and keeping active. I have taught PE across all ages, coached top teams and been a swimming, Spin and Pilates instructor. My teaching experience spans over 20 years. I wish I was taught Pilates and had the body awareness I have now, when I was younger. Instead, I found out the hard way, I started to get injured more regularly and despite being reasonably fit, I wasn't strong in certain muscles and they had really just switched off.  Others were compensating, alignment was out, my knees were loaded, my inner core was weak. I had been training hard with all this going on. 

I am passionate about educating our sporty students about their bodies, so they develop the strength in all areas and develop awareness of what connects and what doesn't, of good posture, core and correct technique. How good would it be to have less students getting injured, being proactive, rather than reactive; dealing with injury rehabilitation.  

For PE Classes:

With over 20 years teaching experience across all levels, I understand how to relate sessions for different age groups. Sessions can be for general PE classes or for specific NCEA Assessments; including anatomy and biomechanical knowledge. 


Educating Functional Breathing in NZ Schools

I have taught for over 15 years, mainly in secondary education, but also from primary to university level, including facilitating professional development programmes for teachers. Students' confidence levels are crucial to help tap into their brain's potential & help with their learning. Schools provide not just curricular content and extra-curricular activities but life skills to help them navigate their world during school and beyond. But our world is continually changing and it's changing fast. With multiple technological distractions, it seems to be tougher for teachers to teach and harder for students to learn and be focused and in the moment. We all know that when a brain is in a 'flow' state, on but calm, it has a better chance of absorbing and retaining information. In our school system, we expect students to focus and pay attention, but do we help to teach this fundamental skill?

The school system demands that children have the capacity to be attentive to their studies, to sit and listen. Teachers choose teaching because they are truly passionate about making a difference and helping their students. Naturally, they want them to understand what they put time and effort into delivering. Do we teach students how to pay attention to what is being taught, to help access their brain's potential? We want them to focus in class, but do we teach them how?

We are in challenging times, where students and our teachers are trying to navigate mental health difficulties, multiple learning difficulties, behavioural issues, all with much greater distractions. There are school initiatives to help our students and our teachers..... are they making a difference or are we just ticking that box? I love that mindfulness is encouraged in education, is it reaching our students as a catch word or are they practising it to really understand the benefits? Simple breathing exercises have been proven to help improve focus, attention span, learning, stress, anxiety & sports, stage & exam performance, behaviour, awareness & so much more. It doesn't have to be fluffy and it can be one of those life skills that can be drawn upon when needed. Schools hold our next generation, simple breathing exercises can be a tool these students can tap into whenever they need for better physical and mental health, focus  and learning capacity.  


 Breathing Education for Students: 
-Anxiety is rampant in our schools, it is on the rise? Are we reaching our students in a positive way to help build resilience? Are we giving them life tools to empower them?
-Teaching effective breathing exercises is a portal into their internal world, giving them the power to self-regulate their emotions, to create awareness and to build a healthy, well functioning respiratory system.  
-I have taught each school level, as teachers we know we have to make sessions relevant to get our students to listen and to make things stick. Breathing Education  can be tailored to teach any school level. 
-It can be incorporated into tutor groups, before or after school, in some PE/Health NCEA assessments
-For sports academies to help their performance, recovery & nerves.

Breathing Education for Teachers:
- I understand the pressures of teaching, the rollercoaster, the desire to make a difference and the frustrations as well. 
- Help retain your committed teachers, they often give so much. Are they supported & do they have helpful tools to also look after themselves. 
- PD for teachers -  Breath Education. A calmer teacher can help create a calmer classroom.
- Breathing Education incorporated into NCEA PE & Health assessments.

Breathing Education in schools tailored to help the teachers, the students, the whole school environment.