It’s time to unleash your most perfect body shape.  The fastest, proven way – the Callanetics way

 

WHAT IS CALLANETICS?

Callanetics fans will be familiar with the precise set up positioning for the exercises.  They will recognise the tiny, repetitve movements that sculpt and change the body shape at record speed.  They will also know why Callanetics is so addictive and why, after over 20 years of absolutely no active marketing, people continue to practice the exercises daily.  It was a relief and joy for many when the original programs, led by Callan Pinckney herself, were finally released on DVD and her fans could pack away their dusty, stretched and worn out video cassettes to continue pulsing their way towards their perfect body shape.

But, for those of you who may have never heard of, let alone experienced a Callanetics workout, this first part is for you…..

This powerful, dynamic and non-impact program works by isolating a muscle group to train or stretch via precise body positioning.  Once we’re in our best position we either relax in to the position, to allow muscles to lengthen, or commence to sculpt the body by creating the tiny, delicate movement which we call a ‘pulse’.

The targeted muscles change shape quickly revealing a slimmer, stronger and more flexible, supple you.  The gentleness of the program along with the rapid, visible results led the way quickly to the Callanetics Method gaining the reputation of being ‘unique’ throughout the fitness industry.

HOW DOES CALLANETICS WORK?

Many exercise programs focus on the larger surface muscles but totally ignore the deeper and important muscles that lie closer to the skeletal frame.  We are dependant on these smaller muscles for strength, support and yield, allowing our limbs to move freely without stiffness or pain.  We have over 600 muscles throughout the body and almost 500 of them make up these smaller, intrinsic muscles.  It’s these that we target during a Callanetics Workout.

The precise set up position creates a thorough lengthening of the musculature and when you then add the pulse, the movement will be so tiny that it’s barely visible.  However, the student will feel this deep, close to the bone, where many muscle fibres are recruited.  The result is an immediate sense of change within the body and, very quickly, a visible change to body shape.

As a fan of Callanetics for over 30 years, and a Certified Callanetics Instructor since 2001, Sandra loved the fabulous results herself and enjoyed teaching them to others in her Queensland Studio.  After filming Callanetics Evolution in 2006 she returned to Australia with a desire to learn more and increase her knowledge about movement, anatomy and biomechanics.

WHAT do we teach at Gold Coast Callanetics?

The first change began when Sandra read Thomas Hanna’s book ‘Somatics – reawakening the minds control of movement, flexibility and health’.  She read about the loss of control of our musculature and movement patterns as we age resulting in what he called Sensory Motor Amnesia.

Our brains respond magnificently to everything that happens both negatively and positively. Not really a revelation to many of you but it’s the central nervous system and ultimately the entire body that we are referring to.

As we move through our days, weeks, months and years we are unconsciously responding to stress.  We may have a minor or major accident at some point, or we may fall ill and spend a period of time resting, feet up or horizontal.  Whatever the occurrence is our brain will adapt and our musculature will respond to that adaptation.

By the time many of us reach middle age we are feeling and experiencing the effects of these adaptations.  We start experiencing stiffness in our joints, our movements aren’t as fluid and range of movement severely diminished.  We discover that we’re not  able to reach up to the top shelf as easily as we once did and more than likely are completely unaware of a shortened stride as we walk – “my goodness, you’re shuffling my dear…”.  It’s time to sigh and label these symptons as ‘ageing’.  ”Oh well” we declare “I’m not as young as I used to be so I guess it’s to be expected”.

Wrong….

These so called ‘ageing’ signs can be reversed at Gold Coast Callanetics.

How?

Tamara and I will lead you gently through a process that will reverse signs of aging and empower you.  It’s never too late!

The stress responses, that occur in our bodies every single day, create a shortening and tightening of the musculature.  In particular, the flexor muscles of the stomach and extensor muscles of the back respond to this environmental stress. Thomas Hanna called this the Green and Red Light/Startle Reflex.

Eventually, the muscles become so contracted that the rib cage pulls downwards towards the pelvis drawing the shoulders, neck and head along with it.  Adding on to this severally, and habitually, contracted extensor muscles of the back and all signs of youth are obliterated. This also significantly impacts our reach upwards; no more top shelf champagne for you oh, aged one!  This shortening of the muscles in the mid section of the body also reduces the length through our legs and the shuffling begins.  Our breathing is impaired and vitality depleted.

Whilst reading Thomas Hanna’s book Sandra realised that Callanetics is also a somatic exercise program.  To perform, and become proficient of the exercises you needed to embrace the ‘meditation with movement’ philosophy that Callan Pinckney introduced to us in her books and videos.

This somatic, or mind/body integration, approach during the exercises delivered results that went way beyond just toning abs, lifting buttocks etc but also returning, to the Callanetics student, a control of their movements and awareness of muscles that had laid dumb and dormant for many years.

Sandra pondered how it would be if she added these Feldenkrais based Somatic exercises to her studio especially for the older students who would join a Callanetics class extremely out of alignment, de-conditioned and with little or no body awareness.  They moved considerably slower compared to the younger students, they also took longer to comprehend the instructions and would stop mid way through the set up a little confused as to where their limbs would be, which way their head was turning etc.

A lifetime of involuntary muscle contractions of the back, stomach, waist and hips resulted in partial or complete sensory motor amnesia (SMA).  How did this affect their Callanetics workouts?  Well, one answer could be if you have no awareness of a muscle or muscle group, or that they are held in a permanently contracted state, how can you possibly apply the ‘relax in to position’ concept?

Sandra stretched her way through the Daily Stretch routine, or Cat Stretch as Thomas Hanna called it.  She noticed that something was changing inside her body, there was a definite internal shift.  She was curious and excited to discover that even the Callanetics exercises seem to be working deeper resulting in another transition towards improved alignment and a further positive change in body shape.  There was a dramatic internal sense of being open and fluid, longer and leaner, especially around the trunk.  Within weeks she was teaching all her students the stretches and they all, old and young enjoyed the routine and the benefits immensely.

Sandra noticed that many, most especially those that practiced the stretch routine regularly at home, became more mindful of their movements during the Callanetics sculpting portion of the class.   The difference was more noticeable in the older students.  Some would sense and comment on the subtle changes and internal experiences that before went unobserved or acknowledged.

There was less rushing through the set up and more control of their bodies and pulsing movements.  Most commented that the set up for the Callanetics exercises felt smoother, less effort was needed and intensifying an exercise less daunting. They would commence their Callanetics workout with their muscles already lengthened and with a sense of suppleness that generally reveals itself more towards the end of a Callanetics session.  Thomas Hanna’s amazing routine of daily stretches had become an integral part of our Callanetics Studios exercises.

 CALLANETICS AND BIOMECHANICS

Once the Feldenkrais based stretch routine, settled in to the studio it was time to look further afield.  How can we further improve the Callanetics Method? The sculpting exercises were awesome, delivering great results but my hunger for more led me to Katy Bowman, Biomechanic extraordinaire, at the Restorative Institute.

Working her way through Katy’s Alignment Course Sandra increased her understanding yet again of why the Callanetics program was so addictive.  While we were in our best position, and sculpting muscles via the pulsing action, we were also increasing the amount of blood flow throughout the entire body delivering vital nutrients to cells and tissues that may have been deprived of oxygen for a long period of time.   A student would experience a return of vitality along with a sense of being taller, slimmer and stronger.

The focus on lengthening all our muscles, and maintaining that length during the pulsing action, would enable a pathway for communication between the brain and muscles.  Once again, the result would be an abundance of blood flow delivering much needed oxygen to the body. This would increase the flow of lymph fluid removing toxins and waste.

This fact also answered the question why many new students, especially older people who had been living a more sedentary lifestyle, would feel quite nauseous during their first few workouts.  They were detoxing !!!

The exciting part was that we did find something in the world of Biomechanics that could be incorporated in to the Callanetics world.  We could increase cellular regeneration to improve health and slow down the ageing process by aligning our bones. In particular, our shoulder blades, lower ribs, ASIS (we call then pelvic bones in The Callanetics Studio) and pubic bones.

When these bones were aligned we would, yet again, increase the amount of electricity, blood flow and lymph. We commenced to change the terminology in our classes to reflect the changes.

Understanding that short, tight and contracted muscles are as weak as overly lengthened and flaccid muscles, and as we regularly instructed students to activate their pelvic floor during a workout, we decided that the finishing stretch portion of the class should include movements that untucked the pelvis and brought the pelvic floor muscles back to optimal length to enable the musculature to be able to do it’s job which is to yield under force and pressure.  This is something a tight, contracted pelvic floor is unable to do.

I continue to study and learn from my mentors along with my students, who have become my best teachers.  Their insights and their own personal experiences at the Gold Coast Callanetics Studio increase my understanding, as a teacher, of the connections between the brain, movement, youthful enthusiasm and longevity.