Pop Quiz: Upper Body Pain. That’s what life is when you are…
a) a photographer humping gear, curled forward over a camera or slumped in front of your computer all day
b) a mom who frequently carries a 35lb kid around who doesn’t seem to care for sleeping or
c) frequently in need of a chiropractor that you have a hard time getting in to see
Yah, that’s pretty much it! Show me a full time photographer that is not walking around like a hunchback and I’ll guarantee you they spend just as much time working as they do working out to counter balance the odd postural alignment that our work seems to create. And so do I (work out I mean, but of course like all of us not nearly enough to really do the job right).
Pilates, Yoga and sometimes Gyrotonic, now a little dabble in Feldenkrais. What would I do without these options to try to balance out my muscles and alignment? Fall apart I think, or stand at very odd angles as the gear humping pulled my spine into an ever increasing degree of scoliosis (I swear I was not born with it and did not have it when I was a dancer, seriously!). And I’m so sure that many of the dancers I work with would agree with this statement!
I think it’s because these practices are so interwoven into my life that I so enjoy working for these more holistic types of fitness centers. Indeed, just recently I had the pleasure to photograph new marketing images for Erika Bloom Pilates Plus. The two day shoot just flew by, we had such good time and the space was just so beautiful to work in. I had a chance to learn a little bit about the different philosophies of Erika’s training and techniques, not to mention the inspiration of working with a highly professional woman, with two small children, who looked like she did.
One of the easy connections I had with a few of her instructors that I worked with is our shared dance/pilates background. How much easier is it to work with subjects that instantly understand your cues and can move in very small increments to get the right lines that you need?
Yes, just love working with pilates and yoga people for just that reason, they are so easy!
Erika Bloom Pilates Plus has just opened an outpost in the Hamptons for the summer season- check it out!
