The emBody Shop – New Pilates Studio in Easton, MD

No kids, no husbands or boyfriend & a new pilates studio = mini-momacation (AKA – Mom + Vacation = Momacation)

Two of my closest friends from college are Melanie and Annie.  Annie just opened her own pilates studio, so Mel and I decided we needed to check it out.  Of course, we like any excuse to try to get together, especially since Melanie is a teacher with little time during the year and Annie and I have three kids each. Enough said.  Getting together can be challenging to say the least, but we found a day that we were all free and Mel and I met Annie at her new Pilates studio called The emBody Shop. 
Pilates was started by a man named Joseph Pilates, who believed that  “contrology develops the body uniformly, corrects wrong postures, restores physical vitality, invigorates the mind, and elevates the spirit” (Joseph Pilates, 1939).
 
The Embody Shop is in Easton, Md and it offers mat pilates, reformer, barre & personal natural movement‬ training.  My friend Annie is the owner and she gave Mel and me the best semi-private class today. The emBody Shop is the cutest studio, which opened only three months ago. Annie holds pilates mat classes for 4-5 people on most days of the week, as well as offers private instruction.
The emBody shop focuses on:
Restorative Exercise • Movement Education • Pilates • Alignment Work • Pilates for Golf • Natural Movement
The emBody shop believes that:
Your body is the ultimate machine…..
bring it to the shop for whatever your body needs.
Regular tune-ups
Alignment
Balance
Real Strength
Stretch and release
Natural movement lessons
Breath-work
On The emBody Shop website, Annie states that she has “always been a mover. I’ve always been an anatomy/physiology/body nerd. The human body is fascinating, the dense mass of energy that it is.”  I couldn’t agree more… no wonder why were became friends.
Annie also discusses her background in dance and her education, as the basis for her interest in pilates and the motivation for opening her own studio.

“My movement history is largely dance-based with casual sports play sprinkled in. My academic history is all things kinesiology A/P, Biomechanics, Motor Development, Exercise Physiology. All fun stuff. After 15 years of working in the fitness industry, calling myself a Trainer, I grew tired of the questions of – What muscles am I working? Where should I feel this? How do I lose 3 pants sizes? How many calories should I be eating?”

I will would be lying if I said that I love pilates and had been taking classes for years. I’ve actually never paid much attention to pilates until a few months ago.  Personally, I do barre, yoga (safely), cycling, HIIT training, kickboxing, circuit classes, weight training, natural movement training, go to PT, make up my own workouts, sometimes walk slowly on the treadmill just to move, do exercises even in bed (ie. bridges)  and try to move as much as I can all day long. However, I have not really incorporated pilates into what I do, because I did not think there was much more I could try or could learn from it. It seemed boring, not intense enough for me and nothing different from what I was doing already. I also thought there were things with my own body that couldn’t be helped with pilates or other methods, even PT.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.  I have a new-found love and respect for pilates — another reason why I wanted to visit Annie and her new studio.  What I was not expecting was that we would be visiting one of the best pilates instructors as well.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Annie and she is one of my closest and oldest friends, but her pilates world and the Annie from college world, never mixed when I saw her — until now.

Annie was able to help me with issues that I didn’t think could get better, corrected my form and helped me engage muscles that I have never felt work before.  Annie is also excellent at correcting hyperextended joints and helping those who are hypermobile, find positions that are comfortable and safe.

Being sedentary does nothing for the human body, especially a hypermobile one. My focus is always to do something a little extra every day, for me that is working out. However, it’s important to remember that we are all different.
Focus on what you can do each day, versus what you can’t – even if it’s different from last week. Chances are, you will probably feel better tomorrow, even just the slightest bit. Focus on doing something for “just 5 minutes” and little by little, strength & stability will build and consistency will pay off.
Don’t focus on what works or does not work for others, you are unique and your body is strong enough to let you know what the perfect balance is.
The key is to listen to your body, versus allowing fears and the “cants” of others mess with the progress that you are trying to make.
And when your strong enough physically and mentally to try a class, pilates offers so much to those of us with hypermobility, as does yoga, cycling and other workouts. Take one baby step at a time, but just keep going.
We really CAN learn something new every day, especially when we are open and willing to listen. I know I sure have.
Mel and I also decided that the studio name should be changed to “Shorty Tim’s Pilates – where you go from short & tight to long and strong.”
If you get the chance to meet Annie, you should call her Shorty Tim. She actually prefers it. 🙂
To learn more, go to: www.theembodyshop.com, or like The emBody shop page on Facebook. The emBody shop is on yelp too! ‪
Contact: 
The emBody Shop
114 North Washington Street Suite 30 Easton, MD 21601
T: 443-786-0611
E: annie@theembodyshop.com
Annie’s husband is also a successful song writer and musician. Justin plays with his band locally at a variety of restaurants all over Maryland. Go to Justin Ryan to read more!
Additional resources:
The emBody Shop in Easton, MD
About Annie – Owner, The emBody Shop
What is Pilates?
Pilates with EDS – presentation from 2013 EDNF Conference
Pilates by Lisa (online pilates mat & barre videos)
Booty Barre Video by Tracey Mallet – combines pilates principles with barre (one of my favorite workout videos of all time)
FIT by Tracey Mallet – another favorite workout video
What is Natural Movement Training?
Move your DNA Book
Alignment Matters
          
Disclaimer – You should always discuss beginning any exercise program with your physician first. What works for one person, may not work for others. We are all different and start at different levels. You are responsible for your own health and well-being, including finding the best way to strengthen your body. To read more, go here.