The Benefits of Pilates Lesson Planning and First Look at the Original Pilates Journal and Lesson Planner by Alana Wilbur
Do you create lesson plans for your Pilates classes? Do you wish you had an organized way to store all your client notes and share them with the other teachers at the studio?
When I first started teaching I was meticulous about lesson planning. My first couple of lessons were quite humorous (as I look at them now) but nerve-wracking at the time.
Here I was, a teacher fresh from my teacher training, ready to take on my first class.
I had a list of exercises with several modifications prepared for the class. I was getting ready to teach clients who were coming to the studio for a while so I wanted to impress them with my newly acquired knowledge (oh, …silly me.)
About halfway through the class, I realized that
- I was nowhere close to the middle of the exercises that I had on my list,
- introducing my clients to the new flow and modifications was as easy as herding cats,
- I had to simplify my approach and cut out more than half of the exercises on my list to take my class to the finish line.
Planning lessons especially as a new teacher was essential for me to learn to teach better. Planning and preparation are essential to becoming a good teacher.
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”.
Bemjamin Franklin
Back in my teacher training days, I used a notebook to write out all of my lesson plans. It worked, but it was not ideal. I really wish I had a Pilates lesson planner that I could use … I didn’t have one back then but today I am taking a look at the Original Pilates Journal and Lesson Planner created by Alana Wilbur. It is AMAZING!!!!
In the interview Alana and I talk about Pilates, lesson planning and more. Here is what you can expect:
- The benefits of Pilates lesson planning for new and seasoned teachers
- How using a lesson planner helps studio owners keep track of client notes and create a smooth consistent teaching environment
- What it takes to launch a new Pilates product: from the idea conception to manufacturing
- How to validate a product idea before investing your money or time into it
- What Alana would have done differently with her Pilates lesson planner launch if she had to start over.
What was your inspiration to create the Pilates Lesson Planner?
Kathy Grant would write down absolutely every class and had notebooks and binders of old classes. If Kathy Grant was doing this, then it was a good idea for me to do it as well and create a journal that other Pilates teachers could use as well for their lesson plans.
Alana Wilbur
Where you can purchase The Original Pilates Journal and Lesson Planner
- Purchase the Pilates Lesson Planner on Amazon
- Purchase on Etsy (international shipping available)
- Purchase on Body of Work Pilates website
Meet the Expert
Alana Wilbur
During a brief stint in San Francisco, Ca, I serendipitously discovered a Pilates studio down the street from my apartment. Having gone to a gym my entire life and being a self-proclaimed meat head, Pilates was completely foreign. After one lesson I was hooked! My body moved in ways I never knew possible. From head to toe, Pilates cultivated a feeling of deep strength.
In 2015 I quit my job in tech, made a huge career pivot, and began my formal training with Rael Isacowitz at BASI Pilates. In 2016 I completed my 500 hour comprehensive certification and never looked back.
Since then, I was fortunate enough to experience authentic Pilates for the first time at S6 Pilates here in San Diego and have primarily honed my craft under the guidance of esteemed teachers, Chris Robinson, Mariano Dolagaray, and Angela Leone. Through lessons, workshops, and continued education with different masters of authentic Pilates, I’m persistently refining and broadening my skills in the classic repertoire.
I’ve devoted my life in pursuit of understanding the effect consistent and intentional movement has on the body, mind, and spirit. Physical fitness is tangible proof that time is the only thing between you and your goals.
The most consistent piece of advice received by those I’ve been fortunate to learn from is simple: Do the work. Do the work to learn, grow, and feel something new. Be a body of work.