There’s a Whole Lotta Mat Going On Right Now…
and a whole lot of reformer teachers brushing up on their mat teaching skills!
It looks like this is the world we will be living in for sometime.
A virtual group exercise paradigm where we can’t assume or even hope that the groups we teach will be reformer classes.
It’s time to get serious about mat work.
With over 15,000 hours of group teaching experience and a particular expertise in teaching the subtleties of mat work, I’m inviting you to come and join my newly formed pack.
Teaching mat requires a greater clarity of instruction, where the reformer does a lot of the set up for you, the mat is an open field. You need a new language to get people in the shapes you want.
The reformer and its rhythm keep people in a flow state almost automatically. Teaching mat therefore is an adjustment.
It’s more work for the client and more work for the teacher to make transitions and layers smooth.
If your clients have any hope of staying in that flow state, join me in the White Dog Trainers Pack.
Every week we’ll get together online and nerd out on a prepared topic ranging from sequencing, exercise layers, tips from White Dog’s internal instructor training program and more.
I’ll answer your questions and we’ll work together through repertoire from an instructors perspective; unpacking the biomechanics, sequencing and juicy cueing details of exercises.
We’ll discuss and explore the subtleties of teaching mat and I’ll share with you all the secrets and sequences I’ve learned over the years that go towards making an amazing mat experience for your clients.
Some of projects we have planned are:
- The hidden progressions in the repertoire
- Building flow with the classical repertoire
- The group friendly exercises that Joseph didn’t take form gymnastics but should have
- How to program for large groups of different abilities on the mat
Take footwork as an example.
A classic reformer warm up, easily performed on one leg if the springs are right. 20+ reps of full depth movements. On the mat that starts looking like 20+ FULL DEPTH SQUATS. Tried that on a group lately?
With multiple sets on different foot positions? These are the challenges ahead.
And these are exactly the solutions we can share with you.
A note from Heath about the Instructor Pack:
The instructor pack is not a structured course as such.
It is a weekly group workshop where we talk about mat teaching principles, work through individual homework projects given the week before (which build into mat programs for the participants) and look at understanding exercises in more detail.
You also get access to the video library which is growing everyday – it’s made up of videos of varying lengths in which I unpack mat teaching and look at how basic exercises layer into more complex ones.
There is no minimum commitment.
We will shortly be releasing a more structured course that has a start and finish and works with the individual instructor and their working life realities. To find out more about this course head to my Pilates nerd out/instructor wesbite at www.contrologycollective.com.au.
Session will be hosted by Heath Lander.
As a group Pilates instructor Heath is second to none. He is known for his precise cueing, his ability to combine simple exercises, and his connection to clients. Not to mention his humorous, no BS writing on the subtle art of group instruction. He is a leader and an innovator in the industry.
Co-Founder/Owner of White Dog Studio
After establishing his reputation working at Breathe Wellbeing under the tutelage of Raphael Bender, a true luminary of the Australian Pilates world, Heath started his own business in his living room with one reformer and a couple of boxes. The business moved to a small studio in less than a year and two years later became White Dog Studio; the first studio in Footscray devoted to Pilates and Yoga instruction (among other things).
A few years later, Heath and his partner Jo Angwin combined forces to open up White Dog Pilates in the Newtown area of Geelong. They also rebranded Jo’s Yoga studio in Ocean Grove to become White Dog Yoga.
Instructor trainer at Breathe Education
Heath is an Instructor Trainer with Breathe Education where he is well known for his ability to make complex, challenging and often very new ideas easily understood. He knows how to bring in-the-field experience into the classroom.
And now: White Dog Online
White Dog online encompasses online learning across all disciplines taught at White Dog’s three studios – Reformer, Pilates, Yoga, Fitness, Bar+Bell and Stretch.
In addition to the client online classes, Heath has developed an Online Learning Pack for Instructors to increase their knowledge around Pilates on the mat.
Heath is a total movement nerd and this online portal is an opportunity for you to learn from mat from one of the best. You will will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn all about repertoire, biomechanics, sequencing and cueing for the mat.