By Joyce Coronel
Back in the 1980s, when big hair and shoulder pads dominated women’s fashion, aerobics classes were all the rage. Richard Simmons encouraged couch potatoes to get up and “sweat to the oldies.”
Nowadays, fitness centers boast “boot camps” and throb with the pulsing Latin rhythm of Zumba classes. For the more reserved crowd, there’s yoga.
If you’re like many middle-aged Americans, though, your joints aren’t what they were back in the “decade of excess.” These days it might be excess pounds that concern you. Perhaps you’re also one of the millions who struggle with back, neck, hip or knee pain.
Vanessa Kelly might have just the remedy for you. Her Tempe classes offer a blend of Pilates and Egoscue.
“It’s a low impact type of exercise,” Kelly said. “It’s really good for the joints and for circulation.”
Kelly began her foray into the field in an unexpected way.
“I came as a client and ended up loving it,” Kelly said. “I did it five times a week for about a year and then decided to get certified in it.”
From there, she spent two years working for a physical therapist who mentored her. She became certified in Pilates in 2009 and established a studio in Tempe in 2014 that’s recently relocated to a plaza at McClintock and Warner. The focus, she said, is on injury prevention and postural alignment. You won’t hear any deafening Zumba music or witness any extreme lunges at the place she calls Function. Notably, it’s not at all about cardio; it’s about solving chronic pain, preventing injuries and increasing flexibility, stability and strength.
The Egoscue method in particular involves analysis of a client’s gait, a posture assessment and functional testing.
With four other instructors available besides Kelly and more than 60 classes a week to choose from, there are plenty of opportunities for all that prevention, healing and strengthening to take place.
Pamela Panopoulos began attending classes at Function back in October and said it’s made a dramatic difference in her life.
“My joints were really acting up and I tried yoga but got really bored with it,” Panopoulos said. She tried Pilates at another studio but felt she wasn’t receiving the individual attention she needed.
“Pilates is very specific and very technical,” Panopoulos said. “You need somebody there. You have to know what muscles you’re using.”
Kelly concurred.
“We want to be more hands on with clients so that they’re getting the proper instructions,” Kelly said. “A lot of times they’ll go to group fitness and then they injure themselves.”
Under Kelly’s approach, there are a maximum of three people per class. In the larger classes at other studios and health clubs, “they can’t keep an eye on you. The whole thing about Pilates is you have to be aligned properly,” Panopoulos said. “Finally I found Function. It was like I came home.”
She said she’s still overweight but has lost inches and about 15 pounds. More important, she said, she’s feeling better.
“I went back and did Yoga and it was almost like I was a different person doing it. I made my body stronger and I was able to enjoy yoga more without being so concerned about my joints,” Panopoulos said. With Pilates, “you’re never stressing the joints.”
Kelly said she took a liking to rehab early in her career and that she’s been able to help clients who suffer from everything from Multiple Sclerosis to Fibromyalgia.
“The main thing is, Pilates is focusing more on the stabilizers, the smaller muscle groups,” Kelly noted. “That’s why it’s really good for injury prevention and any type of recovery from an injury.
“It’s all about educating people about those tiny muscle groups.”
Information: functionaz.com
