SJ Mercury News
Contra Costa Times

'Slow Burn' Pilates can yield quicker fitness results

In the Lakeside Room at the Heather Farm Community Center, students in a fitness class enjoy a view of the Canada geese and ducks surrounding the lake.

The scene, the students said, adds to the serenity of the winter morning as they arrive at their class with green, elastic flex bands and foam rollers in tow. Soon, the students are lying on the foam rollers, gently massaging their backs from side to side. Then, the rollers are placed to one side as students stand up to step one foot on their flex bands and with their elbows to their sides, they perform steady bicep curls as both hands stretch the flex bands up and down.

"Slow, slow, slow," said instructor Connie English. "Nice and steady."

The class they're taking isn't the typical, traditional Pilates mat class known for strengthening, toning and sculpting the body. Slow Burn Pilates offers the same benefits as the traditional method but its emphasis is on slow and steady movements, English said.

Years after teaching traditional mat Pilates classes, English — a Martinez resident — started experimenting with what she said was a revolutionary, innovative way of strengthening the body using exercises that any woman or man of any age can do. Today, English has expanded her fitness movement, teaching classes through the Walnut Creek Recreation Division, with classes soon to be offered in Concord and other local fitness centers.

English's philosophy is simple - going slower rather than faster yields better results. She said her methods favor safety over speed, quality over quantity; less is more. 

"What it comes down to is making sure you see what works for you," said English, who used to teach French kickboxing and self-defense workshops at the Lafayette Community Center for six years.

In addition to a foam roller, a huge part of English's fitness regimen involves the use of a flex band that encourages more mindful, balanced and controlled movements. As the flex band helps to make stretches slower with increased resistance for arm and leg sculpting, overall body strength, flexibility and coordination, the slow, deliberate pace encourages participants to use proper form to avoid injury, she said.

In a fast-paced society where instant gratification is the norm, teaching people a new and safer way of movement for a healthier lifestyle is a challenge, English said.

"To train another in fitness also requires teaching skills, and I have always loved to teach," she said. "My first teaching job was educating children about endangered species while working on an endangered species preserve training tigers and jaguars. We took our big cats to over 40 schools in Sonoma County, because children tended to listen when there was a 500-pound tiger sitting in their classroom."

With a desire to make a difference in people's lives by helping them become more active and by helping those rehabilitating from injuries become mobile again, English began to teach Pilates nearly a decade ago.

"What's Pilates?' people would ask," English said, as she recalled the public's curiosity over the then little known fitness trend.

After teaching traditional mat Pilates classes, English said seven years ago she stumbled across the book, "The Power of 10" by fitness expert Adam Zuckerman, who trains his students once a week for 20 minutes.

"I was curious and experimented with his 'slow pace' method on my own body, using Pilates, a flex band for strength training and a roller for self-massage," she said. "The concept is that by slowing down your repetition, you're eliminating momentum from the motion and forcing the muscle to do all the work. You feel it right away, the 'slow burn' creeps in but, surprisingly, you're not very sore the next day because although the muscle was worked deeply, you did not do damage by over stressing it, therefore no lactic acid buildup."

Since she's devoted her fitness career to Pilates, English has been teaching her slow burn method to students in recreation centers, corporations and private sessions.

English said Slow Burn Pilates benefits people of all ages. She will offer a class for teens through Walnut Creek Recreation in the fall. English has been training a few of her students — a couple in their 70s and another in their 80s — who have been meeting in their homes for private sessions for three years.

Mary Lou and Bob Van Galder of Lafayette said they began Slow Burn Pilates training with English after they saw how a previously immobile friend of theirs had improved his mobility as a result of Pilates training. With Mary Lou's hip operation years ago and Bob's stroke, the slow movements of English's workout has helped the couple with their balance, Mary Lou said.

"With some of the movements you're learning to control your muscles," said Mary Lou, noting her daughters and son-in-law now also do Pilates. "They said, 'If you could do it, then we could do it, too.' "

"A general recipe for healing muscle strain includes massage, stretching and strengthening."

English said that she strives to make Slow Burn Pilates an affordable and eco-friendly fitness option—she offers the convenience of going to a group or to individuals rather than the students driving to different locations.

"I hope in the near future to expand into schools for kids and to set up a free class for local veterans returning from the war," she said. "I find great reward in helping others create a body that feels good to be in."