Finding Freedom Through Movement with Allison Birt

Discover the transformative power of mindful movement with movement educator Allison Birt as she shares her journey from ballet to Pilates teacher and Franklin Method practitioner. 

What happens when we shift our focus from punishing workouts to pleasurable movement? Allison reveals how our relationship with our bodies can fundamentally change when we approach movement with curiosity rather than judgment. "Movement is supposed to feel good. That is our birthright," she reminds us, challenging fitness industry norms that glorify exhaustion and pain.

The conversation explores the rich lineage of Pilates, tracing its evolution through first-generation teachers who brought their unique perspectives to Joseph Pilates' original work. Allison's training with Ron Fletcher (who infused Martha Graham dance techniques) and Kathy Grant (who emphasized creativity and improvisation) illustrates how these influences shape modern practice.

Allison shares an example of the Franklin Method's dynamic neurocognitive imagery. Through a simple shoulder exercise, listeners experience firsthand how changing the words we use – from "stiff, tense shoulders" to "slidey, glidey, smooth shoulders" – can instantly transform physical sensation. This powerful technique shows how we can literally "change our bodies by changing our minds," offering a pathway to greater agency and embodiment.

Ready to experience the difference mindful movement can make? Join Allison and Susannah for their upcoming workshops and discover how turning toward your body with kindness might be the most powerful practice of all.

About Allison Birt: 

After a series of injuries prompted her to re-consider a career in dance, Allison transformed her passion for movement as art into a passion for movement as medicine. In 2001 she began learning to teach Pilates from Dianne Miller, honing her skills at the Vancouver Pilates Centre until 2016. She now enjoys teaching at Moving Spirit, a North Vancouver Pilates studio, with owner Susannah Steers. 

A perennial student, Allison has been fortunate to learn from and study the repertoire of multiple first-generation Pilates teachers including Ron Fletcher, Kathleen Stanford Grant, and Mary Bowen, who each imparted their own unique perspective on the Pilates method. 

In 2011 Allison became a Franklin Method Educator, which transformed her approach to movement education. Now one of a handful of Level 4Franklin Method educators worldwide, Allison is adept at combining mental imagery techniques with embodied anatomy to create lasting positive change in the mind and body. 

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Heart of Motion Podcast host Susannah Steers is a Pilates & Integrated Movement Specialist and owner of Moving Spirit Pilates in North Vancouver, BC. She is passionate about movement, about connections and about life.

Through movement teaching, speaking, and facilitating workshops, she supports people in creating movement practices that promote fitness from the inside out. She loves building community, and participating in multi-disciplinary collaborations.

Along with her friend and colleague Gillian McCormick, Susannah also co-hosts The Small Conversations for a Better World podcast – an interview based podcast dedicated to promoting the kind of conversations about health that can spark positive change in individuals, families, communities and across the globe.

Social Media Links:
Moving Spirit Pilates Instagram
Moving Spirit Pilates Facebook


heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
If you've listened to an episodeor two of this podcast, you'll
know that movement is my passion, my first language and the

(00:24):
filter through which I processpretty much everything.
It's always a treat when I findpeople around me who share this
obsession in one way or another, and it's an extra special
treat when I can connect topeople with whom I feel like I
share similar core values.
Today, I am delighted tointroduce you to one of my

(00:45):
favorite people, my friend, mycolleague and my right hand at
Moving Spirit Pilates, AllisonBirt.
After a series of injuriesprompted Allison to reconsider a
career in dance.
She transformed her passion formovement as an art, into
passion for movement as medicine, into passion for movement as
medicine.
She began her teacher trainingjourney with Dianne Miller at

(01:06):
the Vancouver Pilates Center in2001, continuing to hone her
skills there until about 2016.
She joined me at Moving Spiritin 2018, and I'm happy to say
we've been working andcollaborating together ever
since.
A perennial student.

(01:27):
Allison has been fortunate tolearn from and study the
repertoire of multiplefirst-generation Pilates
teachers, including Ron Fletcher, Kathleen Stanford Grant, Mary
Bowen, each who imparted theirown unique perspective on the
Pilates method.
In 2011, Allison became aFranklin Method educator, which
transformed her approach tomovement education.
Now one of only a handful oflevel four Franklin Method

(01:53):
educators worldwide, Allison isadept at combining mental
imagery techniques with embodiedanatomy to create lasting
positive change in the mind andbody.
Welcome to the Heart of Motionpodcast, Allison.
I hope this doesn't just feellike another day at the office.

Allison Birt (02:06):
Well, thank you for having me, and you know I
love my days at the office, so Iwouldn't complain.

Susannah Steers (02:13):
Well, we have similar aspects.
I mean our individual storieskind of sync up in a few
different ways.
We both have a background indance you with ballet, me with
modern dance.
We both had our roots inPilates with Dianne Miller at
the Vancouver Pilates Center, orwhat I knew as the Dianne
Miller Pilates Center, and we'veeach gone on to study in

(02:33):
various different ways with bothPilates elders and others to
expand our ideas about movement.
I think that a lot of thoseaspects of our shared history
ended up bringing us together,and I'm really glad it did Me
too.
I'm curious what drew you toPilates in the first place?
Maybe first as a student andthen as a teacher?

Allison Birt (02:58):
I think as a student I was a ballet dancer
and I was often having troublebreathing in ballet class and I
would sort of start tohyperventilate and almost have
sort of panic attack experiencesand my teachers were totally
flummoxed and my parents didn'tknow how to help and doctors I

(03:20):
went to were not terriblyhelpful.
And so I initially foundPilates as a way to help me
learn to breathe, in the hopesthat that would help me breathe
while I'm moving in a balletclass.
And that was pretty effectiveand I kept going with the
Pilates once that issue had sortof been sorted out, just as a

(03:42):
way of keeping my body in goodcondition for the rigors of
professional ballet training andso what shifted for you?

Susannah Steers (03:51):
I mean, you had ballet injuries and other
things.
What shifted you toward acareer in Pilates?

Allison Birt (04:01):
Well, while I was rehabilitating from dance
injuries and car accidents orwhiplash injuries and I was
taking some time off, dance andPilates was part of that
rehabilitation program and I wasin the changing room at
Vancouver Pilates Centre and Icould overhear through the walls
Dianne Miller teaching some ofher teacher trainee students and

(04:25):
sort of going through some ofthe theory with them.
And I think I sat in the changeroom for like at least a half an
hour after I was finished myclass just listening in and I
was totally captivated.
I couldn't believe that peopleactually knew this stuff about
the body.
And how come I don't know thisstuff?
If this is available, how comeI don't already know it?

(04:46):
And so I kind of knew rightthen that I wanted to know more,
and as soon as I was able Isigned up to do the teacher
education program with them.
As I went through the stages ofit I kind of realized this is
going to be a much healthier,more job security, more like a

(05:07):
better investment in myself,maybe than a career in dance was
ever going to be.
So I really started to shift myfocus from dance to Pilates so
that I could live in the city Iwanted to live in, feel
healthier and have a betterrelationship with my body and
still work with bodies in motionand still work with dancers.

(05:29):
It was kind of a really easytransition out of dance and into
Pilates.

Susannah Steers (05:35):
I had a similar experience as I shifted out of
dance.
I was sort of casting about andI was teaching dance still at
that point, although I'd stoppedperforming and my body was
hurting all the time.
I was doing Pilates with Dianneand it was a similar experience
that it was, oh, this feelsreally good and oh, I don't

(05:57):
really see myself.
You know, having been sointensely in my body for so long
, I don't see myself sittingbehind a desk.
I don't see myself in that kindof career.
This way I get to work withbodies and once I did my
certification and started tomove with bodies a little more,
I realized there was like a newpuzzle every day, Every person
that I saw.

(06:17):
There were basic exercises youcould teach them, but how did
they come to understand thatmovement and how could I teach
them in a way that it made sensefor them?
And I think I've heard you sayit I don't think either of us
does Pilates or teaches Pilatesto make people better at Pilates
.
I think that the whole idea isto help them be a little more at

(06:39):
home in their bodies and movingwell.

Allison Birt (06:43):
Yeah, I think so Absolutely.
I mean, Pilates is a vehiclefor improving your quality of
life.
There is no purpose to Pilatesbeyond that being good at doing
Pilates is not a useful skill.
So I really think that to me,Pilates is, it's a vocabulary we

(07:06):
can use to improve our movementskills so that our life
improves.

Susannah Steers (07:13):
Well, you know, I don't think most people
really understand what goes intobecoming a Pilates teacher,
especially if you're seriousabout it as a career option and
as opposed to teaching a fewclasses as a hobby.
So I'm curious what has yourtraining looked like over the
years?

Allison Birt (07:30):
So my initial training with the Dianne Miller
Pilates teacher educationprogram was, I think it took me
about two years to go through Imean, I was maybe 19, so I had a
lot to learn, just as a humanfirst of all.
But it was, I'm going to say,about 150 hours of theory work

(07:52):
just in the studio with Dianeand sort of the oral tradition
of Pilates teacher trainingswhere you're just madly taking
notes while she shares herknowledge and experience and
during that time you're intendedto work out in the studio at
least three times a week.
So you're evolving your ownpractice and I did all the
theory modules twice.

(08:13):
So if I said it was 150 hours,I did 300.

Susannah Steers (08:17):
Of course you did.

Allison Birt (08:20):
And then it was a 500 hour apprenticeship which
starts out gently with someobservation, where you just get
used to looking at bodies inmotion and seeing what the same
movements look like on differentbodies, because it's wildly
different depending on theirbodies and their movement
history.
Slowly you get invited to helpcorrect the clients.

(08:44):
The teachers who are alreadyteaching are mentoring you and
you're watching what they lookfor and what they see and the
language that they use to helptheir clients.
So about a 500 hourapprenticeship, where you're on
the floor in the studio,experimenting and learning to
teach, and you have to have thework in your own body, and

(09:05):
that's what those required threetimes a week workouts were, but
you also have to be good atlooking at bodies and seeing
what's going on with them andproblem solving, like you said.
Other skills involved, though,are choosing language really
specifically and carefully, andalso how to touch people.
How to work hands on withpeople is a really important

(09:27):
skill that I think getsoverlooked sometimes, so it took
me a good two years to sort ofput all those skills together as
part of my initial training,and then there was an exam
process that encompassed awritten exam and a practical
exam.
So they get to see you teachstudents and make sure you know
how to progress exercises,modify exercises and put

(09:49):
together a well-rounded programfor somebody that meets all
their needs.

Susannah Steers (09:54):
So it's not just about a menu of exercises
to pick from, it's really how doyou present that to each person
for the best benefit?
I think that's why, especiallyas I've evolved and I know we've
talked about this too at thestudio I less identify as a
Pilates teacher and more as amovement educator, a movement

(10:14):
specialist.
We're working with people ontheir movement and Pilates
happens to be a really greattool to get us there.

Allison Birt (10:23):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Susannah Steers (10:26):
These days, pilates seems to be divided into
three main camps there's sortof the classical, there's
contemporary and there'sclinical.
And when I came up, and maybethis is true for you too the
conversation was more about whatlineage you learned, which
lineage you came from from.

(10:51):
Can you speak a little bit moreabout what first generation
Pilates teachers are and what aPilates lineage means?
Like why would we care?

Allison Birt (10:56):
Yeah.
So I really view the Pilatesindustry like a giant family
tree, with the sort ofprogenitors, Joseph Pilates and
Clara Pilates, who obviouslycame up with the work and spread
it to their students and thencertain of their students
carried the work on and, youknow, kind of distributed across
the United States and taughttheir own students and brought

(11:19):
their own unique spin to thework.
And those are considered thefirst generation teachers,
people who worked directly withJoseph and Clara and then went
on to teach their version ofwhat they learned.
I consider my lineage, startingwith Joseph Pilates, my Pilates
grandfather is Ron Fletcher,who took the work to California
and he was a Martha Grahamdancer and an Ice Capades

(11:43):
choreographer and he worked withcelebrities and he was precise
and demanding and exacting and areal sort of dance taskmaster.
He taught the work to DianneMiller, who taught me and you.
So I would consider myself athird generation Pilates teacher
and that's one of the lineagesthat I appreciate.

(12:06):
And then of course, there weremany other first generation
teachers.
The other one that is mostsignificant to me was Kathy
Grant, and she also learned thework initially from Joseph and
Clara, and she was much more ofan improviser and cabaret dancer
and she was really feisty andkind of whimsical and so I

(12:30):
learned her work.
I was lucky enough to work withher in person only once before
she passed away, but I learnedher work from Cara Reeser, who
was a close student of hers, andso my Pilates grandmother is
Kathy Grant from her.
This one size does not fit allthat.
You have to look at the body infront of you and make smart

(12:52):
choices for them and what'sgoing to really help them.
And she really encouragedcreativity and sort of ownership
over the work.
And there are many otherlineages but they each sort of
bring their own special sauce,their own flavor to Joseph
Pilates' original ideas andmovements.

Susannah Steers (13:12):
I love the way you frame it.
As grandfathers andgrandmothers With Ron Fletcher,
I remember taking his classesand feeling so much, especially
with the mat work, that I was ina Martha, having spent a lot of
time doing Martha Graham's workand seeing where Ron brought
all of his Graham work into hisPilates stuff and feeling that

(13:33):
in class I felt very much like Iwas doing a Graham class while
I was also doing Pilates.

Allison Birt (13:38):
Yes, and for those of us with a dance background,
you feel very at home in that.

Susannah Steers (13:42):
Yeah, as both a movement educator and a Pilates
teacher.
What your view is thedifference between training
movement versus training fitnessor physical activity?

Allison Birt (13:54):
So, as Pilates teachers, we are part of the
fitness industry, but there canbe so much more depth available
than just learning how to do thechoreography of the Pilates
exercises or whatever exerciseyou're doing in the gym.
I've noticed that a lot ofpeople think that if you do a
certain exercise and a certainnumber of reps, you will get a

(14:17):
certain result, and myexperience has been that that
isn't really true, that how youdo the movement and your
intention behind it, and thethoughts that are in your head
while you're doing it and thebreath that you're using while
you do it have a verysignificant impact on the
outcome of that movement Right,so you can actually train a

(14:40):
certain type of movement inmultiple different ways.
You can approach it fromdifferent angles to achieve a
different goal.
I really am much moreinterested in how people are
moving than what movementsthey're doing

Susannah Steers (14:53):
Right.
How you move matters!

Allison Birt (14:56):
Yeah, how you move matters Exactly, and what you
practice.
You get better at whatever itis you practice.
And if you were practicing afunctional movement pattern, you
get better at that.
But if you're practicing anon-functional movement pattern,
you get better at that.
But if you're practicing anon-functional movement pattern,
you get better at that.
So practice makes permanent,not practice makes perfect.

(15:18):
You get better at whatever itis you're doing, whether it's
good for you or not.

Susannah Steers (15:22):
Well, and a lot of the time exercise is viewed
as punishment or sort of in apunishing way, we go out and
we've got to go as hard as wepossibly can and if you're not
drenched in sweat and absolutelyexhausted and probably sore the
next day, you're not doing itwell enough.
But movement is supposed tofeel good.

Allison Birt (15:45):
Yeah, I think so.
I mean, I think that that isour birthright is to be able to
take pleasure in moving ourbodies.
And I think about the languagethat's so often associated with
the fitness industry these days,of you want your body to be cut
or shredded or like evensculpted.
I've had people say, like, whenwe get into the Pilates studio,

(16:05):
can you like, can you beat meup?
Or really like, kick my butt?
And I'm no, I don't want to dothat and I don't want anyone to
do that to me.
When I have a movementexperience, I want to leave it
feeling relaxed and invigorated.
At the same time, I want tohave discovered something new.
I want to have my curiositypiqued about something like, oh,

(16:28):
I didn't know I could do that.
To have my curiosity piquedabout something like, oh, I
didn't know I could do that, orthat was a fun skill that I'm
not quite capable of yet, like,how do I get there?
And I want to leave feelinglike I want to do it again.
Right, if I can't walk the nextday, I don't really want to do
that again.
I want to feel like I want moreof that.

(16:48):
So that is always my favoritetype of movement experience.
It's not punishing.
It's thrilling and exciting andalso makes me feel more at home
in my own body.

Susannah Steers (17:02):
Mm-hmm, even if you are pursuing a big goal
physically, even if you are Imean, pilates always made me a
better dancer you know I couldshow up to class and be ready.
If I'd done my Pilates aheadof time, and I find that that's
a piece that's important too.
So it's not an either orsituation.

(17:22):
You can go hard, you can workyour butt off, you can go for
big goals which are going tomake you tired and sore and all
of the things.
If that's what floats your boatand what I love about Pilates
is it makes you better able todo those things so you survive
the stuff that you're doing sohard

Allison Birt (17:43):
Totally.

Susannah Steers (17:44):
One of your many layers of expertise
includes the Franklin Method.
So I'd like to talk a littlebit about imagery and embodiment
, because you don't always thinkof those initially when you
think about movement training orfitness.
My first introduction toimagery specifically for
movement, beyond the kind ofstuff I would learn from
teachers in a dance class, wasthrough Irene Dowd, who was a

(18:08):
choreographer and a movementeducator herself, and I worked a
little bit with her and my mindwas blown and happened to work
with a bunch of people at thetime who were also kind of in
that vein of thinking, and thenI devoured the work of people
like Mabel Todd and Lulu Swigardand eventually found Eric
Franklin's work.

(18:28):
Although I never studied withhim directly, I have learned so
much more about it through youand the work that you do with
our people and I'm so gratefulfor it.
For those who might be hearingabout it for the first time, can
you describe what the FranklinMethod is all about and how it
differs from other movementpractices?

Allison Birt (18:48):
Sure, yeah, the Franklin Method is founded by
Eric Franklin and sort of builton the work of all those people
that you just listed, and it is,in my experience, an
experiential approach to thebody that uses a mental imagery
technique called dynamicneurocognitive imagery to

(19:08):
improve your function and yourexperience in your body, and
it's sort of a multifacetedapproach.
It improves your proprioception, which is basically your body's
internal sense of position andmovement, and it improves your
body schema, which is like yourmental representation of your

(19:31):
body in your brain, and it usesvery specific, targeted mental
imagery to change the way yourbody moves and the way you
experience movement, so that youcan enjoy the experience in
your body more and move betterlong term.

Susannah Steers (19:47):
Is it like a deep awareness?

Allison Birt (19:52):
Yeah, I mean.
Part of it is an awarenessskill that you're building.
So every Franklin Methodexperience begins with a bit of
a check-in, so that you set abaseline for how your body feels
on a given day, whether it'sjust overall or a particular
movement or body part.
And the better you get atsensing your body, the better

(20:15):
you'll be able to tell whetheran imagery or a movement
intervention has had an impactand was it the impact that you
wanted.
So having a really finely tunedsense of your sensation in your
body, your body awareness,helps you to know whether what

(20:36):
you're doing is actuallyeffective.

Susannah Steers (20:38):
We can talk about it all we want, but the
experience is really where themagic happens.
So I'd love to play withsomething that maybe our
listeners can explore on theirown right now.
I'd love to play with somethingthat maybe our listeners can
explore on their own right now.
Can you share an example of how?

Allison Birt (20:59):
you might use the Franklin Method or dynamic
neurocognitive imagery now, yeah.
So first let's do that littlecheck-in.
So my little Franklin Methodtidbit here is going to be to do
with your shoulders, so we'llkeep it nice and simple.
Just to set a baseline for howyour shoulders are feeling today
, do a little few shouldershrugs, just bring your
shoulders up towards your earsand then let them fall back down
again.
And we'll do that several timesand as we do it, can you rate

(21:24):
the movement from one to 10?
So one being negative, 10 beingpositive?
How does this movement feel inyour body right now?
Okay, so if you've got a number, hold that in your mind,
remember what that felt like.
That's your baseline that we'regoing to use to compare this
little imagery play.
So my favorite, very most simpletype of dynamic neurocognitive

(21:48):
imagery is kinesthetic self-talk, which is basically just using
descriptive words to narrateyour physical experience.
So we'll do some more shouldershrugs, the exact same movement,
and I'm going to give somedescriptive words to accompany
the movement.
So we'll shrug the shoulders upand down again and you can
think relaxed shoulders.
And you can think relaxedshoulders, strong, capable

(22:12):
shoulders.
This movement is easy, great,okay.
So now we compare.
How does that feel?
Did your number go up at allwhile you did the movement with
those descriptors?
Definitely, yeah, mine did.
So it's really simple.
To just use the words thatdescribe the way you want your

(22:32):
body to feel while you're doingthe movement can shift that
number up a little bit.
Now, oftentimes I'll do thiswith someone for the first time
and they're kind of like I don'tknow.
You just said some words whileI did the movement.
I don't, I don't know maybe.
So let's try it again if youdon't mind, and I'll use some

(22:53):
different words.
So shrug the shoulders up anddown.
My shoulders are so tired.
They're stiff and tense andstressed.
My shoulders feel like concreteor sandpaper.
What's happening to the numbernow?

Susannah Steers (23:14):
it's going down .

Allison Birt (23:15):
I'm thinking to myself stop, stop, I don't want
to feel that so far down and Imean most of us are really well
practiced at the negativeself-talk.
It's what most of us do most ofthe time is painful sensations
are the ones that get our most.

(23:36):
They're sticky, they get ourattention and we tend to start
telling ourselves the story ofhow that feels and narrating
this negative experience in ourhead.
And so when I use thosenegative words, our bodies oh, I
know what that feels like.
Like we can go right there, um,and so what we want to do is
get more practiced at using thepositive self-talk, because the

(23:58):
more practiced you are at it,the more you'll start to look
for it and feel a bigger impactmore quickly.
Um, and you know, you might notgo from like a one to a ten, but
you might not go from a one toa 10, but you might go from a
five to a seven, and that'spretty significant.
That would make a bigdifference to my life if I was
walking around with my shouldersat a seven instead of a five.

(24:19):
So I don't wanna leaveeverybody with the sandpaper
shoulders.
Let's do one more and see if wecan feel that positive impact
of just that simple self-talk.
So shrug your shoulders up.
You want slidey, glidey, smoothshoulders, lubricated, supple

(24:43):
shoulders, capable, strong,relaxed shoulders and rest yeah.
How did that feel?
Was that

Susannah Steers (24:57):
yeah, I even breathe better.
Like it all works better.

Allison Birt (25:02):
Absolutely, and what I love about that like
there's a lot more to it ifyou're actually doing a Franklin
Method experience.
But that's a really lovelylittle snapshot of it and it
takes 10 seconds and it'scompletely free.
You can do it anywhere you wantand you have the power to
choose what those words are.
So if you want your experiencein your body to continue down

(25:25):
that negative path, that is achoice you can make.
But if you want to choose amore pleasurable experience in
your body, you also have thatpower.
And I'm a language nerd.
I'm like let's get out thethesaurus and look up all the
good words that I could beexperiencing right now.

Susannah Steers (25:44):
You have a lot of good words.
You have a lot of good words.

Allison Birt (25:48):
Well, I just find it to be so empowering that I
don't have to look outsidemyself, I don't have to wait for
that appointment with mymassage therapist, I don't have
to spend a bunch of money ortake drugs like you know,
painkillers or whatever in orderto feel good instantly.
I can just change the way I'mthinking about my body.
Change my body by changing mymind and have an instant upgrade

(26:11):
, no matter what I'm doing whatI'm doing

Susannah Steers (26:20):
So, we're talking about it in the context
of movement here, but I can seehow this would have
ramifications in your entirelife.
What has learning and workingwith the Franklin Method meant
for you personally and also foryour work?

Allison Birt (26:33):
It has really transformed.
It's changed my life.
I would say it's transformedthe way I talk to myself and my
clients, as a sort of recoveringperfectionist.
I have a really loud and strongsay hello to her and welcome her
to the party and then just turndown the volume on that a

(27:01):
little bit and be a lot morekinder with the way that I speak
to myself and with the languagethat I choose to use with my
clients.
It has made everything sort of.
It brings color and life to theworld.
Like I look around myself and Isee the way the water flows in
the stream and the way the treesmove in the forest and I'm

(27:24):
instantly oh, that water flowingis just like you know, when
it's strong it's like arterialblood flow and when it's a
little smoother it's more likethe venous blood flow.
Like I start to see our innerlives all around me in the
environment.
And so I appreciate, though Ilook around myself and I'm

(27:45):
always getting inspiration formovement that that are imagery
that I'm using in movementclasses in the natural world,
and so it's fun to have thatcreative element that's just
sort of infusing your whole life.
And, yeah, I really feel like itempowers me to have agency over
my own experience and myperspective on life and on

(28:08):
movement and on teaching, andthen, especially with teaching,
I really appreciate passing thaton to my students that they are
the expert on their body.
I am here to facilitate theexperience and share my
expertise and give sort of aframework and a container for
them to make their owndiscoveries so that they really

(28:29):
own their movement and they owntheir capabilities.
And I'm yeah, I'm like a hostfor them to have their own
experience, so that when theyleave the class they have a
whole new experience that theytake away with them into their
life.
And I think that's sort of themagic, that's the special sauce,

(28:50):
that's the magic that makes itinteresting and that's, I think,
the only reason that I've beendoing this for almost 25 years.
If it were just Pilatesexercises, I would have been
bored a long time ago.
But because every session isnew and exciting and creative
and it improves people's qualityof life and improves their
experience, I'm excited anddelighted to come into the

(29:12):
studio every day.

Susannah Steers (29:14):
I think that's one of the most exciting things
for me about teaching Pilatesfor all of these years and it
has been watching people comeinto the studio over a period of
months or years and seeing thegood days and the bad days and
the good times and the bad timesand all the things that they

(29:34):
navigate in their lives andseeing as they start to get some
of that agency where they'retaking some of the things that
they learn in the studio and seethe different ways that they
can apply it in their lives.
And sometimes it's aboutlearning how to work a muscle or
push a thing or pull a thing orstand up straight, whatever,

(29:58):
but other times it's about howall those pieces fit together
and how they talk to themselvesand how they navigate the world.
And looking at and seeing thatover time is really so exciting
and so gratifying when you seepeople thriving in a way that
maybe they didn't before or theyjust have skills that they can

(30:19):
use in a new way.

Allison Birt (30:21):
Yeah, it's so thrilling.

Susannah Steers (30:27):
What does moving well mean to you in your
life, in your work, in your ownbody?
I mean, I have my ideas for me.
Everybody has a different thingfor them.
What does it look like for you?

Allison Birt (30:39):
That's such a good question and I think it changes
daily.
Well, maybe not daily, but itis always a moving target.
I think moving well to me isfreedom.
Freedom to do the physicalactivities that you want Ideally
.
Freedom from pain, if possible,not always in a human body, but

(31:01):
to the best of our abilities.
It's independence being able tolift that heavy thing, move
your furniture, reach the thingon the high shelf.
And it's pleasure being at homein your body and having a.
I mean, it's not alwayscomfortable and pleasurable to

(31:25):
be at home in a human body, butto be able to ride the waves of
the pleasure and the pain andthe whole experience with some
equanimity and some humor andsome skills, some capabilities.
So yeah, freedom and pleasureand independence, I think, are

(31:47):
the things that really areresonating with me right now as
my movement practice evolves.
It's a constant exploration,though, isn't it?
Yeah, you know, when I thinkabout the journey in my life
over the years and how mymovement practice has supported
me, guided me, challenged me,all the things from early days

(32:09):
when I was dancing, throughpregnancy, childbirth,
postpartum, menopause, injuries,even the times when everything
you're feeling top of the world,there is a home to some degree,
and it isn't always comfortable, but there's just something

(32:30):
really special about it and it'salways changing.
Yeah, it is.
It's always changing.
Sometimes I think, oh, mypurpose in life.
I was put on this earth tolearn how to be comfortable in
this form, in this human body,and that really has been the
motivation of all my education,of all my movement, exploration.

(32:51):
It's just searching for that.
How do I live in this vehiclethat I have for that?
How do I live in this vehiclethat I have?
And then it lights me up somuch when I discover something
about that and I just can't waitto share it with people.
And so if all of my explorationcan benefit my students, then

(33:12):
we both win.
It's just, you know, everybodybenefits.

Susannah Steers (33:17):
It's a win-win situation.
Yeah, I love it.
You've presented also work atuniversities and for teacher
training programs and all kindsof things, and I don't know that
everybody that you work withknows that, so I just want to
put it out there.
What do you enjoy about thatkind of work?

Allison Birt (33:34):
Well, I taught at SFU for a few semesters.
I taught the dance and theaterstudents a movement fundamentals
course that was based on theFranklin method and with a
Pilates practice, and it wasreally fun to teach students who
were there in our, in ourartistic capacity to how to use
their bodies, both for thelongevity of their career so

(33:56):
it's always a demanding career.
Both for the longevity of theircareer so it's a always a
demanding career, both foracting and dancing, so to have
strength so that they're able todo eight shows a week and do
all the things they need to do,but also to watch them use those
skills to develop a characteror to work on a particular mood,
like what would that feel likein their bodies, and so that was

(34:18):
a really fulfilling thing towork with young people and young
artists and help them discoverhow their bodies can be used as
a tool or an instrument in theirart.
And it's also really great toteach other movement teachers to
help them discover what I havebeen discovering about the

(34:41):
efficacy of the Franklin Methodand how it can give your
students more agency andownership in their bodies, and
how much there is to learn.
I'm just such an educationjunkie that I love to both be on
the teaching side and thelearning side and I always learn

(35:01):
so much from students, so thequestions that other Pilates
teachers ask and the curiositiesthat they have are always so
exciting to me.
When I'm presenting to a bunchof movement professionals, it
always challenges me to discovermore think through a different
avenue.

Susannah Steers (35:22):
Sets off a whole new avenue of research,
doesn't it?
Yeah, well, I think that's oneof the things I love about
working with you is that there'sthis constant play and constant
learning, and it brings me joyall the time Me too.
I don't think I can let you gowithout announcing that we have
a couple of excitingcollaborative projects coming up

(35:43):
at Moving Spirit.
The first one is the Cœur de Viewellness retreat on May 11th,
and you and I and our colleaguesSarah Moore and special guest
Siobhan O'Connell, will begetting together to present an
afternoon at Nectar Yoga Retreat.
It's a half-day retreat.

(36:04):
It's an afternoon to rediscoverhome in your own body and tap
into the wellspring of vitalitythat already exists inside of
you, and I'm sure that fromlistening today, you get a sense
of some of the things that wecan contribute to that
conversation.
I'm really looking forward tothat.
andAnd we will also be doing Alison

(36:30):
and I are doing the reprise ofour Ins"Ins and Outs of balance
workshop coming up on June 21st,which is it is a reprise of a
workshop we did earlier in theyear, and we had so many
requests to do it again that wewent ahead and decided to do it.
So I'm looking forward to bothof those.
You can find all theinformation about those events

(36:53):
at www.
movingspirit.
ca.
- just navigate over to theMAT series and events page and
you can see all that.
Perhaps, Allison, to close outour conversation today, what
message or advice would you liketo leave with our listeners
regarding the power of movementand embodiment in their lives?

Allison Birt (37:16):
Oh, that's a great question.
I think the message or theadvice that I am trying to live
by myself at the moment is maybethe thing that I'd like to
share that regardless of what'sgoing on in your life, that

(37:41):
regardless of what's going on inyour life, turning towards your
body will always be a good idea.
It's so tempting to lookoutwards and escape or numb or
any of the things that we oftenuse as coping strategies to deal
with the many things that aregoing on in the world and in our
lives, but the more you're ableto turn towards your body and

(38:06):
treat it with kindness andlisten to what it's asking for,
to whatever degree you'recapable of that in a particular
moment, I think you will neverregret and so that is my
constant practice at the momentis the turning towards my body
in movement, in stillness, inrest, in care.
That is, I think, probably mylife's work.

(38:31):
So I'd like to invite otherpeople to join me in that.
Finding that inner wisdom, thatinner care, looking within
instead of always lookingwithout.
Thank you so much for thatmessage.
Thank you for spending sometime with me today.
It's always so much fun to hangout with you.

(38:54):
It's always a pleasure.
All right, have a wonderfulafternoon and I'll see you in
the studio.
Thanks, Sue.

Susannah Steers (39:01):
Bye-bye, see you soon.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks.
For now let's get moving.