FOR RELEASE 10/26/05 or later CONTACT: KATHY ANDERSON 937-438-5151 First of Its Kind in Dayton: My Pilates Studio LLC Offers Comprehensive Training in Spa-like Setting Grand Opening Planned in Early November The Dayton area?s newest Pilates studio offers something that cannot be found anywhere else in the Miami Valley: Full-time, comprehensive Pilates training and related services in a beautiful, state-of-the-art facility that is more like a spa than a weightlifting room. ?This is a place where people come to relax, to rejuvenate,? says Kathy Anderson-Herman, owner of My Pilates Studio in Centerville. ?My goal is that when they leave, they can?t wait to come back.? From the gentle waterfall that greets each visitor to fine wood floors and mood-enhancing colors and artwork, My Pilates Studio is designed to help customers enjoy working out in an uncrowded, stress-free environment. Other fitness facilities in Dayton offer limited Pilates equipment or treat Pilates as a sideline. My Pilates Studio features a spacious Pilates room full of the most modern equipment, including GYROTONIC?, which focuses on movements of the spine, increasing flexibility, muscle-lengthening and core stability. ?The resistance you get with the Pilates and Gyrotonic equipment will give you faster results,? Kathy says. Through the years, Pilates has evolved into several styles of exercise designed to stretch, strengthen and balance the body, in conjunction with focused breathing patterns. Advantages include greater flexibility, strength and lung capacity. Developed by Joseph H. Pilates in the 1920s, Pilates has long been practiced by dancers and athletes, but can also safely be used by disabled individuals, senior citizens and people who are recovering from surgery or injuries. Its popularity has exploded in the United States in recent years. ?Pilates can be as simple or as challenging as you want,? Kathy says. ?For athletes who think Pilates isn?t real exercise, we will create a whole new appreciation for Pilates. We will give them a workout like they?ve never had, and they?ll go ?Wow!?? At My Pilates Studio, instructors are Stott-trained, which means safer, more effective exercises. With Stott Pilates?, there is a greater emphasis on the way specific muscles are used, particularly with regard to the lower back and core muscles. Billed as an ?intelligent exercise and wellness center,? My Pilates Studio offers more than just Pilates. There is a separate yoga room, ballet classes, massages and facials, nutritional counseling, aromatherapy and even a break area where clients can enjoy friendly conversation and a beverage, after working out. My Pilates Studio features its own exclusive line of tees, bags and caps, in addition to such well-known Pilates and yoga apparel labels as Body Addiction, Satori, Goddesswear, Downward Dog, Moretz Power Sox & Yoga-Paws. The studio also exclusively carries Alora Ambience fragrances, fragrance diffusers and soy candles. Gift cards are available for your shopping convenience for classes as well as boutique items. As a long-time weight trainer, Kathy became interested in Pilates several years ago, when she read an article about it. After taking classes, she realized that she had found a form of exercise that was like no other, and began to train to become an instructor. ?My body felt really different than when I was weight training,? she says. ?Pilates was fun, and I looked forward to each workout. Early on, I had a vision for a studio. I wanted My Pilates Studio to be functional, but comfortable and attractive.? A licensed real estate agent, Kathy is married to prominent Dayton real estate agent and developer Phil Herman. He has watched first hand the growth of My Pilates Studio. He is also a dedicated client who takes a Gyrotonic class every week, to supplement his weight training. My Pilates Studio offers private training for individuals or group classes. The studio offers a variety of classes for all levels and maintains the highest level of attention that is necessary to achieve optimum results. ?A Pilates class should be focused on a particular person,? Kathy says. ?It can be challenging or rehabilitative, but it should be all about you and meeting your fitness goals in a fun, yet challenging way.? My Pilates Studio is located at 8100 Miller Farm Lane, just off of S.R. 725, in Centerville. We extend a welcome to everyone to stop in for a tour and chat with one our instructors. For more information, visit www.mypilatesstudiodayton.com or call (937) 438-5151.

Both Pilates and Yoga are available almost everywhere and both are structured around a set of very specific exercises that aim to produce strong, supple bodies that will stay fit and injury-free. The question is, what’s the difference between the two? And more important, which one is right for you? They are similar in that they both work the body as a whole. Joseph Pilates borrowed extensively from Yoga and both disciplines help you stay limber, long, stretched, and aligned. Both also stress breath control, although breathing techniques in Yoga vary widely and are more complex than those in Pilates. The key difference in Yoga lies not so much in its application as in its aspiration, which is more spiritual than physical. The idea is that Yoga is a life practice. The bottom line is that both Yoga and Pilates will help you achieve core strength and flexibility. Pilates may make you stronger more quickly, Yoga may strengthen you spiritually, but they’ll both help keep you strong and supple.

Disney’s cruise ship, Magic is getting a face-lift. It will sport three new spa suites and double the ship’s exercise in it’s adults-only Vista Spa and Salon to 10,700 square feet. It will pump up the footage for more equipment, an area for spinning classes and private salons for Pilates instruction and consultations. Disney’s family-focused vessel that tries to tap into everyone’s inner child will seriously pamper adults too.

Pilates, an 80-year old fitness regimen that has found a huge audience in the past several years, has cultivated a reputation for being able to create longer, leaner muscles…and to increase height. “There’s no such research to prove that Pilates will make a person taller,” said Moira Merrithes, founder of Stott Pilates, a national equipment and training company. “What it can do is improve the posture so that people stand taller.” Once a Pilates student has mastered certain moves, he or she will begin to look, feel and act – but not actually become – taller.

Madonna may have recently discovered Gyrotonic, but professional dancers have been swooping and circling through the air-without leaving the ground-since the 1970’s. Gyrotonic works the body on all plances to simulate real-life activity. Romanian-born Juliu Horvath combines the principles of swimming, ballet, yoga, tai-chi, and gymnastists to allow exercisers to perform circular, spiraling motions and move freely in all directions while body weight is supported.