TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Their Core Values

Tribune photo by KATHY MOORE

Maria Ivanova, owner and trainer at EuroPilates in New Tampa, works with client Scott Goode on pilates machines.

ADVERTISEMENT

By KENNETH KNIGHT

kknight@tampatrib.com

Published: March 11, 2009

NEW TAMPA - Doug Kugley lay flat on his back, his feet pressed against a metal bar high above his head as beads of sweat trickled down his face and splattered on the foam mat beneath him.

"Squeeze your glutes," demanded Maria Ivanova, the petite and fit certified athletic trainer standing over him.

"What is this?" she said, tapping his sternum, which suddenly deflated under his nylon shirt like a flattened tire. "Keep the abs tight."

Kugley fought on. His lean body stretched toward the sky.

The Arbor Greene resident had already done a lot of stretching, bending and sweating, and he was still less than five minutes into the Pilates training session.

So goes the average hourlong training session at Euro Pilates at 20401 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., just south of County Line Road.

For beginner and advance students alike, the physical fitness training program often associated with helping gymnasts and dancers improve their posture and stand taller is not a walk in the park. Pilates focuses on intense, deep torso muscle training to strengthen an individual's core area and helps keep the body balanced and the spine aligned.

But Ivanova's clients, who stream into the 1,900-square-foot, state-of-the-art Pilates studio on the second floor above a credit union, wouldn't have it any other way.

They say Ivanova and her team of certified trainers are the best prepared to help them get fit, both mind and body.

A growing number of men in the New Tampa area are signing up for Pilates.

In the year since Euro Pilates opened, Ivanova said her studio has experienced a steady increase of men coming in to give it a try. Men now account for about 30 percent of her business. She estimates about 50 percent of them are physicians or work in the medical field.

On March 3 the appointment calendar at Ivanova's studio was filled from 9 a.m. to noon with men registered for individual training sessions.

Ivanova said the concept of building strong core muscles to help improve physical and emotional well-being appeals to both men and women.

Ivanova, who describes herself as a former elite Russian gymnast who gave up the sport to pursue her passion for Pilates, said gender doesn't matter in Pilates. She puts all of her clients through the paces.

"I am the instructor that my clients say they love to hate," Ivanova said, smiling.

"I am the kind of instructor who requires the best and the toughest," said the 33-year-old mother with a slight Russian accent. "I want to give my clients everything I possibly can, because I want them to succeed. I want to take them to reach their maximum results."

Kugley, a 38-year-old husband training to compete in triathlons in Miami and New Orleans this spring, said the hard work is paying off.

He showed up at Ivanova's studio in November, complaining of back stiffness and cramping in his quadriceps, the large muscles at the front of the thighs.

"I can feel a huge difference," Kugley said, wrapping up the grueling training session with Ivanova on March 3. "I wouldn't give up Pilates for anything."

Some weeks Kugley spends up to three hours at Euro Pilates working on proper stretching, bending and breathing techniques. The fitness training proved beneficial as he built up to nearly 35 hours of weekly road training in preparation for the upcoming races. He has begun to pare back as the triathlon season approaches.

"I've been in the sport since 1998," Kugley said. "I wish I had Pilates back then." The South Carolina native wonders whether Pilates training could have prevented back surgeries in 2000 and 2001.

Kugley said he never imagined Pilates would be so strenuous when his coach, Pam Kallio, suggested he give it a try.

"That's the thing that shocked me the first time," Kugley said. "You are moving but not going anywhere, but I was pouring" sweat.

Training sessions are customized based on a client's medical history. Clients are asked to complete a medical disclosure form during the first visit. The trainers create an exercise program to match the individual's level of fitness and health conditions.

"I'm trying to work the muscles that are weak," Ivanova said. "Your muscles should be proportionate to hold your body aligned."

The program combines the use of free-standing exercises with exercise balls and machines with pulleys and straps to help individuals develop stronger core muscles. Ivanova said no two training sessions are the same, and neither are her clients.

Dmitry Khavindon, 53, started taking Pilates on his birthday, Jan. 8, at the urging of his wife. "My wife was coming here, and she convinced me to join," he said.

Khavindon is seeking more mobility. Bending at the waist to pick up an item off the floor would be a joy, he said.

Scott Goode, 42, of Meadow Pointe started training a month ago. His Pilates sessions are not as intense as Kugley's, but they are challenging for a newcomer. Last week, Goode spent most of his time on a piece of equipment with straps supporting his feet.

"Slow down and press on the glutes," Ivanova said, instructing Goode on the proper technique on how to tighten his buttock and abdominal muscles and stretch his calves and hamstrings.

Goode, an independent sales representative who works from home, said a chiropractor recommended Pilates as another course of treatment to help relieve stiffness in his neck and lower back.

Goode, a divorced father with two children, said he now has less stiffness, a greater range of motion and enjoys the added bonus of losing weight.

He said the time and energy invested in Pilates is well worth it.

"You have to look at it as an investment," Goode said. "It's like having a personal trainer, but instead of typical strength training, you are combining mind, body, awareness and strength."

GET TO KNOW

WHAT: Euro Pilates

WHERE: 20401 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Suite 202

OWNER: Maria Ivanova

INFORMATION: (813) 756-4000 or e-mail info@euro-pilates.com

Reporter Kenneth Knight can be reached at (813) 865-4842. To view a photo gallery of a training session at Euro Pilates, go to northeast.tbo.com, Keyword: Pilates.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT