In early 2019, I was crazy busy with the office work, and after a long time, I realized that I could not enter the studio for my practices other than teaching sessions. Although my life is based on a job which I love so much, somehow, I was away from tasting what I love. My time on the weekends was relatively easy, so I thought about why I was not doing my practice on the weekends. I started looking around at my home. My kickboxing gloves were just around the corner, my rowing machine right across the TV, my yoga mat and blocks in the hallway, my jump rope and my running shoes at the door entrance. Well, I asked myself I do the job I love; however, why there is nothing about Pilates at home except my books. Over time, the idea of having my own Pilates equipment at home began to become familiar. I had an eye on my favorite equipment: Wunda Chair. While I was dreaming about where to place that athletic equipment, I enlarged my dream because in this method I learnt and taught to focus on the whole. I could not separate any equipment from each other. So, I created a home studio with Wunda Chair, Spine Corrector, Tower Reformer, F2 System for all equipment and mat. It happened, but it was still like a dream. Despite all the tiredness of the day, as soon as I came home, I was rockin’ n rollin’ in my home studio by singing loudly and training quietly. During the weekends, my home studio was my shelter. It took two weeks between dream and reality.
April came and I went to the FIBO in Cologne with BASI Systems team. From day one, I was so amazed as well as shocked by witnessing how big the sports industry is. The Second day, it was mind-blowing. I thought myself literally if the world stops, people would never ever give up on exercising. While digesting this new experience, on the way to the hotel after a joyful dinner, I tripped on the tram sidewalk and fell down. I was so lucky nothing was broken; however, I had a severe left knee contusion which forced me to go to the hospital. After the inspection, I was not allowed to bend my knee and move for two days so nothing could happen to the stitches. I was very desperate while leaving the hospital with my new equipment, crutches. So, I spent the last two days of the FIBO, lying in the hotel with tremendous pain. During April 2019, I could not bend my knee; I could not go to work; I could not teach; I could not even go down the stairs of my studio. Unfortunately, this situation lasted 1.5 months.
Now, it is in April 2020. This time, not only me, but the whole world, we have to stay at home for this month, maybe a more extended period. While we have to witness heartbreaking news all over the world, we see incredible beauties with our own eyes, like never before. With my two days of FIBO experience, I was saying that if the world stops, people will not give up on their workout. The world almost stopped, unfortunately; however, people keep moving. We, being in the first place, and the clients that we touched their lives, can still practice Pilates with us. Thanks to the online sessions, we hosted our clients at our home, and we are guest of them at their homes. We have a chance to reach more individuals that we could not reach from our studios. Definitely, we share more. We continue to act as a bridge between the ideal and the reality, teach independence, and thus we support the method to become last long life philosophy.
While we are doing all this, please do not forget ourselves. Frankly, I was agitated last April, I had the opportunities, but my injury did not allow me to reach many of them. This April, no matter how much I missed my office, my clients, trainings and being outside, I am more than happy that I am healthy, thanks to my equipment at home, I can create my own time and continue my practice, and still reach my clients.
I always believe that it is necessary to create an environment to create opportunities. I firmly believe that this environment is the time to touch, and invest in our own lives. By learning to be my own student, I accompany the naturally occurring events with my flow, and enjoy my two biggest investments; being a Pilates instructor and having a home studio. In the meantime, while digesting what is happening and waiting for the miracle, I wish to heal our world with all my inner peace. I am always thankful for being able to serve life by taking part in Pilates method.
