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When did you move to Spain, why, and what do you love about living in Barcelona?

As a child I had spent many years on holiday in Ibiza with my parents so it wasn’t that strange that having met Juan, originally from Cordoba in 1968 we married soon after. My family and I moved to Barcelona in the summer of 1986 and we were living here for eight years, then we had to move around Europe for the next 10 years because of my husband’s job. We returned to live here permanently in 2001. We all felt we had returned home as we love most things about Barcelona the weather, food, arquitecture and the way of life.

Do you feel that you have integrated fully into the Spanish lifestyle?  Has anything in particular helped with this process?

I think I can say I am fully integrated into Spanish life, my friends remark that I am more Spanish in character than they are! Perhaps things were made easier for me as my husband is Spanish and the children went to bi-lingual schools, so we met mainly Spanish speaking people and when we first arrived here there were very few foreigners around, so it was adapt or die!! I seem to have adapted as I am still here.

You have recently been working with Zoe at Fisioplus Pilates, Barcelona with some chronic injuries, can you tell us a bit about the problems you have had and their limitations on your regular lifestyle?

I went to see Zoe because for over a year I had had serious problems with my hip and my back and after being treated by three traumatologists and seemed to be getting nowhere, I was recommended to see Zoe. The pain in my back hip and right knee was limiting my normal life. I love all sorts of sports but found that I was having problems in walking upstairs let alone go to step and aerobic classes. Golf was out as I couldn’t walk round the course or hit the golf ball. Skiing was a no go because if I fell down no way could I get up again. All in all, I was feeling very frustrated and miserable.

What do you especially like about working with Zoe and the Fisioplus Pilates approach?

Being treated by Zoe was a different approach from how things seem to be done here in Catalonia. Before visiting Zoe, I had been daily for three months to a rehabilitation centre. I had been given heat treatment and ultra sound, which did not seem to help at all.  Zoe takes a hand on approach and really got down to some serious massage and other manual techniques. She also suggested exercises to improve my back muscles. I was slow to respond at first. As time went by, slowly but surely things improved. Zoe always gave me encouragement, which kept my spirits up.

Your main treatment goal for the past 6 months has been to walk a section of the famous “Camino de Santiago”   Do you think that having such a specific goal has helped with your treatment?

Although I have had problems on and off with my back for many years, the last straw came two years ago when a group of us walked the Inca Trail in Peru. For the next two years I was unable to move around normally as the last part of the trail finished off my hip and knee. When we talked about doing the “Camino de Santiago” I was in no fit state to even consider it, but the idea was sown into my mind and little by little, after seeing that Zoe’s treatment was helping me I was determined to do my best and give it a try.

Tell us a bit about the run up to the “Camino” How did you prepare physically and mentally?

Light training started about six months before we were leaving, walking along the beach, every day with our trekking boots on in the midday sun. (We must have been mad!!) I kept telling myself my knee and hip did not hurt and I was making a fuss over nothing. That wasn’t exactly true.

Was there a time that you thought you may never get to start on the “camino”?

At the end of February I went to see my fourth bone specialist and after having six sessions of “factores de creciemiento” and still having problems, it was decided that I should have an arthroscopy done on my knee. I wasn’t given a time for recuperation, I was told to wait and see. The operation took place. Recuperation time was four and a half months and one week before leaving for Santiago I was still using crutches and everyone said she will never do it. I had to prove them wrong but I did wonder if I was going to make it.

Which section of the “camino” did you do? Where did you start and finish? How many of you were there and how did you feel when you all met up and were about to start your adventure.

On July 31st 19 of us met up in Leon. One couple came from England, two families from Madrid, three couples and one family from Barcelona. We were going for the last section of the French camino. We drove from Leon to Sarria, where we left our cars and started the trek. All of us were very enthusiastic, even though two of the party arrived from Morocco with upset stomachs. We were five families in all and at first we were a little worried about the youngsters getting along and not all the grown ups had met before, but we had no need to worry everyone fitted in and we all got on.

Did you have a particular strategy each day?  Any tricky moments to overcome? Any amusing anecdotes you’d like to share?

Our only strategy was, to make it to the next stop! The weather was incredibly hot so by majority vote we were up at 5.00 each morning and on the road at 6.00. The first two days were lighter; we did 22 and 24 kms. The third and forth were 28 kms each day and the last day was 10kms to reach Santiago. As were of all ages, or abilities were different. One family was very much younger and fitter. They strode off every morning and reached the goal fist. We nicknamed them the “Decathlon Family.”

What was it like finally arriving in Santiago after all the build up, months of physical preparation and days of continuous walking?

The arrival in Santiago was very emotional, we’d done it!! 115kms!! We had all had our good moments and our difficult times, but no-one had argued or lost their temper, quite strange when there were so many of us. Santiago was packed as it was the Jubilee Year and the day we arrived they were expecting 12.000 juvenile groups to appear in the town square. Most of them arrived and the town was full of music and celebration.

It has been a truly amazing achievement, would you do it again? Any other challenges lined up for the future?

The experience was unbelievable and we all felt proud to have achieved it, mind you many people have done far greater distances, but I was very content to have made it to the end without any major problems. I’m not sure that I would do it again, perhaps the route has become too commercialized. I would think about going again and trying one of the other routes that lead to Santiago out of season.

If we don’t wait too long and health and age allow us, our next project is to tackle trekking in Nepal. I wonder if we’ll make it?!!

Good Luck to Susan and Juan for Nepal!

It really does sound like one of those jokes and in reality there is no doubt that a lot of fun was had by all on the first ever Fisioplus Pilates combined module 1&2 course. With a definite chill in the air, continual rain showers and gusty winds outside, fleeting thought were had for the participants of the annual Jersey marathon as we happily go to work inside evaluating each others muscle imbalances and physical shortcomings (you will be delighted to hear that personal trainers have them too!)

Over the four days, between the many comedy moments and the mental and physical gymnastics we all came away wiser to the mysterious world of muscle imbalance and biomechanics having shared our cross-profssion knowledge. Luckily, having been carefully assessed, not to mention prodded, poked and closely scrutinised we also go away with the know-how of which exercices, should we choose to do them, are going to make us models of physical perfection by the time we next meet in November for module 3! Note to patients: Do as we say, not as we do!

Zoe Queally, Fisioplus Pilates

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Nathalie, personal trainer, reflects on the course in Jersey:

“My physiotherapist introduced me to Pilates a few years ago as part of my rehab for a back injury. I became a fan immediately and have been looking for a suitable course to do to complement my work as a personal trainer and sports massage therapist. I felt that the exercises on most traditional courses were too advanced for most of my clients and not suitable for exercise rehab.

Zoe’s Fisioplus Pilates course was everything that I was looking for – taking Pilates right back to the fundamentals and learning how to use assessments to prescribe suitable Pilates exercises. The course was really well presented and most importantly for me there was plenty of time to practice the assessments and exercises on each other and our very brave live case study.

I would highly recommend this course to all personal trainers who have an interest in exercise rehab.”

Of course it must be recognised that the general prescription or practice of Pilates without prior assessment or guidance from a good Pilates professional can have harmful effects.  I for one have come across many patients that have tried Pilates classes and had negative experiences, some of which requiring that particular treatment episode following the afore mentioned class!  However, on further questioning the class was invariably enormous with20+ participants with an instructor demonstrating an exercise once or twice and leaving the group to get on with repetition after repetition with a “practice makes perfect” attitude.  

Pilates should NOT be practiced like this!! 

Pilates professionals worth their titles, whether they be Physiotherapists, Osteopaths or properly trained Pilates Instructors would NEVER run a class like this.  Exercises should be given that are appropriate for the individual, taking into account their pre-assessed weaknesses, pathologies and problems.  All Pilates exercises at the time of practice should feel NATURAL, FLUID, SMOOTH and only slightly challenging.  Often patients have described previous Pilates classes as extremely challenging, causing them to be very rigid or shaky and often unable to do more than a couple of repetitions without noticing stress on the neck and/or lower back. 

Practice, unfortunately in the case of “core” muscle re-training, does not always make perfect.  Practicing an incorrect movement pattern will only enable you to do this incorrect movement pattern better! The idea behind clinical Pilates should be that you practice the SPECIFIC exercises appropriate for you at the level that you CAN do.  With very little time you will then be ABLE to do a harder exercise using the correct muscle recruitment. This in turn has a positive effect on pains and problems associated with poor postures and muscle imbalances.

I would like to invite Pilates professionals amongst readers to read the response to The Times article written by Glenn Withers, one of the co-founders of the APPI (Australian Physiotherapy and Pilates Institute).  Glenn has written a fantastic scientific response to the article clearly citing the recent literature that has been released showing evidence substantiating the use of Pilates.  He has also answered, one by one, the claims published by Peta Bee in the article.  Click here  to see a link to Glenn’s response.

Zoe Queally – Fisioplus Pilates.  All rights reserved.

The first symptom is often a painful twinge in the knee, or maybe some stiffness in your fingers. Like wrinkles and grey hair, creaky joints are the first sign of growing old – and can herald years of chronic pain.

The cause is usually wear and tear or osteoarthritis. This leaves millions on anti-inflammatory and painkilling drugs, while every year thousands of others end up having joint replacement operations.

Genetics, nutrition and illness all have a role to play in how long our cartilage lasts. But how you use your joints – and the muscles, ligaments and tendons around them – is also vital. Click here to learn how to avoid and limit joint damage, including food and exercise to put the spring back in your step.

Coming soon

We are in the process of developing a course specifically for personal trainers.

Please contact us if you are a personal trainer for more info or to assist in course development/organisation.

Job offers will be announced on our courses.  Also, the register of FPP trained Physios will be visible on the new website so that potential clients and employees across spain and the UK can find a Fisioplus Pilates trained physio in their area.

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Dharmesh:

First let’s get a bit of info about you and Dance – When did you start dancing?

I started dancing at the age of 7 in the styles of Modern and Acro.

How would you describe the type of dance that you do?

The types of dancing I do now are very diverse and completely different in techniques. I perform Tap, Contemporary, Jazz, Lockin’, Poppin’ and Boogaloo, House and street dance Routines. Although I’ve been trained at one of London’s finest performing arts colleges Doreen Bird. Here I was trained in Ballet, Contact, Contemporary, Jazz, Ballet and Jazz PDD and Musical theatre for three years so I can perform these disciplines of dance also. I graduated with a Diploma in Musical Theatre so I learned Drama and Singing here as well.

Whats the best dance job you’ve ever landed and why?

The best job I’ve ever had in terms of everything will be the Opera Show when I did it at Kilworth House Theatre.

Do you have a favorite show that you’ve been part of?

I can’t decide a favorite show that I’ve been a part of but as it is one of the many shows I’ve performed at with Plague, for instance Plague’s 2009 BBC 3 Debut on the TV program Move like Michael Jackson. Here are the links in the correct order we performed them in.

Discover here why FPP is so important in the world of dance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K-SKY83Y90&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSe7xHY-eX4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9843KPh_Whw&feature=related

I hear you have a signature move, what is it?

My signature move when I dance is in the discipline of tap as that’s my strength and I love that style which is where I clip my heels whilst doing a back somersault as a finishing move.

At the moment you are in Barcelona with The Opera Show, tell us a bit about the show and your role.

In the Opera show I play 3 different roles for the 3 different acts that the show is divided up into. Act 1 I’m a clown and my character where’s union jack flag colors red, white and blue, I have a mohawk wig with face paint and I’m very animated. I pop, wave, tick, strobe and boogaloo and I’m the servant for the duke and I’m very clumsy and silly and cowardly.

Act 2 I’m a angry young Spanish man who doesn’t have any family apart from Tanya who is my sister and I live in a house with people whom I’m not particularly fond of. But Act 2 is set in a Spanish war period so we stick together in as a family. But my role is I have no family just me and my sister and I’m angry and I’m upset but putting on a brave face and trying my best to provide for her. Act 3 I start off as a mysterious actor but I get to perform my tap number against a violinist and I go all out and show off my hidden talents of tap!

What do you think of Barcelona?

Barcelona is an amazing city so relaxing and beautiful, the landscape and the Gaudi buildings and places are amazing and unique for sure.

Whilst you’ve been in town you’ve been unfortunate and picked up a couple of injuries and have been working with Zoe at Fisioplus Pilates. What are the injuries you’ve been working with?  How did they happen and have you had to modify your performance because of them?

I dislocated my shoulder and I had been given exercises to strengthen them and to be able to control it better so that it didn’t feel like it was hanging out of my socket. I did this by flipping off a raised platform and landing terribly. I had to modify my performance by not flipping and not putting any weight on my hands.

Being a dancer you must have had to work with many physiotherapists during your career, what did you like about the Fisioplus Pilates approach?

I thought that the Fisioplus Pilates approach was very ideal for me as I was learning exercises to have the knowledge to be able to heal myself whilst receiving treatment at the same time. Killing two birds with 1 stone! Also the exercises not only treat me better but improve my performance to a higher standard when practiced properly.

How did the sessions help you?  What have you learnt?

The sessions helped me by me learning exercises and me receiving acupuncture and massage to release my muscles. I’ve learned various exercises and I’ve learned what muscles they exercise and strengthen or lengthen and I’ve learned how to activate deeper muscles and how to use the correct muscles for movements rather than relying on my strong incorrect muscles to do the job for me.

You’ve only had 2 weeks of treatment, have you noticed progress already?  If so what?

I’ve noticed loads of improvement, I can control my shoulder better, I’m pain free and I’m using correct muscles to do the work.

Do you feel you can carry on improving after these sessions?

I feel I can improve by continuing these simple exercises and building the correct muscles so that the incorrect ones i have been using can have a break for once.

Would you recommend Fisioplus Pilates to your colleagues/friends?

I would recommend Fisioplus Pilates approach to all dancers as they can not only learn to not get better rapidly quick but to be able to grow stronger to be more controlled and stronger performers with much less chance of injury again.

Thanks Dharmesh, you really are a star!!