Verbal Cues when teaching Pilates?
How important are those verbal cues you give to your client when you are teaching Pilates? When you are in your own Pilates what do those verbal cues actually say to you? Are there right and wrong verbal cues in Pilates teaching? What is the purpose of those verbal cues in that moment to make something happen?
Finding the perfect verbal cue is something that many Pilates teachers may find difficult or not understand that is the reason the Pilates client is not getting it, understanding, or doing what the Pilates teacher, you are asking them to do.
In my over 25 years of teaching Pilates, I have heard many cues and watched as clients struggled just as much as the Pilates teacher giving the cue. Sometimes it is the use of to much anatomy as a cue such as “use your glutes to ..” or “engage your Pelvic floor to…” It may be way too much verbal cueing to where the Pilates client stops hearing or gets confused as to what they are hearing. Verbal cues may also just not work for that client in terms of their movement, mind and body connection or experience.
Teaching and verbal cues should flow and create ease for the Pilates teacher and client so that each can move deeper together into the work and the movement. In my Pilates teacher training program, we go over verbal cueing a lot. An important thing to remember is that each client and each Pilates teacher is different so, using the same cues over and over for each client or as a teacher will not work.
When thinking about verbal cues to use when teaching Pilates there are a few things to remember every time and you can use this acronym SSC
Short
Simple
Clear
What does that mean? Let’s look at each one and build it from there!
Keep your verbal cue short. Fewer words and not a huge flow of direction and information to the client. If you can take a cue of “Lie down and reach your arms behind you, feel the length of your spine and take your arms up and start curling up vertebrae by vertebra into your rollup. Keep curling and then keep curling as you go down vertebra by vertebra and keep that powerhouse engaged to curl deeper and deeper”
That is a lot! It is a lot of energy and effort for you the teacher and for the client to think about, try to follow, and move! In reality, the client has turned off at this point and a lot of the cues don’t make sense in movement for that client so by taking that rollup and just saying “Reach arms and rollup. Reach past your toes and keep reaching as you roll back down” . Simple! Now your client is moving and you can add little words to get them to maybe reach further, give them a focus to think about and just let them move. You also as the teacher are spending less energy in your teaching!
Keep it simple! Not only is the verbal cue short but it is simple. Taking the anatomy out of powerhouse, all the anatomy chatter they are now able to figure things out in a very uncluttered way for their mind. You can now give those simple cues of “can you reach further over those legs” and “can you pull into that strap more as you roll back down”. A simple direction that they can get outside of themselves to engage more. Recent studies have shown that people can learn better and quicker with external cues instead of internal cues. So giving them a simple action outside of their body will get them to connect faster.
Give clear cues! When you think about teaching Pilates and the individual client in front of you if you use very clear cues then it won’t matter who you are teaching. This is the moment to think of those external cues and ones that everyone can understand. If we stick with the rollup we are working on with the client as they rollup give their arms something to reach for such as “can you reach for your shoes over in that cubby?” or “Can you think of your head trying to touch that wall across the studio?”. This takes them out of their body and anatomy and gives them something to focus on to get them moving in the direction or focus that you are wanting for their movement. Also by asking can you it is a no fail option for the client. You are also seeing what that body is capable of in moving and its range.
One thing to think about if you are giving too many verbal cues, giving a lot of anatomy verbiage is why? Is it that you are worried they will be bored? Or is it you are worried they will think you don’t know what you are doing so by giving more verbiage you will keep them from getting bored and seeing your knowledge?
By giving the SSC in your cueing for your client you are not only making it easier for the client to be in the movement and the session but, it allows you as the Pilates teacher to not use so much energy and talking so that you can step back and observe, watch and then guide the client where they can find that full body range for them. You are able to see and be in the moment much more for the client in ways that will be key for the learning process of the client.
The words we use and how we use them as we guide the client are so important and how you deliver them is even more important. The less words we use gives that client time to absorb, check in with their body, and figure things out for themselves. Learning as they go! It allows their brain to explore and figure things out without a lot of “chaos” as in constant chatter that makes it hard to hear anything else.
Every body, every client is different. The cues are different for each client as well so, choosing that SSC moment will be for the teacher as well as the client that exploration of what connects and doesn’t. It will change as the body figures out things and changes with the work. That means that those verbal cues will change as well.
Allow the client to have a moment to see if that works or not for them. Look around and give the a focus to move to or away from that is not inside their body. Watch as the client learns and improves their movement quickly in ways you find surprising and rewarding as the teacher!
Listen to 2 Pilates Chicks podcast “Cueing: Outdated to Updated” for more!