Compare to:  Brian

September

Photo: Wenyi Huang, Karen Chin

My entire body has changed: I’m straighter, tighter and arguably taller (that, or my parents are shrinking). And while the NYC Ballet won’t be drafting me into their corps anytime soon, I can do the splits—something I wasn’t able to accomplish in dance class when I was ten.

When Brooke Siler (below) of Re:AB Pilates started working with me in June, she categorized me as inflexible: I couldn’t touch my toes, and when I tried to stretch, my whole body would contort oddly. This was partly because, like most people, I have a slew of muscular imbalances—from rowing starboard (my right back is much more built), from competitive mogul skiing (potentially arthritic hips), from sitting at my desk with crossed legs.

One of the myriad ways Brooke is amazing is that she can, at a glance, determine how your body is working. And then she can realign you. Besides a brief hiatus in August, we worked really hard—though after an intense first month, I was able to taper off the frequency of my visits and still push forward (as Brooke explains, when you begin Pilates, you should book a lot of sessions to start—once you’re rolling, it doesn’t take that much to maintain your advances). The most significant gains happened in June, which speaks to just how quickly you can change your body.

I’ve had a lot of athletic success in my life, but this was arguably the coolest and most transformative experience yet. Compounded by the joy in walking all over my boss, Brian. Tie, my tochis.