067 - Kelly & Rebecca, The Pleasure of Physical Strength and Feminine Connection
Rebecca: Welcome to pleasure central radio. And today on the show, I have a new friend of mine, Kelly wack, Herman she's started the London method. She has a studio of what kind of exercise would you call it? Bar ish.
Kelly: bar is a bar exercise studio, B a R R E.
Rebecca: It's an unusual kind of bar exercise in a long beach, California. Am I right?
Kelly: Yes,
Rebecca: thanks to COVID. They have been doing some fantastic pivoting, doing some online classes and doing a bunch of really interesting things. I wanted to bring her on the podcast though, because once she's an amazing person, she's got so much bubbly energy.
She's always fun to spend time with too. I know enough about exercise science and about bar and the female body in particular that everything she's offering is something that I want for myself and that I want. Other women to have. And three, I just like talking about sexy things with cool people. So, hi Kelly.
Welcome to pleasure. Central radio.
Kelly: Hi. I think that was my most favorite intro ever. So thanks for that. I'm so happy to be here. We have so many exciting things we can talk about. So I, I can't wait for them all.
Rebecca: let's jump right in with what is the London method?
Kelly: So the London method is my name, for an exercise technique, I actually found in. England. And, if anybody who listens here, if you haven't heard of barre, B A R R E, it's a form of exercise that uses the Bali bar for leverage and support it's spaced from ballet and physical therapy, and has a little bit of, in there because of the stretching aspects of it.
But basically a woman named Lottie Burke, created it in England. And, it was brought to the United States. In the seventies by an American actress and air American woman brought it here and change the version a little bit, but used Lottie Burke's name. So we had always practiced it in America since the seventies, eighties, but in, in that woman's way, rather than in the original Lottie Burke way.
So in 2015, I. Came across a book called my improper mother and me, which I highly recommend if people want to know about these fascinating women's lives outside of exercise. she, the daughter who was 80, 81 years old, when I found her had written this book about her and her mother Lawdy Burke, and I found out that she was still teaching the work of her mother in the original format in England at 81, she was still teaching and I was very intrigued by.
sort of the story of these two women, actually, the fact that, that they had sort of a tumultuous relationship yet, the daughter is still at 81 was, was still practicing her mother's work in the original format. So. I reached out to the website and I wrote them a letter and said, I would just was interested in sort of the original exercises versus what we knew here in America.
Cause I was at the time teaching the Americanized version, it was very different than what I've seen online from this woman. So, we. We started talking on the phone, her, her website that was ran by her son gave me her phone number. And for those people who have anything they were passionate about, or they've done anything, say if you're a Pilates person, this was like being given the, the descendants of, of Pilates, like Joseph his phone number.
I felt like I was being given the phone number of Lottie Burke's daughter, which was very, very, Just intriguing to me. So I called her up and we had a phone conversation. The very first conversation we had, we were like two 16 year old girls on the phone, just talking about, she told me not to get into detail about all of it, but she just told me that sort of the history and how the exercise technique had been brought to America in a different way.
And that the only way to find the original way was to come to her and learn it there. So. I, on a whim flew to England. that conversation happened in November. We kept talking and I flew over in April of 2015 and discovered what I feel was like this secret society of women that were working their body in a very different way than we were in America.
And we can talk more about the differences, but, you know, they were working their pelvic floor in a series of the class. There's a section where we just sit down and only work our public floor without talking about our abs or anything. It's just focused on your public floor muscles, which I thought was fascinating.
The technique was designed for women. So it was designed to actually make your, your body have this. Female shape, which not a lot of workout techniques I feel were designed to do that. So it pulls in your waist, it's smooth, the backside of your legs, it rounds and lifts your backside, your butt, your booty will, your body actually changes.
And that's what I saw with myself. And also with the women that I started to practice it on once I got home. So, and the other thing I want to say too, is when I found this little society of women, they were like the strongest. Fitness, but most feminine looking women I'd ever seen. And they were all, many of them had been doing it for like 50, 60 years.
So some of them were in their seventies and doing these exercises. I just, I brought my mom there, during my training, cause I had also brought my five-year-old. My twins were five at the time I have 20 year old boys. And so my mom came, my husband came over and all my mom saw all these women because what they do is.
They don't run around in their exercise clothes. Like we do here in America. Like a lot of us, we run around in our Lululemons or whatever we're in. We run around town and then, well, they don't do that. They're very proper their society. So they wear their, their very proper clothes to class, to Esther's class.
And then they will take our, all their, those off to put their exercise clothes on. And they, and so I basically was seeing all these women naked and I couldn't even believe like how fit and fantastic. They looked at their age and my mom. Was just floored because she had taken my plot. I used to be applauded teacher and I taught Americanized bar and my mom took everything that I taught, but until we found the, this technique and these women, my mom was just like inspired by how strong and feminine and, just these women were fantastic.
So, and they were all connected to, they have this very special bond that, That was created with this exercise technique, which when we brought it back to America, that has happened at our studios to have both in personnel and law. Did women sensation that happens with, with them, for different reasons.
And it probably is the intimacy of the class. I think, we're all locked in a room together and we do things that, you just. Don't talk about really in America, which I think is it's a shame. And so we're trying to kind of build on that and just open up to other muscles that are not, or not work. We focus on a lot of the stabilizing muscles and the really deep muscles of our body.
Not so much the ones you see on the outside, but we real go really deep inside. And Lottie had figured out how to get you in certain positions that aren't necessarily normal and work those muscles in a very tiny way. And you feel parts of you working that you've never felt before, in all parts of your body, not just pelvic floor, it's all over the place, but that's, that's kind of the best way to describe it.
Right? I think, you know, for me, that was my experience, my first experience with it. And I was like, once I found it, you know, when you find something that you're just like, Oh my gosh, I've always loved exercise. I've always loved. Teaching fitness to people. But when I found this, I realized it was my life's purpose to make sure that this woman's work was represented in the proper way.
And that's really the London method. Came to be as a name of where it came from. I couldn't know, lady Burke's name cause she had sold it to that American actress. So we're sort of telling the story of Lottie Burke and her daughter, Esther, Fairfax, who I believe is just as important as her mother now.
Five years later, she's done so much for the technique, but just never asked for any recognition for it. So I'm also trying to put her out there because I think she was really important in everything. So, the London method is my way of like saying these, both these women are important. The technique is fabulous.
And even though we can't use her name legally, we're telling the story of them through our business. So, and I also had no idea when we. I picked the one in methadone I do should say I have a business partner in it now, Pam, who we, we are on this adventure equally together. But when we started using the name in the worlds, you know, I would go to the bank and I w everything was like cash.
Cause I was doing out of my house at first and I'd bring my money to the bank. And the girl at the checker would be like, you keep bringing money here. And I don't know what the London method is, but I just want to do it. And I was like, Well, it could be like drugs. It could be anything that's, she doesn't know what it is, but people just love that name, the London method.
So I thought what, you know, I really lucked out in the sense that, that where it was from was, is such an intriguing place that people want to know about. So, I love that. That, the other women got the Lottie Burke name. Cause I, I, I love the line of meth and it's really become a way of life too, not just an exercise technique.
So I feel like the Lennon method also encompasses more than just working out, which is really what we're all about. So I think that's pretty cool too.
Rebecca: That is pretty cool. What a neat thing to be able to build a brand with a friend and help a bunch of women make friends with their body along the way. It sounds like there would be a lot of pleasure in that.
Kelly: Rebecca, there is so much pleasure in it. I can't even tell you I'm one of the things I, that, and then I love that you say that, and I love that. You're all about pleasure because one of the things that this, this technique transformed in me was, you know, I was always. A teacher. I taught a lot of these and then I moved into teaching bar and plays.
And I like to call it Americanized bars. Since I feel like this version is so different, but I was always like one of those teachers that was like, how do I, how do I kill everyone? How do I make them live? Their lives like miserable in class. Like I want them to hurt and burn. And like I had this mentality of just the, the more pain.
Was it more pain, no pain, no gain, whatever. However, that saying goes like we're. I was very American in the sense where we feel like we have to torture ourselves for like an entire hour in order to get fit. And what I learned from Esther and my experience in England. And I go back now. I mean, before COVID I was going back three times a year to just study and be with her more because she's been such an influential part of the business is, it's just.
We figured out how to have fun with it. So the women in our classes are actually allowed to talk in class, which was very different from the American way I was taught. It was usually just the teacher with a microphone, but the women in England, in between exercises, they would chat with one another, just a little bit, not too much very respectful of the teacher, but they would.
Sort of bond on how hard the exercise or sizes were. Esther is super funny. So, we teach other teachers how to train in this technique now, all over the world. And one of the things in our, we have the tenants or 10 is my mom told me it's supposed to be 10 days of exercise. She's an English teacher. So she's always like Kelly, but no, she, so the tenant exercise, one of them is, Humor a sense of humor.
So our teachers, all, we teach them, like, bring your personality into the class and be funny because one of the things I thought was so funny that Esther said, when I say, no, we like shut the door in America. The teacher wears a microphone. No one's allowed to talk. There's not a lot of like a ton of laughing.
And she said, well, these exercises are terrible. Why would anyone come and just do them? Why would they ever come back? Why would they, why would they to themselves and not have a good time? And I said, I don't know. And then I said, and we don't let any of the women talk. It wasn't how on earth could you put 12 to 13 women in a room together and tell them not to talk to one another?
And I was like, I don't know. But we do that every, every time we shut the door and that's how that we do it. And so her way of thinking was just. Why would you, why would people work out then? And I think that's why a lot of people in our country have always hated working out and they felt like, Oh, I got to go do my workout, what it's torturous.
But for me, like finding this was life changing because, you know, women that come to our studio, they feel like they've had a girl's night out. They've gone to like a happy hour or, you know, minus that. Food and the drinks or whatever, but they really feel like they get that female bond mean time at our classes.
So it hits. So many birds with one stone, because you're not only getting effective, the most effective workout I've ever seen, but you're also getting that connection with the other women. and then, you know, just doing all sorts of things with our body. Like when we sit in a circle and do our pelvic floor work, we literally.
have them sit in a circle facing each other, which I think is a huge thing. There's like three different times in the class where we come to a circle where we force the women to face each other, where a lot of Americanized workouts you're either on your own working out or you're in a line facing the teacher.
So it, it creates a different dynamic, but we're like in a circle. so it's really quite. intimate in the sense that especially when we go into the part where we do our pelvic floor work or all just sitting down, relaxing and pulling in, you know, from the front to the back, we tell them like, we, we just lay it all out there.
We tell them to just literally think about, pulling in, from your. Your anus to your clutter? Yeah. Like just pulling everything in whatever we say. It's like, Getting them to really imagine what's happening. Because a lot of times when we first started teaching, we're like, Oh, pull in, pull in. And then we started realizing that a lot of people didn't know exactly what we were talking about.
So we had to get very specific on what's actually going on. And so at first people were like, Oh my gosh, did they just say something like that? But then once you put it out there, everyone becomes comfortable. And the pelvic floor, we call it pelvic floor, play time named it that, as there calls it, the inner spirit, which I think is really cute too.
I love that name too. So, we just noticed it was like a very playful time in class where we just go for it. we tell our teachers, you know, use whatever visuals you think will help them. There's nothing don't hold back on anything. If you feel like there's something that you could say that could get them to understand it, better use that.
And we just try not to make it an uncomfortable situation. Cause some people you could tell at first they're like, wait, what are we gonna do? And then. It's really the coolest part though, has been, we have people do that, want to do testimonials and the lady say, well, I really want to do a testimonial, the pelvic floor part because it's changed my life so much in so many ways from either having to not, Like holding in your urine has been something that has been hard for women as they get older, but they've been able to, not let out a little piece sometimes when they, when they don't want to, sex becomes better because you have more control over that area.
so the husbands are always seen our teachers around town and saying, I don't know what you're doing with my wife over there, but keep, please continue. And we always know what they're talking about.
Rebecca: that a gratifying experience you're giving people better
Kelly: so it's like better sex and they look more feminine and they feel more feminine. And in the way we have them move is, just. So beneficial in so many ways. So they feel free in class, but then they're actually able to use those movements in their own life too, because they are, they are similar if you, if you, I don't know, Rebecca, if you know much about Lottie Burke, but, I think she was pretty much a sex addict.
I don't know, like there was never a diagnosis with her, but she, everything about her was about like sex. She. How to open marriage that I don't know that her husband fully wanted, but she just said, this is the way it's going to be. I'm going to do this. And he loved her. So they were together for 30 years with her just doing whatever she wanted, which, you know, some people have said they don't like that about her, but I just really admired that she was herself.
Like she didn't, she didn't change herself for anybody. And her husband actually loved her and he was willing to accept it. So I feel like. That that was their specific situation and it worked for them for a long time. So there's very fascinating things about her, but every time she talks about stuff in class, from what I've heard from her daughter and people who took class from her, it was always like, you know, when you're, when you're doing the pelvic floor work, imagine that your, your lover is a banana and you're like squeezing the banana so hard.
Like she, she just, everything was like, how do you imagine things to get them to understand where they're supposed to pull in? And a lot of it was very sexual.
Rebecca: Well, yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Actually. I'm glad that you brought up the women talking in class. When I was doing Pilates for about five years, I was taking private Pilates lessons because I found that that interaction with my instructor. Was really where the gold was, you know, being able to have, have well questions about like, why does it feel this way?
In fact, that is how I figured it out. That there's some muscles and the groin area to the pelvic floor muscles that are connected through the hamstring, through the calf muscle. All the way into the big toe. And when she started telling me about this, I had this aha like, Oh my gosh, is that why our toes curl?
Whenever we're about to have an orchid, that's amazing.
Kelly: It's so true. I mean, it's, it's so funny. Like you, when you start to thinking about your body as like one full piece, that's all connected really through our core, which is our pelvic floor, essentially. That's, you know, the, the middle point of all of it. Then when you start working out. From that direction and realizing that everything we do, you start there and then you work out rather than the other way.
Like I'm gonna work my bicep. Okay. Well, let's see. What is your bicep connected to, and then go there and then you can move your arm fine, but don't focus so much on the extremities, but go to that, like, Center where it all begins. Cause it does, it all goes out to those areas. But, but thinking of where it starts, I think is a key thing that I also learned as, as a Pilates instructor first, but that's why I loved this method because I thought she figured out a way to translate what I knew in Pilates, but in a very feminine way.
and I like to say that I really truly believe that like, Lottie Burke was, was the Joseph Pilates for females. So she, she looked at the body, not just as a one unit between male and female. She looked at the female body on its own and created the exercises specifically for women. And it's not to say that I don't think men should do the work.
We do. I think there's a lot of beneficial things for men as well, but I do think essentially it was designed for women and it's just. That's just what it is like Lottie Burke was made to do, you know, the waste work was made to pull in your waste and it will, it will pull in your waist. If you are consistently doing these exercises, it will pull in your waist.
for me, the first three weeks I did, it was an inch and a half, and then I came home and it just kept going in and, and, and I'm just watching this happen on all these women. And I do feel like when I was a Pilates instructor, I was super strong as well, but I was more. My abs my abdominal muscles, the transverse was pulled flat more.
And so I was pulled flat, really flat tummy, but it was also a little bit wider and more square than, when I started doing Maddie Burke, I started pulling in cylindrically. Like it would pull in from all of it tighter around from the front to the back, which is really as somebody who's done both extensively, I would say.
Say visually, you do look different when you do the two disciplines. and for me, although I will never forget my body's training and I use so much of it. And in teaching the Lennon method, I do to like the way my body looks better and feels doing it this way, just because that's. I've seen myself both ways.
And I can't believe when you write, when you have a pulled in waste, it doesn't matter if you get, if you're like having a little more fun in life and you're eating a little bit more, you still feel really good. If your shape looks good, you're like, Oh, I can be pounds over and, and feel better, you know?
And I also think one thing I want to really. Touch on is that I believe all bodies are beautiful at different sizes. I feel like if you're, if you feel strong and, have this pole in sensation that you can feel like glamorous and beautiful and your clothes will feel good on your body, no matter what size you are.
So I always like to tell people we never will weigh you. We don't care. Your weight is not important to this technique at all. It's just about, we like to measure you so we can show you that it works and you'll see like why you're feeling so much better and more, more feminine and pulled in. But we always tell the girls , just throw your scales away.
who cares? You know, you can, you want to figure out that part of it, fine. Do what you need to do. Yeah. If you're not happy with it, but this technique really about like shape and strength.
Rebecca: That's lovely. Yeah. And I'm glad that you say strength because that the transverse abdominis muscle, the one that you're talking about, I've always called it the saran wrap muscle. Cause it feels like you take a box of saran wrap and you just wrap the saran wrap around your body and , Oh, there you go.
There's your transverse abdominis. and so. The idea that when that is strong, you can be sexy and flirtatious makes a lot of sense, because when that is strong, you're actually very grounded and very, very poised. It's easier to have poise when you're strong.
Kelly: it is. And you just, you kind of actually have it when that area is being worked properly or, You, you just stand up taller naturally. And so you do have this very poised look about you. And also it's the saran wrap. I love that. because, so why do you said that she was always her biggest argument was like, why do we need to wear core sets?
she's from the country that pretty much revolutionized the course that. Everyone in England, when you think of back in the day, like everyone had their core set on, but she said. you don't need a core set because we have a core set built in, and it is exactly that, right? The transverse it connects on your spine on the back.
So it attaches back there and then it pulls all the way around the front. And then we have the linear album on the front that keeps it straight there. that's already meant to be like that. And if you can figure out how to work it, to pull it in, in, in, and the, essentially our muscles are there to hold our organs in place.
So then. Your body just functions better on all levels. Because when you start to just not conditioned those muscles, they start to let loose. Then your organs are going out when they're supposed to be state, they're supposed to stay in a certain spot and being held there by your muscles. Right? So if that's not working properly, all sorts of issues it's going to happen.
So I think you do feel naturally better because your, your body is functioning the way that it was designed to be. Functioning. And it's not, it can all out of place when you're not focused on those. So yeah. And it really doesn't take a lot. You really? I mean, I, I really feel like if you focus on those muscles, even just like 10 minutes a day, you're good and you can go on.
And then of course it takes longer if you're going to do the full body. But, I'm currently working on a program cause I did have twins and I have, I had a umbilical hernia plus I had this thing called diocese direct tie, which is where. The Linea Alba that holds the muscles together in the front, the little sheet there, because I had twins and I was a Pilates and Barre instructor at the time, my stomach was pulled pretty tight.
Well, my twins had other plans for my stomach. they pushed it out the other way. and then when it was time for everything to pull back in, it had been pushed out so far, which is very common for women in my condition that had like either twins or multiple births. My Linea Alba was so stretched out it wasn't holding my abdominals back together anymore.
But I have to say I got really strong using this technique. when I found it, I had had, my twins were five, so I had been living with the condition for five years, and then I lived for another five years learning how to strengthen my body with diasporic, Diane, an umbilical hernia until I had a few doctors tell me that the umbilical hernia was poking through.
You know, here and there. And if it went through, it's really your organs pushing through it, which is kind of gross, but it's pushing through, it can cut off circulation to them. If it didn't go back in. And they all, since I travel a lot, they had said, if you, if it happens when you're in another country and doesn't go back in, you're going to have to get emergency surgery there.
And they do this whole mesh thing that I did not want. I didn't want any like foreign things in my body. So, I ended up having a surgery recently that put them back together because no matter how strong you get in exercise, no matter how strong and thick. And I got my abdominal muscles. that was never going to happen for me without this surgery.
So I did have surgery recently and I'm creating a program for women who either have to have surgery or had surgery, or maybe just are trying to, strengthen their abdominals from a very weakened state. I'm creating a program. That's going to help them do that through, through the London method. And that's been very exciting because I want to help people to strengthen those muscles. because I can't tell you how different your life is when you, when you are strong in that area. when you're, saran wrap is working, you feel so powerful. Like, what do you want, what are you going to do? I go to, I travel a good workout classes, take whatever workout class and people are always like, Oh, my gosh, the app section is just nothing for me, everywhere I go.
It's Oh, it's been like that since I started doing this technique and that was even when I still had my diocese req Thai and, my umbilical hernia, I still had like stronger abs than, than most people. And it was just such a good feeling share with others, like why you're doing this podcast.
You want to share pleasure. I want to share that working out. Doesn't have to be torturous that you can do these little things to keep yourself strongest that you could ever imagine, and you can have fun and you can work pelvic floor. You can do things that are going to make other areas of your life more pleasurable.
I mean, Pleasure fun. let's do it all while we're being productive. Right.
Rebecca: Absolutely. Let's do,
so you've mentioned quite a few times about the connection with the women and that they talk and laugh and share with each other. And I'm curious how much of that has translated to the online live courses.
Kelly: that's a great question. as far as the intimate things that are shared in class, I mean, it was really funny because when the studio was still open and I hope it can open again soon, the things that would come, come up in class, Rebecca, sometimes I wouldn't even be in the class and I'd run into some of the girls when they were walking out and I was walking in and they would just be like, Oh, we just learned just intimate things that are, they all share with each other. And we all know that it's like something that we just talk about within our little circle, but they felt so safe and there was never a topic that was not touched, like when we were in those live classes. And I do have to say online, it has been a little harder to do. it's actually kind of a great experiment though, because I have always said it's the circle. I really feel like people facing one another in a circle is there's something about that formation that gets people to just divulge and feel safe and feel That anything can be said. And it is our teachers too, because we do have them encourage that.
And online there is still a bond and there is still a unit, but they're dying to get back together again, you know? so I would say like a hundred percent in classes, people are sharing and they're connected and I'd say it's probably down to like, 75% because we can't have their microphones on during class. It's too distracting with, if the teacher's teaching everyone's microphones have to be off so it kind of eliminates that. In the class time where they get to talk right now, it's only before and after. So, I don't know. You're making me think I should have our teachers log on like 15 minutes early just to get that going again because it's, so it's such an important part. It's such a huge part of what we, we do.
And, I miss it too. I mean, you probably feel the same way. Like you love people, people, right? It's just a different feeling of being together.
Rebecca: I do I do. Yeah.
Kelly: Like until we get to meet in person, we've gotten to know each other since COVID, so we've only gotten to see each other online and like, I can't wait til this awesome group that we've created gets to be together and in person, but we look at us, I mean, how much did we bond and connect on?
and I think, I think it was the sharing. We were all in a pretty. Safe setting. And we all shared things with each other. And I think that is what really bonded us that first time we were all on that call together.
So we created like a little WhatsApp group with these wonderful ladies and, the stuff that's shared on that, I feel like it's like the best one of the method class.
Rebecca: It is pretty open and relaxed.
Kelly: Right. And I just love, I feel like we just need to bring more of that into the world. Like it stopped with the, with the judgment and with the whatever people are doing out there, just let people be themselves and then learn about them. And even if you don't. Want to do exactly what they're doing or you don't feel like you're going to practice what they're practicing just learning about people. I mean, I guess I was a psychology major in school. That was what I got my degree in before I would moved into fitness. And I have just always been fascinated with people: how different they are, what they're into. I love learning about all different types of people. And I think that's one of the things that people have said about me the most, especially with the London Method is like, Kelly, you have not like a judgemental bone in your body.
You're just always like, yes. Open to this, open to that. And I think, I liked that about myself and I wish that there was more of that. Cause I just, when I see people like judging is so restrictive for so many things, you know, I mean, just cause you don't want to do it, it's fine. You don't have to, but like let them do their thing.
And why do we have to judge, you know,
Rebecca: Yeah, judgment is an interesting thing.
what is the opposite of judgment. And I think the opposite of judgment. His cell full of, I think that's what it is. What an interesting way to think about that. Right? You're judging somebody else. It's often because you're actually judging yourself because you don't love yourself, but it's being externalized.
Kelly: I mean, I can totally see that because when you, when you meet people and not to judge judgmental people, but when you do meet people that have a lot of judgements in different ways. I do feel like there's like a negative energy that comes from them. Cause I'm very, like, I feel I have very, I have a compassionate, empathetic way about me.
So I'm always feeling people's energy. Like I can feel immediately like what's going on with them.
when someone's judging a lot, you just feel this like negative, almost like repelling energy from, from them.
And I do think it probably comes from them just being so hard on themselves and I feel for them and I'm like, don't be so hard on yourself because life is so much better when you can just embrace all the different ways and all the different kinds of people or the way they live. And, I mean, I don't know.
I just want to make my time as enjoyable as possible. So that's one of the ways I've found works for me? You know?
Rebecca: Yeah, I like that. Yeah. I like how you said not to judge judgmental people because it's so, it's so easy to do. And then you realize like, wait a minute, I'm talking about judgment being, not loving myself. Oh, okay. So.
Kelly: It's true. I mean, at least I called myself out on it. I even know when, cause I think a lot of judgmental people don't know when they're being judgmental. They actually don't even know that that's what they're doing. it's just kind of maybe the way they've always been. but I did. And so that's one of the things back to the London method.
And back to the question you asked about those online classes, I think. That part we're still working on and how to develop that more online. And so I'll be thinking about that after this call and how, how we can help incorporate that more in, because at the London method, one of the things that I have heard across the board from everybody who walked into our doors was like, I have never been to a fitness studio where I felt so at home.
So welcomed. And so Pam, my business partner and I were both like that where there's not one of us, who's not like that. We are both, like, we will respond to people in the exact same way. Like if someone emails us and we both are emailed to, we forget to CC each other, we'll actually say the exact same open, understanding thing to them. And so we just think the same, which has been an incredible experience to own a business with somebody who is like that, because we've just had the best time together. but they felt so safe. And I know as somebody who's worked out my whole life, like I've gone into studios where I immediately felt judged, or I felt like I wasn't doing anything right.
They were harping on me. Or, there was all this like, Negativity. I'm like, Hey, listen, I'm just, I'm here to learn. You can, you can teach me in like a nice way. You don't have to be a mean about it. So we we've just been very welcoming for everyone. I think that's a Testament to the technique and the way that we live our lives.
So we want to help teach people how to do it, but we want to teach them in an encouraging way and make them feel good about themselves, better about themselves than when they walked in the door and out the opposite. So, That's a huge part of the London method and what I want to see more in fitness.
Cause I, I mean, it takes a lot, a lot that goes into someone deciding, okay, I'm going to. Workout, especially, maybe it's been a while since they've done it. And if you walk into a place or you go into an online class and you don't get that vibe from everyone, you may just never come back because already took you so much to get there.
So we're very sensitive to how much it takes for people to like give us their, their body and their time and their mind. And that hour. It's a lot, it's a lot that they're willing to give to you. So we take that very seriously for sure.
Rebecca: It has a lot. Yeah. I thank you for doing that. I really, I really appreciate the opportunity to be surrounded by other women that are cheerleading each other in whatever way, whether it's working out or doing business, like our mastermind group or anything, there's just something so nourishing and nurturing for me about women cheering each other on.
Kelly: right. I love, I love that the women supporting women. was a huge thing for us, in fact. Yeah. I don't even know if you know this, but we have, so we have the, that space where we do our workout classes and then we had this, it was just a shelf, like a pretty shelf that what happened was when these women would start to get stronger and their confidence level, you just see it go up and then they're bonding with other women.
And there was just. So much good energy going around. And so a lot of them started going into business together or figuring out what their passions were and starting businesses. So we, had this shelf in the front of the studio for years that we would just fill with whatever woman that we, that had told us about what she was doing.
And she was launching something, we would fill our shelf with it. And we would. We would promote them for the month. Well , this girl is doing this. And so then the space next door to us opened and, we decided not, we don't want it to just be a shelf. We want it to be a space.
So we actually opened an entire site that is, for, we would host events there. So we would actually have in person events where we would support whatever new business somebody was doing, or maybe it was, it didn't always have to be a business. It could be just something that we found out. It was a doctor who was super knowledgeable about something that we want to learn about pelvic floor events over there.
We've had all sorts of things and, our space. Nobody wanted people to walk on the floor because it's very, like we don't wear, we wear socks. And so nobody wanted shoes. And when we'd have events in our current space, they didn't like that. So that's why we, like, we need a separate space where you girls can all have your little party.
We can feed jokes. I am like the queen of. I love entertaining. I love making food for everyone. So I would always want to have food at our events and drinks and everything. So it just wasn't like, they didn't want that where we were working out or they were just always like, do you see they're wearing their shoes and hearing it?
I was like, okay, we're going to have our own space for that. So we create space that was devoted solely to, women in our community. We're also launching their own businesses and we would have an entire, space to support them. So. That was really cool. And that's another thing I can't wait to get back to.
And maybe, you know, we, we thought about , how could we do that online? You know, supporting people online and we just. We didn't really get into that yet, but I don't know who knows how, I don't know how long this is going to go on anymore. Maybe we should look into that too.
I'm going to get off this call with you. And I have like a million things that I'm going to be working on because I'm like, Hmm. Rebecca made me think about this. Made me think about that.
Rebecca: That's a pretty common side effect of hanging out with me. That's so very cool. I don't know if I had mentioned this to you or not, but a couple of years ago, probably five or six years ago , I had this. Desire for more feminine connection or feminine circle . I was trying to imagine what it would look like, what would bring me the most pleasure to be a part of.
And I ended up realizing that I wanted women to come together. I wanted there to be food. I wanted each one of them who had something powerful to share to be able to share. I wanted it to be very education focused, but also very together focused. So I ended up putting together a women's retreat.
It's like a weekend women's retreat. It wasn't an expensive thing. like we had the food catered and we asked everyone to pay just enough to cover all of the food costs. And it was really great food. we had it at my house or my partner's house at the time. Kicked all the men off the property from Friday night until Sunday afternoon.
And so it was just this amazing feminine girls space where each woman who had something powerful, they wanted to share like, There's a woman in our community who does pole dancing, who teaches pole dancing and central dance. So she came in and she taught a class for everyone on Saturday afternoon.
And then there were some women that were really enjoying learning a lot about the way that men think and talk in comparison to the way that women think and talk. So they came in, they did a little presentation about that. we had a couple of small ceremonies. We have. Singer songwriter who did a sing along for everyone.
It was just so much about connecting and being together. And that, that general vibe just led to walls coming down. And women were able to really see who the other person was and make stronger connections. And some of those connections are still together. Like it's so lovely.
Kelly: I love that and I could see how forever those girls are going to be bonded from that experience. wow. I love that. You just did it. So, so simply because I think one of the things that I tend to do is. I have this I'm a manifestor. Have you learned about that? Yeah. We talked about that. What are you? You're a generator. So I'm a manifestor and so I. Which probably drives my business partner crazy. Cause it's just like I have Kelly and our ideas, especially if I've drank coffee, it's like idea after idea. But, we, we did that. We did a retreat. we did our first retreat in England though. So I took all the women to England to meet Esther, the woman who taught the London method or the original Lottie Burke technique to me.
And, we had been talking about doing it for years, getting everyone to the girls that wanted to go to go over there to England. And we just, we, like you're saying. The bond that we created with these women from going across the world with them really, and meeting Esther, was so special, but I've been really sad because we were supposed to do another one in March.
Our, our retreat was supposed to be in March, which we had to postpone and then we were going to do it in October, but I still didn't feel like it was okay. So now we've pushed it down to March 20, 21, but maybe we do want to hear just before that, because the girls are craving that. That connection that we all had in that space where you're right.
Where like everyone, all the men are gone. It's just the women together. And, I dunno, I'm like, yeah, maybe you just do it on a less big level Kelly, you know,
Rebecca: Hell. Yeah.
Kelly: that would be so great. And I, and it would also. Not eliminate some people that may want to do it, that couldn't do it because it was kind of a big thing to go all the way across the country.
And we definitely, we stayed at a hotel. We ate at restaurants. It wasn't, it wasn't an inexpensive way to do it, but it was a fabulous experience for, for them. We had, we had one of the nights, Rebecca, we had a, I strong called the pheasant, the old pheasant. It's like this, one of the oldest restaurants in the town.
And the countryside of England, and I found this room that they let you have. So we had our own room upstairs and this amazing, it's like a pub that serves really nice food, but we just took over this room, just all of us on the method, girls TLM girls is what we call ourselves and, It was so fun.
Like we just had dinner all night drinks and we all just talked and it was just, Oh, that's just the best I just, you know, so yeah. I bet it'd be like a whole weekend of that.
Rebecca: Yeah, it was. And I think the, my favorite part was Saturday night. We had a dance party in my living room, and then afterwards, we were just kind of sitting around on the candlelight and of course started talking about. Sex and relationships and men and sexuality and our bodies. And so it was just a very relaxing, very supportive environment and people could get up and go move around, leave as they wanted ask really interesting, insightful questions as they wanted to.
Yeah, it was really fun.
Kelly: I love that. I know. I bet it would get, especially a whole weekend Of being a part so that they all slept there too.
Rebecca: they didn't sleep at my house. So one of the reasons why I did this is, and why I did it. So cheaply is. I have been a part of this community here in Seattle for awhile is Abraham X community. And that was what I was missing. I was missing connection with Abe women. So I decided I wanted it to be a community building weekend rather than a profit focused weekend.
So I made it as cheap as I could. And then anyone who's still wanting to come that said that they weren't able to, I found a way for them to volunteer and help us out and come and get to be a part of it. Anyway. So it was really about bringing all of the women together who wanted to be together in a way that was sustainable.
And that completely shifted the, the intention of what we were doing.
Kelly: I love that. You have my brain going so much, because. It's just such a thing. I mean, I think people needed it before because of, you know, the texting or the re relying on all the electronics that people were feeling. I felt like that was one of the reasons why the one about that blew up so quickly was not only the exercise is effective, but yeah.
Connection that they were getting, that they weren't getting in other ways. And then, and then since COVID, it's just. taken away so much more of that for us. So I feel like when we all come out from all of this and what it is, environment again, where we're allowed to see each other, or we're able to do things in a way that there's should be more of that happening because people need that.
It's so important to. Our state of mind, our survival, even I think, just to connect with people in that way and just feel, it's like, feel free to be able to say anything you want. And so I feel like if you can't say what you want, or you don't feel comfortable saying it that's like a really hard place to live, you know?
yeah. So being able to talk to people and being able to not feel like you're going to be judged is just, I'm always telling I have two boys and I'm always trying to, they are luckily, very emotionally, aware and, and intelligent, which I'm so happy about, but I'm always telling them like, just try and not to worry about what other people think, just be yourself and just, cause I feel like it happens to us pretty young when we start feeling like we can't say or do what we want, you know?
And I think. It just gets worse as you get older. And so I'm really trying to help as children too. Let's not let that happen, you know? Cause it's like so many people are living in a closet, whatever closet it is. It doesn't have to be that they're the typical term of coming out of the closet. Right.
But there's so many ways that people are in the closet. It's not just in being gay or whatever it is. There's. Everyone's living in their own little closet and I just want everyone to come out. Really do. Don't be scared. No,
Rebecca: Yeah, coming out of the closet. That's really helpful.
Kelly: yeah. Coming out of the closet and whatever your closet is. yeah, suppression. I don't know. It's hard. So. Yeah. So I really feel like, you know, I'm feel very lucky to have created a business where, it really feels like it's just a life that I've, that I believe in and a life that I want others to benefit from.
And luckily, I get to do it for a living. So I'm, you know, so thankful for, you know, someone like you who would like to learn about it, or let me talk about it because I want that for so many people. I've even created something called bloom, which is a group it's on zoom.
Cause it started since COVID, but it's basically a eight week program we do where we help people to figure out what is your passion? What do you feel like your purpose is? How can you nourish it? what can you do to make your life one that you can spend more time doing what you love. Cause I feel like being able to do what I love for a living is the biggest blessing that I've had besides obviously, you know, my kids and having the family is fabulous for me, but that part is like, I feel so lucky because I've had, I've worked at, I, you know, I went to college, like everyone told me to, I got a job. I sat at a desk and I was like, I will literally watch my soul die if I sit at a desk for all day long. I cannot do this.
So to be able to I have created something out of everything that I love and make it something sustainable has been just what I want for other people too, because it's the best feeling. I'm sure you can attest to that.
Rebecca: It is a pretty amazing feeling. I agree. Well, that's cool. How can people find out more about that blooming program?
Kelly: so bloom is something I developed outside. I mean, it kind of was outside of the London method, but I advertised it on there. and it was really just a word of mouth thing the first time around. But we do have, informational, I would just say. Go to the London method. go to the one about the.net and just sign up on the email list.
And I talk about it. We're not doing another one until I'm gonna do it twice a year. and it was fabulous. In fact, I was just thinking today, cause we did it every Thursday for eight weeks and it just ended a couple of weeks ago and I was just thinking, gosh, I really loved. Bloom, not just running it for other people, but just, there was so many epiphanys that we all had, like every call, that we did that were just, it was the vest.
So it was like, I almost wish I could bloom every week, but I came up with bloom, uh, good friend of mine, Sean Marie Tory. She. She did it with me because she, she does stuff like that. That was new to me. I had never done anything like that, but I've been on, some of her, her calls before, she had a company called truth is the new black for awhile.
And she's just, she's just all about like finding truth. What is your purpose? And she's doing stuff like that. But I, I literally came up with bloom because I planted a garden. This year I've killed everything. My entire life. I've always said I cannot even keep a succulent alive and with COVID and going to the grocery store in the beginning, it was like anxiety.
Like I just, and I'm not an anxious person, but I just started hating going to the grocery store, but it just. It was stressful. So I was decided I wanted to plant a garden, even though I've never been able to keep anything alive. So I studied that gangster gardener. Have you heard of the gangster gardener?
Oh my gosh, Rebecca. He's amazing. So I found him on a masterclass there's these, the masterclass was one of the things I joined. COVID just for some learning about different things. So he's on masterclass. You watch his little videos and learn how to plant things, but his story. I won't get into it. It's just amazing. You have to look into his story, but he teaches you how to garden, from somebody who doesn't know anything about gardening. So I listened to him, I got the soil, he told me to get, I did everything he said, and I watered that garden. Like every day I would go out there in the morning, I would like pick out anything.
I thought that didn't belong. And I would talk to the plants, do all these things that my husband and my kids think I'm crazy about. But I am telling you. I have the most like fruitful garden. everything that I planted in there just bloomed. I, I can't even tell you, it was like, it became this whole thing.
I would put on my Instagram and tagging things to Gardner. And he would like give me advice to online. He's very receptive to that. Like I was just like, this is the best thing ever. So I, I realized that if you put something, if you do your research and. You figure out what you want to grow, figure out whatever that thing is, you want to grow and you just tend to it, you water it every day.
You make sure it's in a spot where it's going to give proper sunlight. Like even somebody who can't grow, anything can grow something. And that's what made me do bloom, because I thought if we can show people how to do this in life, and really it doesn't have to be garden, it could be whatever, but you have to figure out what you want, make a plan, tend to it daily, if possible, if need be. And it will bloom if you, if you could do all that. And that's what Bloom was really about was teaching people how to, how to basically take the garden analogy and put it into real life. And, yeah, I loved it. So yeah, I just said go to London method.net and they could sign up there and then they'll get information on the next one, if they're, if they're interested in blooming themselves, but it was pretty cool.
Rebecca: Excellent. And I know they can also get to the live studio classes, the online live studio classes on the Linden method.net. Right.
Kelly: Yeah, they can test out our classes. There are live classes with our live teachers and then. If there are people that maybe just don't need the live classes, it's not something the thing that they want to do them on their own, and they just want to learn the exercises in on their own time. Then we also have The London Method.tv, and that's all on demand classes.
So those ones you can, they're 10, 20, 30, 40 minute videos mixed with the warmup and the coup and the final stretch. And they get to make their own classes. So we have kind of two different types of people, people who. You know, don't want to follow a regular schedule and they don't want to do the live.
They do that. So they can also do that. Those are the two ways to, to find all the stuff that we're about. And we are really about like helping you. To make your life better, not just through exercise, but there's always other things going on. And, and hopefully, you know, maybe we will make some of our events.
I've always wanted to have our events, even when they were lives, like in happening in real life, like be online so that people that weren't necessarily with us could benefit from them. So maybe that will be in the future . So I'd say, just sign up anyway, if you're interested in any of it.
Cause it's all. Fabulous things going on that will make you feel really good.
Rebecca: Well, I'm definitely interested. I really enjoyed the one class that I've been to so far. So I'm sure that Pam or you or whoever's teaching will see me on more often.
Kelly: Yeah. Come back. It was so fun. That was a great fun class. I loved that.
Rebecca: Yeah, I have one more question for you. How are you putting pleasure into your life these days?
Kelly: how am I putting in pleasure into my life these days? I put pleasure into everything I do, which I know sounds like impossible, but I found out at a very young age that, I could really have fun no matter where I was. I found out early too, that there's certain. People's energy that could try and like suck the funniness out of you.
But I was always able to create a positive enough vibe where I felt like even people who did not want to have fun end up having fun in my presence, because I just would be like you, to me, it's great to have things that you love and that you get satisfaction from, but it's also a fantastic quality to be able to find a way to have fun, no matter what you're doing, you know, I think.
I, when I was younger, I remember when I was dating, you know, dating can be like a tumultuous thing. We were like, Oh my gosh. And you can make the night to be terrible if you're, if the person is this, that or the other. But I found maybe it was the psychologist in me. I'd be like, you know what, every single person, whether you're attracted to them or not has something interesting, something deep inside them that you can learn from.
So I just made it, if I wasn't attracted to them, I would just make it a thing about like, How can I learn from this person? How can they learn from me? And I would find ways to have conversations with even people that others would probably be like, I just would walk away. So I think I have literally lived my entire life like that.
which is probably why most things I do people want to be around because I infused that in, in everything pretty much. And so I can't say. Specifically one thing, cause I literally do have fun really everywhere I go. It's kind of a thing. So I know that sounds impossible, but I think, yeah, I see, I see my children doing that too.
Honestly. I can tell that they've I don't know if they've watched me do that or if it's just, you know, something that lives inside of you, but I see them doing that as well. And so it's really nice to have kids too, that people want to have around. Cause they're not, you know, they don't complain about very much.
I don't know, just the way of life for the Racker mints.
Rebecca: I like the way of life, the Wacker man way.
Kelly: Wacker midway.
Rebecca: All of it. Well, thank you so much, Kelly, for being on pleasure central radio, it was a pleasure to talk.
Kelly: Thank you for having me. This was wonderful. I loved it.