Athena Lazaridou
Pilates has always been a part of my life
As I never particularly enjoyed working out at any Gym, I was constantly on the lookout for smaller studios and alternative ways to exercise which weren’t neither exhausting nor high impact and stressful to the body. While discovering Pilates, I began loving the sessions and the all benefits it brought to my body and mind. Consequently, I decided to follow a Power Pilates Mat Certification (all 3 levels) in Athens, and after I graduated successfully, I became more intrigued and thought of continuing with the Full Comprehensive Course, but at the time it felt like having a full-time job working for a bank, was too time consuming. Little did I know.
My professional journey into different industries like marketing and advertising, hospitality, contract catering and banking, kept me busy for the next 10yrs until my family and myself relocated to London in 2016. That’s when I revisited my dreams and my biggest one has always been digging deeper into the Pilates method. I decided now was the time to go for the Full Comprehensive Classical Pilates Certification with Equinox at Kensington, and managed to finish this incredibly demanding 450hrs certification program, while settling into a foreign country, working full time for Natwest bank, plus raising two young kids -having a wonderful husband in my life did the trick.! That’s why I’m a firm believer that when the right time actually comes, you just know it, and there’s no obstacle that can keep you away from your vision.
Since then, I’ ve been teaching Pilates nonstop for almost 6yrs mostly at Equinox, plus training my own clients face to face and virtually. I have to say that I’ ve seen so many people becoming stronger and looking fitter, while others getting more mobile after a major injury. I’ ve worked with athletes like runners, rowers, cyclists and weightlifters and they all come back feeling grateful to Pilates for improving their performance. I’ ve trained prenatal and postnatal mums while reducing diastasis recti and working against post-partum depression as Pilates has been ‘prescribed’ and acknowledged for its’ positive impact on mental health.
I would love to share my experience in Pilates, and my knowledge towards movement, breath and flow with you.
With all the people I ve been training for years now, I’ m sharing their visions and their struggles, on a physical and mental way too. I find it extremely intriguing to challenge people physically and mentally and Pilates is a combination of both.
Why Sound Healing
Through my Pilates path, I ackowledged that except becoming more mindful in their movement, most people could use some extra support with their mental and emotional parts of their being. There are endless times that although I’m training the same person the body feels lighter and easier to move and stretch on one day, while other times it’s not physically possible to perform even up to 60% of what they did 2 days ago. These are the times that people are full of thoughts and worries.
As I started attending some Sound Healing Sessions for myself, I felt the tremendous impact in my body and mind so intensely, that I had to bring that back to my lovely clients. That’s when I’ ve decided that this should definitely be my next stop and also my counterbalance to the physical aspect of my teaching.
A Sound Healing Session is a very personal process, which everyone experiences differently and it’s one of the best ‘letting go’ and releasing ways of stale energy, while welcoming all the freshness and relaxation the universe can provide.
Thomais Androutsou
Breathwork changed my mindset for life
Although after 25yrs of acting in TV series and big theatre productions I was a quite well established and acknowledged artist, I was experiencing a craving for a more meaningful life and connection with my true self. That’s when Breathwork arrived in my path and I ve decided that it is my purpose to help others discover or remember what it means to be happy, in peace and in charge. So I gave up everything and followed the bright light that led me straight to Breathwork.
I’ve previously tried various approaches to self-improvement and self-care, it was only through Breathwork and my own breath that I finally discovered so much more depth in my own existence. Breath is an ally, it’s an extremely powerful tool, it’s the connection to life itself. With great anticipation and excitement, I’m welcoming you to our retreat with an open invitation to Breath.
Why BREATHWORK
My breath. It’s been by my side since I was born. And it will be there for me until I depart from this paradise called earth. As it is an automatic function of the human body, it is also the reason why many of us do it subconsciously, without most of the time being aware that it is actually deeply interconnected to all our emotions. Depending on our mood swings and what we’ re experiencing, our breath adapts accordingly.
Breathwork comes in when we realise that we, as human beings, possess the ultimate gift of being able to intervene and turn our breath into a conscious part of ourselves, and therefore we can take back control of our emotions.
Allowing FLOW into my breath, means giving permission for FLOW to enter my life.
Through a conscious circular breathing we can actually guide ourselves safely into an altered state of consciousness and therefore become our own healer. It’s only then that we can dig deeper and we are able to manage our emotions, we can enhance our physical functions, strengthen our existence and take charge. During a guided Breathwork session, we can extract information from our inner self, our subconscious and all the memory our body has stored throughout the years.
We can acknowledge who we truly are and what it is that we really wish for in life. When we reconnect with our breath and its’ power, we can actually feel the immense difference in our daily routine and that’s when we set off on a new magical journey of self-knowledge, self-love and self-compassion.
Breathworks is the most human-friendly technique, it derives from within, it can be practised anywhere and it’s free, like love!
Yiannis Ioannou
I was always looking for ways to better myself and leave implicit stereotypical perceptions behind
I was amazed with the speedy changes I was experiencing even after the first session. Years of phobias and preconceptions started to be questioned and finally rejected by me. The change in us can start either during a session or after, and it can keep going endlessly. And as everything around us is evolving, I started noticing the changes in me and liking and accepting myself more than ever.
After years in the Fashion industry, I finally know this is my path and being based in London offers me the endless potential to work with people from around the globe, from totally different cultural backgrounds and upbringings. The one thing I can say so far is that the similarities in the issues we are all experiencing are mind blowing and resistance is one of the main ones. As there’s nothing more certain than ‘change’, as Hypnotherapists we’re suggesting acceptance. Only from there can we can begin evolving.
Why HYPNOTHERAPY
The way Hypnosis is portrayed in the media make it seem fun, but believe there’s so much more to it than entertainment. Hypnotherapy can be a powerful and effective therapeutic technique for a wide range of conditions, including pain, anxiety and mood disorders.
Hypnosis can help people change their habits such as quit smoking, nail-biting, binge eating. It can alter perceptions and sensations, which can be particularly useful in treating chronic pain.
People have noticed amelioration in their sleeping patterns, as it fights the causes of insomnia and sleepwalking.The suggestions for relaxation, calmness and overall well being can affect only positively your anxiety, stress, agoraphobia, and general difficulty in interacting with others.It is known to help with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), and weight loss just as with smoking and any habit that needs reversing.