Today we’d like to introduce you to Marian Lally.
Hi Marian, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
As someone who has craved movement since childhood, I migrated from a life-time of ballet to fitness with my certification in Group Exercise in my late 20s. Seeing the need to give one-on-one instruction after leading group classes for years, I became certified as a Personal Trainer while managing group fitness programs at multiple gyms in the Silver Spring MD area. After deciding to consolidate and work at one location, my management roles grew to include onboarding new trainers, grooming group fitness directors, developing a kids program, among other duties. But my quest for more knowledge of anatomy and movement while dealing with bodies who were prone to injury (including my own), led me to study for my comprehensive Pilates certification. I later grew a successful Pilates program at my place of employment, and helped my employer open a second studio location to include Pilates and mindful movement, strength/spin/HIIT programs. Then COVID hit. The stress of that time made me realize I needed to make a change. I made the decision to go out on my own (in part, thanks to the nudge of a former colleague @KnoxPowerCompany). I felt very fortunate to have all of my clients follow me to my own studio space. Since 2021, I have enjoyed working with people who need individualized attention to alignment and form while developing strength, mobility and balance. Many of my clients live with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, hypermobility, osteoporosis, MS, osteoarthritis, and other issues that can make exercise and aging gracefully, challenging. Many of my group class students and individual clients have been training with me for more than 15 years.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I was incredibly fortunate to have all of my clients move with me when I went out on my own, so for the most part, the transition to starting my own business was quite smooth. Of course, getting to the point where I could leave required a lot of hard work – COVID hit the fitness industry extremely hard so retaining clients took persistence. There were a lot improvements that needed to be done to the space I occupy, which had to be completed while I was still working full-time for my former employer. But, I am extremely grateful that I have not run into any roadblocks I could not overcome. As with any personal trainer or Pilates instructor, there are always challenges in keeping your “book” full. Clients travel and miss their appointments for weeks, or severe weather keeps them from coming to the gym. Getting creative, like encouraging sessions via Zoom or FaceTime can help keep your income more consistent.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have a unique approach to training clients, which evolved from my years of dance, teaching group fitness, personal training, comprehensive Pilates training, as well as navigating my own injuries throughout my career. As a hypermobile person myself, I teach a hybrid of Pilates exercises and apply Pilates principles to functional fitness and strength training with a focus on injury prevention. My clients and students describe me as a trainer who is very attentive to form and alignment, and who can cue what to do and what not to do in order to achieve the desired outcome (hence my business name “DoThisNotThat Fitness + Pilates by Marian). Many of my clients credit me with their reduction or elimination of pain, and the ability to do the things they love (ie run a 5K with little to no training or be able to get off the floor while holding their grandchild). I have expertise in post-joint replacement and post-surgery training, and work closely with physical therapists to support what they have prescribed to clients, so they have a high success rate of recovery and/or improvement from surgery or injury.
Clients who are drawn to me tend to have complex issues, such as severe hypermobility due to Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) or neurological issues such as MS or compromised nerves/spinal disks due to scoliosis or disk degeneration. A number of my clients are peri/post menopausal women who, after being diagnosed with osteopenia/osteoporosis, achieved gains in bone density through strength training, some also using medication.
As a very patient person by nature, I truly enjoy working with people who experience complicated issues or who are physically compromised.
Due to the nature of my work, most of my sessions are one-on-one, or in small groups with up to 4 people. My virtual classes have no more than 8-10 people and I insist on good camera set-up for students so I can monitor their movement. Those who use my recorded library of classes, remark that they feel as if I’m in the room watching and correcting them, due to my way of cueing.
In addition to training and teaching clients, I also enjoy training other instructors. Currently, I am in the process of developing a 16-hour course to train group fitness and Yoga instructors how to teach group strength classes safely, effectively and with mindfulness.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
We know the fitness industry will be affected by AI in the years to come. However, I do believe the person-to-person contact that private or small group in-person training provides will not be completely lost. There is nothing like hands-on tactile cuing when a person is learning a new way to move or gain strength. Additionally, Pilates is expanding and growing at a rate that Joseph Pilates would have been proud to see. His goal was to have Pilates be a household word, and for people from all walks of life to experience his method. Studios are popping up in every city and town, and the demand for certified Pilates instructors is growing faster than instructors can be trained. There is a concern that the traditional 500-600 hour certification required to become a comprehensive Pilates instructor (trained in using the Reformer, Tower/Cadillac, Barrel and Chair), will begin to be paired or watered down for the sake of certifying instructors more quickly. People seeking a Pilates studio or instructor should investigate what certification their teacher has obtained.
Additionally, it’s becoming more and more proven that as we age, classes like Zumba and Spin are great, but they are not enough to slow down the aging process. Strength training is become more center stage and the demand and scientific proof for lifting weights, safely and with intention, is growing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dothisnotthatfitness.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dothisnotthatfitness/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DTNTFitnessandpilatesbyMarian
