Fitness Expertise, Pilates Teacher and Health Coach, Kourtney McCullough:
Kourtney McCullough has over 20 years of dance and fitness expertise and has been teaching Pilates and health coaching for almost a decade in Los Angeles. She holds over 1,000 hours worth of certifications, apprenticeships, and continuing education courses, including biomechanics, pre and post natal, muscle imbalance assessment, and posture and gait analysis. Her method of teaching combines both classical and non classical Pilates and is rooted heavily in kinetics and functional movement. She trains bodies both young and old, healthy and injured, and her clientele has included Jennifer Aniston, Kate Hudson, and Jason Bateman to name a few.
She believes in a holistic approach to movement, training the body to work efficiently as a whole system rather than individual parts. Her goal is to help clients understand their bodies better in order to inspire them to make behavioral changes that will lead to lasting results.
Kourtney says that there wasn’t an “ah ha” moment when she knew she wanted to pursue a career in health and fitness. “I grew up dancing ballet six days a week for 3-4 hours a day and then went to college as a dance major, so it's safe to say I've been an active person my entire life. Pilates was introduced to me as early as 16 and I first began using it as a cross training to my ballet technique to develop general core strength and also for its rehabilitative aspects to address muscle imbalances and prevent/ treat injuries.”
When she graduated college and moved to Los Angeles, she knew she wanted to be certified in Pilates, but wasn’t sure how full time it would be. “Fast forward eight years and many more hours of teaching and continuing education later, I'm very grateful to say that my personal training business has been completely built, and continues to grow, through word of mouth alone. It turns out that when clients see a change in their bodies they want to tell their friends about it! I'm even happier to say that as the years go by, I'm convinced more and more that this is exactly the work I'm supposed to be doing - not just simply giving people a workout, but educating them on how their bodies function so they can be empowered to take control over them.”
Kourtney says that there are fitness accounts everywhere on social media. There are countless accounts and programs being offered online. But she says the truth is that no one is reinventing the wheel. “When you look at it from a biomechanical perspective, you realize there are recognizable movement patterns across all genres of fitness. For example, a plank is the same movement pattern whether it's performed in a yoga studio or a pilates studio or a gym. Your mind doesn't differentiate between yoga or pilates or weight lifting, it simply recognizes the movement pattern. Unfortunately, what I don't see a lot of on social media is many of these same accounts explaining (1) the correct form of the movements they're recommending or (2) why the exercise is even important in the first place and subsequently who it's good for.”
Kourtney believes that truth is that not all exercises are good for all people. “Moreover, once people understand which movement patterns will benefit them the most to combat their own muscle imbalances, they need to understand how to perform the movement correctly for it to even be effective. Otherwise, they can end up doing more damage than good.” She says that she has been fortunate to have learned from some of the best teachers and mentors over the years, including physical therapists and bodyworkers, and she really believes there needs to be more science backed, education centered fitness content than what’s available to most people. “Because of that, I feel called to share some of my knowledge with my audience. Even if my posts just help a few people, it's worth it to me.”
The advice Kourtney would give someone who wanted to begin going to pilates classes or beginning the practice, but is nervous, would be to start with a few private lessons with a good teacher to learn a bit about what your own limitations and muscle imbalances might be before jumping into a fast paced class or program. “However, if that's not available to you, I happen to be creating an online subscription platform where all of my workouts will be available for all levels, ranging from postnatal and beginner to more advanced. Stay tuned!”
To someone who wants to live an active and healthy life but doesn’t have the motivation to do so, or simply just doesn’t know where to start, Kourtney says that sometimes you just have to find it within yourself to start somewhere. “Movement is quite literally life. We are made up of mostly water and lack of movement creates stagnation and stagnation breeds disease. If you don't know where to start, walk…everyday. The hips are one of the biggest and most important joints in the human body. They are the wheels with which our bodies move. Walking will simultaneously stretch the front of the hip flexors and begin to activate the glutes and other hip extensors while taking the leg through a full range of motion and lubricates the joint capsule which keeps it healthy.”
She says it is also important to be mindful of the positions your body is mostly in during the day. “It’s a great place to start building long lasting behavioral change. Stand. Walk around. If you must sit, switch up your seating position often (cross legged, kneeling, etc). Working out an hour a day will do little to permanently improve your body mechanics if you don’t address the habits your body becomes accustomed to the other 23 hours.”
In five years from now, Kourtney hopes to have hundreds, if not thousands of people working out with her online. “I also would love to have my own teacher training program in the works so that I can pass on this knowledge to future teachers who are also inspired by this style of training. In five years, I also hope to have started a family with my husband.”