Lifestyle Changes with IsoBreathing
Body Shaping, Inc. by Susan McBurney
Sophisticated Woman
First Published in March, 2004
According to Ellen, when exercises are performed properly and efficiently, they are amazingly more effective If you’re like millions of other Americans, one of your New Year’s resolutions was to get into better shape. What starts off as a good intention for change in January all to often melts into returning to an old habit by springtime. For those who haven’t exercised regularly before, the prospect of walking into a fitness club just seems too intimidating. Some people start out strong but in their quest to see quick results, soon grow weary of sore muscles and abandon the new regime. Even worse, others who aren’t familiar with fitness equipment or routines injure themselves. Throw in a few stabs at trendy yet short-term Florida-styled diets, and you have the makings of a full-on fitness flameout. But fortunately the Northshore has Ellen Miller, a woman who is single-handedly revolutionizing the process of getting fit. Her personalized training program, Body Shaping Inc., is the perfect first step for making a long term lifestyle change.
“I grew up in the 60s and 70s. Nobody exercised!” admits Ellen with her trademark sense of humor and honesty. “I never really thought about it at all until I had my first baby in the mid 70s. I had 65 pounds to loose and felt miserable. At the same time I needed more energy to keep up with a newborn. I tried everything I could think of: diets, pills, all of it.”
As a last resort Ellen started walking and the weight slowly began to come off. She then enrolled with a girlfriend in the then-new aerobics classes. Soon she found herself teaching classes. By 1984, when Ellen had her second child, she was playing racquetball and working out regularly. “Each step was small and never more than I thought I could handle,” recalls Ellen. Today as a Certified Fitness Practitioner and Personal Trainer she draws on that experience to help her clients customize their fitness programs.
In her private one-room studio, Ellen meets with her clients individually. “This isn’t a cookie cutter approach,” states Ellen. The first thing she does is a 2-hour overall assessment with the client to determine a baseline. Together they review eating and lifestyle habits, test strength With the right program anyone can get into better shape with the help of her IsoBreathing® program. “I’ve had clients with chronic arthritis, disabilities, back injuries, or more than 100 pounds of excess weight,” she says. Ellen Miller WOMAN Healthy By Susan E. McBurney Lifestyle Changes with IsoBreathing® Body Shaping Inc. TOP: Ellen works with a client to get the proper position. By using bands and body resistance, many of the exercises that Ellen teaches can be easily done at home or while traveling. and range of motion, discuss any preexisting aches or pains, look at over-the-counter and prescribed medications and take measurements. “Most importantly I ask them straight up if they really want to be here,” says Ellen. “If they aren’t ready for a change, all the programs in the world won’t help them. We identify their true goals whether it’s loosing weight, gaining energy, or firming up.”
Based on all this information, Ellen crafts a program of resistance training using small free weights, a Bowflex machine or elastic bands. She also incorporates the cardiovascular element such as walking or bike riding. And of course there’s her trademark IsoBreathing exercises which combine isometric exercise with controlled rhythmic breathing. Traditional isometrics are a way of training the muscle through stationary exertion. (Imagine making a muscle with your bicep and holding it for 10 seconds.) Because oxygen fuels the body and promotes metabolism, Ellen’s special breathing technique kicks the entire program into high gear for rapid results.
“I was amazed at how much of a difference the IsoBreathing® made,” says Elizabeth, an aesthetician. She had been exercising on her own for several months prior to coming to Ellen’s studio. While walking and watching fitness videotapes had worked at first, she had reached a plateau. “I was spending a lot of time exercising but no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t lose any more. When I started working with Ellen I stopped doing what I was doing and just did what she said. We started with IsoBreathing® and slowly added other things like a cardio routine.” Not only did the extra inches come off within the first few weeks, Elizabeth actually reduced the amount of time she devoted to exercise. “It was really cool. I like to be fit but I hate exercising—it drives me nuts when people say they love it. Now I do the exercises in the morning for about 20 to 40 minutes and practice the IsoBreathing® throughout the day.”
According to Ellen, when exercises are performed properly and efficiently, they are amazingly more effective. “I have a hard time when I’m in the hotel gyms on vacation,” admits Ellen. “I see so many people performing exercises incorrectly and just wasting their time. My husband hates it, but sometimes I just get off my treadmill and give them a few tips.”
When Don, a local orthodontist, began seeing Ellen once a week to improve his golf game in time for spring he was impressed by how simple the program was. “At first I thought that we weren’t doing enough to make any effect. Nothing hurt and it wasn’t a strain,” he says. Soon he had increased his upper strength and flexibility. More importantly he eliminated a problematic rounding of the shoulders that was drawing power out of his golf swing. “Ellen knows her stuff, she reads the journals and articles always looking for the best approach. She’s funny and knows how to push you to your best with out stressing you out or being intimidating.”
According to Ellen, with the right program anyone can get into better shape with the help of her IsoBreathing program. “I’ve had clients with chronic arthritis, disabilities, back injuries, or more than 100 pounds of excess weight,” she says. “That’s the advantage of a personalized program, you know it will work because it was designed for you.”
Part of the customization is the frequency that clients visit Body Shaping. She works on an hourly or half-hourly basis and there are no joining fees or contracts to sign. “Some ladies won’t exercise on their own, so they visit me for a half-hour nearly every day,” explains Ellen. “Others are more independent and come every other week for a tune up to their routine.” She has a few clients who following a series with Ellen, will purchase her IsoBreathing® DVD package to continue working on their own. “I check in periodically with all my former clients just to see how they’re doing,” says Ellen. Now that’s personal attention. The instructional video is also available to the general public on the IsoBreathing.com website, and two dollars from each video sold are donated to the Breast Cancer Fund.
Body Shaping Inc. is located in the Mandeville Marques Business Center at 259 West Causeway Approach Rd. Learn more about Ellen and her technique at www.IsoBreathing.com or call 985-674-7896 for more information.
Ellen Miller has been teaching fitness and lifestyle changes for over 20 years. She is a Fitness Practitioner and Personal Trainer certified through Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. Ellen started Body Shaping Inc when she discovered a need for an innovative program targeted towards beginners and individuals more comfortable in a private, one-on-one atmosphere. To keep up with a time-conscious and increasingly health-conscious population, Ellen designed an innovative program she calls IsoBreathing®. With more people trying to balance family, work, and personal time, she designed this efficient, low-key workout to relieve stress, increase energy and burn calories.
