The first face-to-face Mbodies, post rehab breast cancer course, since lockdown - the sequel.

 This post is the follow-up to the last post titled 'The first face-to-face Mbodies, post-rehab breast cancer course, since lockdown - the prequel.

Freeland Village Hall Freeland

 

Ready and Waiting

To recap - It is Saturday morning 8am on 26th June 2021 and Mbodies Training Academy events team is set up in Freeland Village Hall, Oxfordshire for their first face-to-face larger group education since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

The course is Mbodies 16 hour Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer  running over the weekend titled Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Post Operative Rehab Course

The venue was rated as COVID-19 enabled for 16 people and was fully booked with 15 students plus course tutor Imelda Noble.

The course build-up, communication, and on-the-day procedures and flow had, like so many businesses around the world, been re-imagined and re-designed:  The pandemic-ready individual teaching and learning station with social distancing was the new normal and the requirements of COVID-19 tests and self-certification questionnaires, together with protective gear protocols, required for students to reach the classroom from the front door,  was more like entering the country through immigration than the warm greeting of the past!

Tensions in the Mbodies camp as the team prepared the PowerPoint, were bubbling as much as the recently switched on hot water boiler, ready for first beverages.

Students had been advised that the course doors opened at 08.30 with a request to arrive by 9am and to expect a good half an hour of admin to satisfy  COVID-19 related administration for 15 individuals.

Negative test results arrive electronically

Lateral Flow Tests

A check of the phone and an email pinged-in revealed a photograph of a negative lateral flow test from one student and a second email had an NHS confirmation of a negative PCR test from the previous day.   Rather than reassurance that all was going well this led to a discussion whether the other 13 students would have made prior arrangements and were hopefully not expecting to all take their tests on arrival!   Although we had the tests laid out just in case - this was in our minds as back-up and not expectation.

Catchment overview 

This world-leading course of its type normally attracts participants from around Europe but with Brexit and restrictions on travel we were looking forward to a mix of UK based students from around the country :   A Fitness Professional from Durham, Six Physiotherapists from Newcastle, Macclesfield, Harrogate, Halifax, Clacton, and Harpenden.   There were two Pilates instructors traveling from Selby and of the other six the closest was a 40-minute drive away.    There was little chance of a full house by nine and starting to teach by 9.30am !!

8.20am Saturday 26^th June 2021 and the first student arrived equipped with own medical masks and proof of lateral flow test – and this was the start of a steady flow of arrivals.   By 08.50 all 15 students had arrived, cheerful behind their masks and pleased to find so much dedicated parking – all had taken prior lateral flow tests and carried photographic proof of this and none of our medical masks were required!    Imelda, the tutor, and I looked at each other and then to the heavens to say our thank you!

It was interesting to hear from a number of those arriving how concerned they had been in the lead up to their arrival about coming on the course – sleepless nights and nervousness from the students matched the apprehension of the training provider!

Early full house 

A full house given social distancing

Before 9am everybody was at their station -  hot drinks prepared with all disclaimers completed.   One student wished to be kept out of photographs and kindly positioned themselves to one side of the room and we were good to go.

As instructors and training providers you are always slightly nervous to hear about the backgrounds of the students and why they are on the course.  Despite your own expertise there is always a fear of imposter syndrome if you discover that you have a consultant oncologist or the UK's lead Lymphoedema nurse on the course -  I name these two professions because both have attended this course in the past!.   

At the same time, the hope is for a diversity of backgrounds and experiences – because this is what adds value to a face-to-face course when interjections from the floor to recount experiences reinforce planned learning.

On this day the Gods truly were looking down on Mbodies: one student had opted for prophylactic double mastectomy and reconstruction, in addition to ovary removal (in women who carry a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation this may reduce the risk of developing breast cancer by 95%).   Three other students were  breast cancer survivers ranging from a recent stage 1 with a lumpectomy removal to a stage 2/3 with breast removal and reconstruction 15 years previously.

Day 1: Theory

The theory manual

The first day of the Pink Ribbon Post Rehab course is heavy on theory – despite a mixture of lecture and video presentations this is a tough day for Fit Pros used to moving all of the time. One advantage is that the theory examination, for this course, can be taken up to 3 months following the course and the manual is comprehensive and designed for reading after the lecture day. This allows students to concentrate on the presentations and not worry about taking copious notes.

This said, when the fire alarms went off at 2pm, as a result of steam from the water urn directly below a smoke detector -  the change of position from learning station to a seat on the grass outside was something of a relief for all concerned!

At the time and looking back, a day or two later, it is amazing how conforming all students were to the new COVID-19 expectations. Whilst there was some slight slippage towards the end of the day, in general, masks were worn at all times when moving around and removed only when at the work stations or where social distancing could be maintained.

Using poles in the repertoire

Day 2: Practical

Day 2 is an all practical day and students arrived to be greeted to the same chair that they had been using the prior day but this time the desk was replaced with an exercise mat and small accessories (toning band, a pair of hand-weights and a pole).   Students had been advised, in advance, that they were welcome to bring their own accessories if they didn’t wish to use the Mbodies kit, and two or three students brought their own accessories or laid their own mat on top of the mats provided.

The exercise database manual

All students receive, in addition to their theory manual, a practical exercise database manual -  the requirement is that all exercises are taught during the day and that all students are seen and assessed teaching and performing a range of the exercises. 

The day has a combination of large group instruction small group tuition and one on one tuition and is based around a series of case studies and scenarios where students worked in groups of three to discuss, explain their choices of exercise and then teach and demonstrate their solutions.  

 

Learning the exercises

Unlike the theory day, time always flies on day 2 as students inevitably request more time than 30 minutes for preparation of each of the case studies and, when it is denied, they find enjoyment in the team effort to use their joint experiences to select and justify their presentations.   Without the students being aware, positioning of workout stations had been socially engineered overnight to ensure that in each of the five rows of three stations, which would form the working groups, there was at least one physio, one Pilates instructor, and a person who had personal experience of breast cancer.

 

Case study presentation 1

A headstart with marketing

Students have come on the course for a variety of reasons and not all are intending to set up  Pink Ribbon Post Rehab dedicated classes,  others are based in hospitals and have an existing flow of patients and are purely looking for a protocol and structure to run their sessions.

For this reason, once the practical session is finished in the late afternoon there is an option for students to depart or stay for an hour-long marketing session.   This looks at, and discusses, the marketing techniques that have worked well for others and those initiatives that have failed when setting up Pink Ribbon sessions for breast cancer survivors in the community.     

On this occasion 7 of the 15 students stayed for a brainstorming session focussing on marketing, raising funds to subsidise participants and developing networks with GPs, surgeons, charities, retailers and service providers as well as journalists.  All geared towards getting a headstart with this new offering.

 

Case study presentation 2

Post course sentiment

After 15 months of no face to face education both training provider and students seemed enthused that despite some COVID-19 restrictions – some normality had returned to allow everybody’s first face to face group learning since March 2020!

The pleasing conclusion:  Face-to-face larger group education works well,  even with Social distancing and COVID-19 regulations, but it will be greatly appreciated to reach the point when we can get the damn masks off and safely exercise and teach in the proximity of others !!

Author:  Chris Onslow - Pilates Consultant

Chris Onslow, has run Pilates focussed businesses since 1998.  He and his team specialise in supporting Pilates entrepreneurs and business owners.  With a rich history of owning and running successful Pilates studios in the UK, and supporting others in Europe and the Middle East, Chris has broad expertise in maximising profitability and optimising operational efficiency.  His agency provides top-tier advice on selecting new, pre-owned, and hireable Pilates equipment from renowned brands such as Align-Pilates, Balanced Body or Stott-Pilates/Merrithew.  As the founder of Mbodies Training Academy, Chris continues to revolutionise Pilates education, offering premier online and hybrid CPD and qualification courses for Pilates apparatus instruction and special population CPD.  Discover more about how Chris can support your Pilates Business or home exercise choices at www.pilates-consultant.co.uk