Pregnancy is an incredible invitation to turn inwards and truly connect with yourself. Our gazes, so often absorbed by the world around us, are suddenly refocused, drawn to our inner landscapes.
The opposite often happens in the first few months with a newborn. By nature, a lot of your attention is going to your baby. At some point in time you will naturally want to start looking after yourself a bit more.
Mamaison was born of Maximes' desire to empower, love and guide women throughout the journey of motherhood. We are a space dedicated to minds and bodies, a space that uses movement and more to support women both physically and mentally. Our practice is holistic and balanced – we value strength and softness, fire and grace.
We want to encourage you to explore and enjoy your own little self-contained universe. Take time for yourself to recharge, reenergise and reconnect. Enjoy the changes and embrace the journey. Because it is truly magical.
Though Maxime was initially drawn to movement to feel good in her body, her outlook changed over the years as she realised moving her body had a positive impact on her mind. Entering her own journey into motherhood and struggling to conceive was difficult – for her mind and her body, to an extent she had never experienced before. Trying to understand why things were out of balance, trying to stay calm in the process and present in the moment challenged her to quiet her mind, listen to her body and follow her intuition. She discovered that strength and rigidity were counterproductive, and she learned to embrace the balance of strength and softness, fire and grace, principles that would ultimately form the core of Mamaison. Movement became a tool to connect to herself and allowed her to process thoughts, feelings and emotions as they came. Maxime grew to work with her physical and emotional needs, rather than against them. Through movement, she learned to trust, accept and surrender and to witness all sensations in her body with awe and pride.
Maxime brings years of pre- and post-natal fitness instruction to Mamaison. She has carried the most essential knowledge with her to create a unique practice we know as the Mamaison Signature and Signature light classes, drawing from Pilates, endurance training and meditation and fine-tuning along the way. She has crafted classes that celebrate intuition and create balance between intensity, awareness, strength and softness. Maxime loves helping women feel strong, confident and empowered while encouraging them to surrender and welcome gentleness and calm.
Catherine did not grow up in a particularly sporting family, and did not always feel very confident in her body. When she started doing Pilates in her early twenties, she began to gain confidence in her body, and what it was capable of, and through this confidence in herself. An unexpected (but welcome) pregnancy again caused her to turn inwards. Her pregnancy and childbirth made her feel what she and her body, working together, were truly capable of.
Pregnancy, childbirth, and the post-natal period can be quite unsteadying, but it can also be balancing and clarifying. Her own experiences and struggles drew her to pre-and post-natal Pilates – to support women in their journey of finding their new selves, and growing into their new power and roles, both physically and emotionally. But she was also finding joy in other modalities, and was searching for something further. A chance reconnection with Maxime brought her to Mamaison, and it immediately felt like the thing she had been searching for. She is learning to embrace the power of music in helping to quiet our minds, connect us to our bodies, and enjoy being with our own selves!
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