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Dr. Pilates
Megan Rich was dancing in an M&M commercial in Australia when a minor foot injury changed the course of her life. Her rehab doctor urged her make a gentle commitment to health over competition and performance.
A decade or so later, Megan Rich Physical Therapy and the Baltimore Movement Institute uses a mix of physical therapy and Pilates to help people learn how to move the way nature intended. Some clients train, others come to ease aches and pains.
What is Pilates-inspired physical therapy in laymen’s terms?
It’s all about concentration, centering, control, precision, fluid movement, and breathing.
What is your weekly exercise routine?
I do four days of hard workout per week, two pool Pilates classes, three Reformer classes, which is Pilates using a machine, one ball Pilates class, one mat class, one hour of golf, and I dance on weekends.
Do you have a serious nutritional strategy?
Right now, I’m loving the Pay Day Pro bar—whenever I see something with this much protein, I try it. I snack on peanuts, Soy Crisps, tons of cheese, dark chocolate, and red wine. I graze—I eat constantly. And I eat anything I want. I don’t do the starvation thing.
What is your idea of a good physique?
I don’t think looking good is about weight at all—if you change your posture you improve your presence in a room.
Do you have any bad health habits?
Sometimes I know I’m dehydrated—I’m not a water person. But these new flavored waters are helping.
How much sleep do you need?
I go for 9 hours – I usually get between 5 and 9.
What should a person’s first step be if she wants to try Pilates and/or physical therapy?
She needs to be assessed—you can’t do something to improve your movement if you don’t know what your problems are…
Can anybody learn these techniques?
Anybody who leaves here is going to be as smart as I am about their bodies, if they come in once or twice a week, half an hour for two months.
What aspect of your business are you most proud of?
My clients do it right. I have 76-year-old women and men who’ve changed their lives. They are my motivation, no doubt. They have taught me not to set limits. They come in frail and broken and become strong—I tell the new people to model themselves after them.