I am technically a fitness instructor, but I hate the fitness industry.

I’ve been teaching movement in NYC for 13 years and and am the founder of Women’s Health Magazine FitTech Award winning online pilates platform, Helen Phelan Studio.

I’m more interested in helping women who feel burned out by fitness culture shift their relationship with their bodies and feel stronger, more grounded, more powerful, more creative, and more themselves than I am “long, lean lines”.

As seen in:

Here’s where you should start if you wanna understand the HPS approach to movement:

..,and if you’re healing your relationship with your body and exercise itself:

…or you’re interested in creativity & writing:

…and if you’re looking for a pilates technique deep dive:

What to expect as a paid subscriber:

• long form essays on wellness culture, intuitive exercise, distancing yourself from diet culture, body image, embodiment, creative practices, and identity

• round ups of articles, products, and culture I’m consuming (and criticizing) lately

• my wellness little black book of holistic practitioners who are actually legit

• access to weekly HPS Zoom classes

• first access to sign up for exclusive courses, events, workshops, and retreats

  Upgrade to the paid subscription:

If you have a sec, I’d love it if you dropped into the comments and introduce yourself and let me know if there’s anything about the wellness industry you’re dying to read about? One of the drawbacks of teaching online is that y’all see me but I don’t get to know you! So, drop me a line, I read every single email and it helps me with inspo for future posts!

xx,

Helen

Working out is hard. It has to be to move the needle.

But it doesn’t have to be hellish.

What most people dislike about working out is not actually the literal sensation of hypertrophy (the micro muscle tears and rebuilding that develops muscle) or the effort required to get there.

It’s the cumulative experience of yanking at an overly tight spandex waistband, glaring at a body they can’t stop critiquing in warped mirror under unflattering fluorescent lights, feeling self-conscious doing a movement they’re unsure of in front of other people.

When you trying to build consistency in an environment that feels overstimulating, chaotic, aggressive, overly masculine, shame based, or transactional, OBVIOUSLY it’s gonna be an unsexy time.

Recommended reading:

I want to be clear:

When I encourage you to seek the pleasure in your movement practice, I’m not saying every sensation is going to be fun, per se. Exercising intuitively doesn’t mean only doing it when you feel like it and quitting before it gets hard. It means listening to your body, shifting from a lens of self-punishment to self-respect, and learning your body enough to know that pushing yourself and pulling back to rest are of equal importance—and which one is appropriate at which time.

What most people struggle with is that mindset part. If you approach your workout like a chore you need to get over with that’s exactly what it will feel like.

Erotic energy works the opposite way. If you can transmute dread into anticipation, the whole thing becomes sensual.

Maybe I’m just ovulating rn, but in my mind, an eroticized exercise routine doesn’t start and end with the workout itself any more than sex starts with penetration and ends with orgasm. There is expectant build up and follow-up CRUCIAL to the success of the whole thing.

Costume yourself as if you’re role playing

I don’t mean like a French maid (unless someone is making sufficiently sweat wicking corsetry and dumbbells that look like feather dusters, in which case…I’m so down) and I don’t mean you must spend a ton of money on a million new matching sets, I mean dressing for what you’re trying to personify.

Think of your movement wardrobe as:

• a ritual signifier (every great cult has a recognizable lewk)

• an identity cue (even if you’re not a “fitness person” dressing the part can make you think of yourself as such)

• a sensory experience (wearing fabric and fits that feel great on your body makes actually moving your body that much less difficult)

• a confidence booster (putting an outfit that makes you feel hot will make you associate the whole practice with feeling positively about your body)

What you wear changes how you move.

Dancers and performers have capitalized on the concept of enclothed cognition (the psychological phenomenon where one’s outfit influences mental processes, emotions, and behaviors) forever. They do this not simply to convey a character believably on stage, but to let the experience of inhabiting that character literally change their movement quality and expression. It’s a huge part of method acting for that reason.

It’s less about looking flattering and more about clothes that reflect the mission at hand. Sleek compression leggings make you feel streamlined and powerful at HIIT. Micro shorts free you from restriction at hot yoga. Baggy sweats help you dance with less rigidity in a contemporary class. Streamlined bodysuits helps get you moving with controlled precision at pilates. Sure, you can wear a slick back bun to a hip hop class, but you probably won’t feel as grounded and free as you would letting your hair down would…and the texture your body applies to space and the choreography (be that pirouettes or burpees) adjusts accordingly.

Ultimately, wearing what you feel comfortable in is the most important and you don’t need to put on a show for anyone. However, playing with archetype embodiment is a fun way to express yourself through your personal style in general, and abandoning that when it comes to activewear is a pretty big missed opportunity, IMO.

Recommended reading:

Charge the environment with anticipation

Just like dressing your body shifts how you move it, dressing and preparing your space shifts how you feel in it.

Make the time sacred: The difference between rituals and chores is not magic or spirituality, it’s intention. Chores are raced through from obligation, rituals are experienced from presence. Block the time off on your calendar for organization’s sake, but protect and honor that time as if it were a spiritual practice, because making time for yourself is one.

Cleanse the energy: Rituals are often marked with an “opening” to symbolically mark the transition to a different state. Your body processes this before the exercise even begins with your heart rate changing, attention narrowing, and breath slowing. This preparation reduces friction between states. Open a window and get new air in the room, light a candle, sage, or incense (this is my favorite, in sandalwood) the space to use smoke to clear the air, and put your phone on DND to communicate to your body that this is a portal you’re stepping through.

Beautify the space: Beautiful, uncluttered environments create a sense of coherence and safety. Chaos creates cognitive load. It’s not design snobbery, it’s neuro-aesthetics. Mess, noise, harsh light, and lack of decorative intention means your nervous system and brain are processing competing information. This increases stress and distracts your attention because your brain has to think about filtering energy versus just getting to be present. Beautiful spaces, whatever that means to you personally, can produce softer attention, reduced cortisol, emotional openness, increased imagination, higher tolerance, and parasympathetic activation . You’ve probably heard of the parasympathetic nervous system as the “rest and digest” state, but it’s also necessary for “feed and breed”. Eroticism can’t exist in high stress environments. You don’t need to pay for $50 classes at a boutique studio, and you may have pets and baby toys you can’t declutter at the moment, but see if you can make your space even marginally more aesthetic. Get yourself a beautiful mat so you’re not struggling to grip or staring at a jarring color scheme, and invest in some props that help you look forward to the experience.

Recommended reading:

Create mood lighting: When I was little, my mom installed a dimmer on the dining room pendant light. I became obsessed with what I called “rose light” which was basically dimming the lights to near total blackness because it made me feel like we were feasting in the chateau in Beauty and the Beast not our New Jersey suburb. ADHD queen that I am, to this day, you’ll never catch me dead with the “big light” on. Not only is it stressful on the eyes, but it gives a real corporate office vibe that is decidedly not fantastical, no thanks. Turn on some table lamps, light a few candles, or even better, hunt for a patch of natural sunlight and get some rays on your face.

Use music to finish the atmosphere: You’re not in charge of the playlist in a group studio setting, but when you’re in at home, you get to curate to your exact preferences. Just like your outfit, match your playlist to the vibe of the workout to fine tune how the space feels and how you move inside it.

Recommended reading:

Don’t forget aftercare

Don’t leave yourself high and dry by jumping out of your workout and into your next errand. Create a “closing” ritual to bookend your opening and energetically convey the transition out of the practice.

I personally finish every class I teach with the suggestion “Say something kind to your body in your mind and thank it for all it just accomplished, including deciding to rest”. Trust me, I rolled my eyes at first too, but it does help you make a shift towards appreciation of your body.

A few ideas:

• lay with legs on the wall

• a (witchy) everything shower where you use specific scents in your body wash/scrubs to shift your state (lavender/chamomile for relaxation, eucalyptus/sage/rosemary for cleaning and grounding, rose/geranium/neroli for self love and healing, citrus for invigoration, for example)

• applying body oil/lotion while thinking/saying affirmations or gratitude to the body

• journaling, particularly if you make the effort to record how much better your body feels after movement because the act of handwriting ingrains things in your memory and over time this cultivates true intrinsic motivation when you really understand how great movement makes you feel afterwards even when you don’t feel like doing it

• walk to coffee with a friend (helps you associate the activity with connection)

• make yourself a fun potion (tea, a fancy espresso drink, flavored seltzer)

I recognize we all have busy lives and we may not have time for a whole self seduction every day. Most of us are just trying to squeeze movement in in any way we can, but beginning to incorporate even some of these ideas will impact how your nervous system responds to the idea and actual experience of working out.

You are not a fitness robot programmed to extract calories. An eroticized movement practice is one that stops measuring efficacy by productivity, and instead romanticizes the sacred time, and the shift in energy, breath, posture, mood, and body awareness. Having functional fitness goals like prepping for a race or adhering to medical recommendations about weight are great—it’s incredibly helpful to have a goal to look forward to (and celebrate!) but the WAY you get to that goal changes your experience entirely.

If you’re looking for a space to move with athleticism and intention, with precision and sensuality, Helen Phelan Studio on-demand is $44/month and the 2026 July Catskills and August Tuscany pilates/yoga/breath retreats still have limited spots left!

About half my essays are free, upgrade to paid to access the entire archive and get:

• long form essays on wellness culture, intuitive exercise, distancing yourself from diet culture, body image, embodiment, creative practices, and identity

• round ups of articles, products, and culture I’m consuming (and criticizing) lately

• my wellness little black book of holistic practitioners who are actually legit

• access to weekly HPS Zoom classes

• first access to sign up for exclusive courses, events, workshops, and retreats

  Subscribe now

The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention is officially in full swing! We just finished our live lab focused on rooting, grounding, anchoring, and creating stability both physically through pilates strength programming and fascial release and energetically with creative writing and improvisation…and I gotta tell ya, I feel great.

We also had our first bookings for the Aug 20-25th Tuscany retreat, so it’s been an exciting week over here (you can claim your spot here if you wanna get into a little yoga, pilates, and breathwork with Beth Cooke and I!)

Apropos of nothing, in an effort to manage my DMs more effectively, I’ve started a new series “what I wore to teach pilates today” on reels and I’ll be linking everything on ShopMy should that be of any interest!

Recently for the paid subscribers:

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

THE DIGEST

• “The Unexpected Sign Your Nervous System Is Healing: You Become Horny for Life Again” — Eros and Honey

• “How To Do The Shit You Say You’re Going To Do” — Miranda Does Brands

• “12 Clues That You’ve Outgrown Your Old Life (But You’re Violently Avoiding Admitting It” — The Twelfth House

• “What Your Basic Bitch Sneaker Says About You” — Selleb

THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: American Ballet Theatre Studio Company at The Joyce May 13th-May 17th

SMELL: Le Labo Thé Matcha 26

HEAR: HPS IRL vol. 005

TOUCH: Capote’s Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Song for an Era

TASTE: Táche Pistachio Milk

YOUR HPS SCHEDJ THIS WEEK

Peep the entire May program here

• Full Body 062

• Upper Body 042

• Noon Zoom 039 Replay

• Lower Body 0038

• Core 051

• Book into this week’s Live Friday Noon Zoom 12pm ET ( free for HPS members, and paid Substackers join for free 1x/month (if you can’t find your comp code, email hi@helenphelanstudio.com). Non-members can drop-in anytime for $25/class.

Peep the entire May program here

HPS is $44/month (with sliding scale pricing available for those in need) and you get access to 500+ on-demand workouts, monthly programs, challenges, and live Zoom every week.

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Catskills Retreat July 23rd-26th, 2026

  • Join Lulu Soni and me for a somatic summer camp— we have only 3 king bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• The Tuscany Retreat August 20th-25th, 2026

  • Registration for my pilates, yoga, and pasta in Tuscany with Beth Cooke and opens this weekend! Comment below with your email to get on the early access list to ensure your spot.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• Body High with Beth Cooke at Skyting 05.30 2:30pm | Don’t push harder, feel more. Body High microdoses the most intoxicating elements of strength, stretch, rhythm, and release, slow burn style. First, heat rises through athletic mat pilates dosed with cathartic cardio pulses, then your edges soften in a haze of yoga flow and breath, leaving you feeling high on your body’s very own supply.

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 13 years of experience teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Obligatory, shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach. Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

*This email may include affiliate links where I gain a small commission

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RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

You’re not lazy. Exercise is just really fucking hard.

Our bodies are hardwired to conserve energy to survive. This served us back in the caveman days when we had such active lives hunting, gathering, and fleeing wild beasts…but it’s not so helpful when you spend all day in front of your MacBook. Your bod will always take the path of least resistance because it’s litchralllly trying to keep you alive.

That being said, we can hack the system. The freaks who actually look forward to working out are not forcing themselves with white knuckled grips powered by the sheer internalized misogynistic hatred of their bodies.

They’ve learned how to seduce themselves into it by turning movement into a ritual, not a punishment.

And you already know consistency doesn’t come from self-hatred…you’ve probably been there, done that. It comes from building a relationship with your body that feels devotional, pleasurable, and alive.

Whats below the paywall:

• reframing your relationship with pain without glorifying suffering

• how to push without punishing

• the sensuality of deliberate, sustained, slow, precision movement and tuning into sensation

• transmuting self-loathing into self-worship

• increasing your ability to hold tolerance for discomfort

• repetition as self-study

• shifting exercise from domination of the body to understanding the body

• differentiating between what you crave and what you need

• learning safety, setting boundaries, building agency

• my gratitude 🙂

  ---

  Well Hell is a reader supported publication. To read the rest of this essay, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

Read more

The last few weeks have been a chaotic blur of half marathon prep and execution blended with last minute marketing and course creation for The Repertoire but I made it through both, beating my goal time for the half by about 18 minutes (!!!) and getting the first live lab class for the Repertoire launched last night eek! I’m trying to appreciate how busy work is right now because I know slow summer is just around the corner…but phew am I feeling like I’m in the eye of the tornado right now. Simply an extra reminder to walk my walk and make sure I’m taking care of myself and prioritizing rest as much as hustle. Have been relying heavily on pre-made meals (been using Thistle lately) to take cooking off the to-do list and making sure I squeeze in movement for myself that is fully NOT work related, which means it is purely for the fun of it and not used spent thinking about how I’d cue it or incorporate into various client’s private programming—just enjoying moving my body for the sake of it and savoring as much friend time with my girls as I can before everyone’s travel schedules go insane for the summer!

Recently for the paid subscribers:

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

THE DIGEST

• “The Internet Made Us Archive Our Lives – Now We Want Out” — Dazed

• “You Reached Peak Bone Mass At 20. Nobody Will Check Until You’re 65.” — The Female Edge

• “Practical Things You Can Do To Increase Your Luck” — Crystal Clear

• “A Guide To Intuition Days, Or How To Get Your Spark Back” —Trying In Public

• “Charlotte York Was Right I Fear”— Overdressed, Overanalyzed

THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: Parsons Dance at The Joyce through May 10th

SMELL: Boy Smells Candle in Kush

HEAR: Don’t Stop Running (the chaotic but amazingcollab playlist my girlfriends made me to run the half-marathon!)

TOUCH: Banana Republic Oversized Poplin Button Down Shirt

TASTE: The Old King Cole Martini at Maison Premiere

THE LATEST ON-DEMAND

Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET—completely free and unlimited for HPS on-demand members and paid Substack subscribers can still join for free 1x/month (if you’re a member/Substack paid sub and can’t find your comp code, email hi@helenphelanstudio.com). Non-members and free Substack subscribers can drop-in anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Catskills Retreat July 23rd-26th, 2026

  • Join Lulu Soni and me for a somatic summer camp— we have only 3 king bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• The Tuscany Retreat August 20th-25th, 2026

  • Registration for my pilates, yoga, and pasta in Tuscany with Beth Cooke and opens this weekend! Comment below with your email to get on the early access list to ensure your spot.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• Body High with Beth Cooke at Skyting 05.30 2:30pm | Don’t push harder, feel more. Body High microdoses the most intoxicating elements of strength, stretch, rhythm, and release, slow burn style. First, heat rises through athletic mat pilates dosed with cathartic cardio pulses, then your edges soften in a haze of yoga flow and breath, leaving you feeling high on your body’s very own supply.

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Obligatory, shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach. Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

*This email may include affiliate links where I gain a small commission

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

As I always like to say, however, wellness should improve your life, not be your life, and your ideal repertoire of modalities should maximize your time so you can get on with it. As far as I’m concerned, part of healing and well-being work is remembering that there is no “healed”.

Despite what the internet will tell you, there is no quick immediate fix to changing your body, your brain, or mending your heart. The key to moving, looking, and feeling your best is never going to be one singular thing. More often than not, the “solution” is going to be a multi-modal, blended approach of practices that make the most impact for you as the special unique snowflake that you are.

So, what have I found actually does the trick after thirteen years in the biz? Replacing results and strategy with sensation and presence.

Grounding your body with breath and cathartic movement, softening tension with fascial release, resetting your nervous system with somatic exercises, organizing your mind with automatic writing and then unleashing it all into free improvisational movement to inhabit your body without controlling it.

Unfortunately, we’re mostly taught that exercise is a means of control for the body, and we override sensation to make that happen.

Mindfulness practices are often misinterpreted as a tool to “quiet” the mind instead of observe it and we wind up intellectualizing instead of experiencing.

Creativity is often tainted by the need to monetize and people-please and we spend time correcting, editing, and performing instead of genuinely expressing.

Alas, you can’t access your creativity if you are stuck in the habit of policing your body (and mind…and heart). But it doesn’t have to be that way if you’re strategic about how you play these practices play off one another.

Movement is the doorway, the foundation, and the first step…our guide

At Helen Phelan Studio “movement” is an overarching term comprised of three parts:

Contemporary pilates

It wouldn’t be Well Hell if pilates wasn’t the north star.

For all the obvious reasons:

• building muscle

• improving mobility and flexibility

• increasing breath and lung efficiency

• reducing pain

• preventing and rehabbing injury

• enhancing posture and alignment

• refining balance and coordination (lowering your fall risk, one of the leading causes of injury-related death for women)

• reducing cortisol levels and enhancing concentration skills

• boosting pelvic floor health (better orgasms, no more peeing when you laugh, easier labor/delivery/recovery)

But I’m more interested in the less obvious reasons, tbh.

Rigorous movement gives you a way to integrate the experience of what strength feels like physically, even if you don’t actually feel that way emotionally. It essentially acts as a dress rehearsal for navigating difficulty. It improves your interoception (your ability to interpret internal cues from your body like hunger, thirst, heart rate, or breath) and proprioception (understanding your alignment and your body’s relationship to the space around it). Both are essential not just for better muscle recruitment and faster physical progress but also emotional regulation. Prioritizing your response to sensation over chasing punishing reps helps you understand how to modify for your skill level to move safely and build self-trust. In this way, a good pilates class also cultivates a strong sense of agency.

What I find most intriguing, though, is that it serves as a catalyst for idea generation and more flexible, creative thinking.

When your body is directing metabolic energy and oxygen to motor control, it diverts them away from the prefrontal cortex (the area of the brain responsible for critical and logical thinking). In addition to releasing neurotransmitters like dopamine and endorphins, pilates fosters the creation of new neurons in the hippocampus. This combo gets the brain into “transient hypofrontality”, which is a fancy way of saying the rigid, analytic brain is muted and you open yourself up to divergent thinking. In short—it’s literally making you more creative and open-minded (pun intended).

See also: reasons to do pilates that have nothing to do with “long, lean lines”:

Somatic exercises (shaking, tapping, body scanning, etc.):

• Help complete the stress response cycle so activation doesn’t stay stuck in the body

• Regulate the nervous system, allowing you to move from fight/flight/freeze/fawn into rest & digest

• Build tolerance for physical sensation and emotional experience

• Release stored tension and unconscious thought patterns

• Cultivate a sense of safety in your body

• Support direct emotional processing without over-intellectualization

Fascial release

Fascia flossing is not a stretch, it’s not an exercise, it’s kind of both. Think of it as foam rolling from the inside out—instead of creating the pressure by leaning into a roller, you create the pressure by engaging the muscle as you lengthen it. This is a crucial part of an HPS movement practice because it:

• Relieves pain and improves mobility by reducing adhesions and restriction in the tissue, gently coaxing out long-held tension patterns—especially those shaped by chronic stress or past injury

• Hydrates fascia, improving its elasticity, glide, and overall tissue quality

• Shifts your muscles from rigid and braced to supple and responsive, to not just exercise with better form, but to communicate to your nervous system that you can move through the world this way too, signaling safety

• Improves breath capacity by freeing the diaphragm, rib cage, and surrounding connective tissue (also calming for the nervous system)

• Improves circulation and lymphatic flow, supporting recovery and reducing inflammation

HPS pilates is never really just killer abs (though it certainly is that too!) it’s a melting pot of all of the above.

Mindfulness is how we mine for clarity…kind of like our translator

The mindfulness component is a combination of utilizing breath to center and automatic writing or journaling to uncover things that may lurk below the surface of your consciousness and help you organize your thinking and even change your beliefs about them.

Breath

Breathwork in my definition includes the functional diaphragmatic breath inherent in a contemporary pilates practice (inhale, widen and fill torso three dimensionally, exhale to corset and narrow), but also meditative techniques like box breathing, elongated exhales, alternating nostril breathing, etc. Breathwork triggers the body’s relaxation response which has myriad physical health benefits like:

• lowered blood pressure

• a boosted immune system

• better sleep quality (and all the health rewards that come from good sleep hygiene)

• increased heart rate variability and lung efficiency

• mood stabilization, stress and anxiety reduction

• improved focus and cognition

Basically, breath sets you up to be better host for muse when she chooses to visit you.

Automatic or channeled writing:

Writing is inherently creative. You can use journaling as a pre-cursor to creative narrative writing, but I think of it as an experimental practice ground.

Once you’ve primed your system with movement and cleared the debris with breath, you can further purge and organize with writing. Automatic or channeled journaling gets you into your right brain with lowered inhibitions creating a ripe atmosphere for breakthroughs. It simultaneously fine tunes your self-awareness and allows you to de-censor yourself and let thoughts and feelings flow without a filter. Getting everything out without second guessing and releasing the structural control of grammar, punctuation or putting on a performative voice that makes your words more palatable or likable helps enhance mental clarity and set you up to get your most creative work done.

It’s energetically cleansing and makes you more confidently decisive. It breaks rumination loops and eases mental fatigue—literally downloading everything weighing on you onto the page. If you really wanna stretch it, the reduced anxiety and improved mental health benefits of this practice can also have a direct impact on your immunity.

Recently for paid subscribers:

Creative expression is the whole reason why all this set up is crucial

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One of the most used tools inside my somatic course The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak and Grief Into Reinvention is journaling in it’s many forms, my favorite of which being automatic and channeled writing. I have found the magic formula to get yourself out of any funk are rituals that:

1. root and stabilize you and make you feel more physically capable (athletic pilates)

2. complete the stress response to get your nervous system reset to rest and digest (somatic release)

3. rehydrate, exfoliate, and remove stagnant energy and toxins from your tissues (fascia flossing)

4. help you organize your thoughts and express yourself clearly and confidently (journaling)

5. give you somewhere to put it all (dance and creative exercises).

(I write more about why I created The Repertoire here).

Automatic writing is the practice of stream of consciousness writing without internal editing. It’s used to connect with your higher self, spark creativity, access your subconscious mind, and clear psychic gunk weighing you down that you might not have even been aware of. For my Artist’s Way heads out there, that’s what your Morning Pages are, babes.

Channeled writing looks nearly identical in that it is flow state writing, but with the set intention to connect with your spirit guides and ancestors to interpret a spiritual message.

In both cases you enter somewhat of a casual trance-like state and let it rip. Here’s how:

Set the scene

You don’t need to redecorate your apartment, but it does help to have a dedicated space. A tidy (and vibey) environment eases mental fatigue…less visual distraction means less cognitive load and an easier time getting your working memory part of your brain focused on one task. If that dedicated space is laying in bed, light a candle and make the bed. If it’s your desk, clear the surface of mail and excess junk. If it’s sitting on the floor in the living room, make sure your eye line is cleared of clutter. Lighting candles or playing relaxing music can help get you one step further into this right headspace and make your environment feel more deliberate and conscious.

Choose your instrument and ink color

It helps to have a pen that glides easily. I personally find when I get into it, I end up clenching the bejeezus out of my pen if I have to make even a little pressure on to the page, so, I generally go with a rollerball pen that needs very little digging down to try to alleviate that. You can also experiment with ink color—blue ink is said to aid in memory retention, brainstorming and higher performance in creative tasks. Color theory tells us using blue ink can be calming, psychologically soothing, trustworthy, which are all obviously useful qualities for this practice. But, hey, if your pink glitter gel pen with the feather cap allows you to feel enough whimsy to open yourself up to the woo-woo of it all, go off. Same goes for your notebook; crumpled computer paper certainly works, but I like to dedicate a specific journal to this practice to make it feel for lack of a less cheesy word, more sacred and to help me step into a different state than just writing out my regular degular to-do lists.

Get into your body

Breath work and gentle, breath focused movement helps get you out of an overly-analytical state and into flow. This could be a few moments of box breathing (inhale for four counts, hold for four, exhale for four, hold for four, repeat) to get your body and brain on the same page, or habit stacking this practice with your favorite HPS on-demand class (shameless self promotion) to go all out.

Recommend reading:

Set an intention

This is broad and vague for a reason here because you can take it however you want. Inside the Repertoire writing prompts are tailored to the somatic work and energy channels we’re working with on any given day, but for your own free practice you can be as generalized with it as you like! Your intention can simply be to vent, to find more clarity about a situation, or to decompress. You can also ask yourself a clear question and let that guide the writing, or connect with your spirit guides or ask for specific guidance on a particular topic.

Establish energetic protection

We are not our thoughts, and sometimes we can get stuck in unproductive though loops and journaling just becomes documented rumination. To get ahead of this and avoid it, think or say quietly to yourself that you are open to communicate with your highest self and not your inner bully. If you’re using this practice to communicate with your spirit guides and ancestors and opening your energy up in to receive communication from them, visualize yourself surrounding in glowing white light and set the intention to only allow positive or loving energy in. Your guides will be loving and supportive (honest, but kindly), so, if you notice the messaging getting darker or critical, stop writing, try the box breathing again for a few cycles, restate your intention and energetic protection, and try again.

Recently for paid subscribers:

Head’s up! Well Hell is a reader supported publication, and this is normally where the paywall would be, but this guide is my gift to you. About half my essays are free, upgrade to paid to access the entire archive and get:

• long form essays on wellness culture, intuitive exercise, distancing yourself from diet culture, body image, embodiment, creative practices, and identity

• round ups of articles, products, and culture I’m consuming (and criticizing) lately

• my wellness little black book of holistic practitioners who are actually legit

• access to weekly HPS Zoom classes

• first access to sign up for exclusive courses, events, workshops, and retreats

Subscribe now

Make like Nike

Just do it! Decide how long you’ll journal (ex: three whole notebook pages or for fifteen minutes straight). Put the pen to the page and keep contact with it the entire time. I sometimes start with affirmations just to get my pen moving because the important thing is to keep your hand moving without interruption. The affirmation I always return to is from The Artist’s Way “My creativity heals myself and others”. Do your best not to read what you are writing as it comes out or it will disrupt the flow, switch your brain out of receiving and back into analytical mode. Reading what you write as you write it also makes you too aware and turns your writing writing voice into that of someone performing for an audience rather than authentic communication. Even still, it may feel like you are pretending at first, just go with it and try to keep the pen moving, you’ll intellectualize it all later.

Don’t stop

If you feel yourself running out of steam and feel lost for words, think or say quietly to yourself that you are open to receiving and keep writing the same word or phrase or your intention over and over again until something shows new shows up on the page. Trust that it will. Don’t worry about your handwriting looking neat, once you get going you will be racing to keep your hand in sync with your brain and it’s going to get a little messy…worry about deciphering it later once you’ve off loaded it out of your head.

Try using your less dominant hand

I’ll be honest and say this doesn’t work personally for me because I get distracted by my inability to write normally and it slows me down too much— but if you’re REALLY stuck in freeze or feeling overly aware of your writing, try using your other hand to introduce novelty and bypass the comfort of heavily neuromuscular pathway that might keep you censoring or filtering your writing from being truly honest.

The instruments

Feela Leather Notebooks

The practical option at $28 for five: personally, my journals are a mess and I’ve been known on occasion or two to burn them on the moon, so, I’m not super precious with them. These are just elevated enough about a school notebook to feel special without my needing to be precious with them and stack in a neat, congruous way so the ones I do keep are organized in a way that doesn’t make my eye twitch.

Le carnet en cuir Honoré

The fancy schmancy option at $177: maybe it’s just that I’ve ruined my feed with all my yapping about journaling, but I somehow arrived at JournalTok and let me tell ya, the youths on the clock app are obsessed with these and how they’re customizing them with handmade charms and clips. They are refillable with Moleskin notebooks so you keep the portfolio case and interchange the notebooks as you use them. They are lovely if you’re in a splurgey mood and want something you can make fully yours…do not burn these!!

Handmade Custom Refillable Leather Traveler’s Journal

The middle ground: If you love the Louise Carmen look and charm situation, Etsy has a ton of very similar options in genuine leather for a fraction of the price. DIYs also abound on the internet if you’d like to try your hand at making your own leather portfolio for your journals.

Uniball 207 Retractable Micro POint Gel Pens

As I mentioned before, I need a pen that flows with zero pressure because I already tend to grip my pens and then my wrist and forearm are f-ed after a session. These are really the only ones I write for any sort of extended period with.

Nippon Kodo Kayuragi Sandalwood Incense

I burn these all day long most days because the santal-esque smell is so addicting (and it’s so cheap), but I like the ritual of smoking your writing space to clear the energetic field…maybe you even choose a scent that you only burn when you write to create a scent association with the practice.

15 Minute Hourglass Timer

Yes, you could set an alarm on your phone to time yourself but that’s less fun, no? This one is also very cool because it dings a Tibetan singing bowl when the sand runs out which adds a little extra oomph to the whole calming your nervous system benefit of this practice.

The Repertoire’s Automatic Journaling Prompts

Last but not least, if you’re REALLY stuck on what to write, working with prompts to get you started takes a huge weight off your shoulders. Inside The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention, in addition to our physical practices and live classes, we practice automatic writing every day for six weeks to help you bypass overthinking, access what’s actually there, and move it through your body instead of getting stuck. In my experience, when I don’t have a jumping off point, journaling can become well-documented rumination instead of a tool to get clarity. The Repertoire’s structure is different It’s a practice that process, shift, and move forward mentally and ultimate provide an organized framework for your physical practices to do the same. If you’ve been wanting to feel more clear, more expressed, and less stuck in your own loops, this is exactly where we do that work.

You’ll get:

• Clear prompts (no staring at a blank page)

• A consistent rhythm (so it becomes second nature)

• Integration with movement and breath (so what comes up doesn’t just stay in your head)

If you’re interested in how automatic and channeled journaling can constitute a greater somatic healing and artistic practice, I hope you’ll join me in The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention, starting 05.04.

xx,

Helen

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. To read the rest of my essays, receive product round-ups, somatic tips, creativity exercises, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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Recently on Well Hell

I shot with my dear friend and incredible photographer Blake Nelson this weekend to zhuzh some of the photos on the website and capture a full HPS class in action and we had a no-good, very bad time (as evidenced by all the video clips from the day).

Blake is a genius, and we know each other well as friends, so, he was able to read my mind all day (down to Taylor Swift on repeat). The whole day left me feeling high and SO excited about some upcoming HPS projects and the people I’ve met in this community who make it

Putting together the shoot, styling the girls, and geeking out on lighting treatments with Blake also left me even more certain than every about how much of a void creativity leaves in your life if you don’t nurture it even if you’re not “professionally” creative. It was just fucking fun! ***cough cough*** another reminder how necessary the The Repertoire’s somatic and creative exercises are even if you’re not going through a low low at the moment!

Reminder, early enrollment pricing is over, but you can sign up for The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention is open until May 3rd!

Recently for the paid subscribers:

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

THE DIGEST

• “What Your IYKYK Sunscreen Says About You” — Selleb Sisters

• “How I Ritual Stack The First 30 Minutes Of My Day” — Kate Van Horn

• “The Financial Return On Knowing Yourself” — Frugal Chic

• “I Know The Key To Being Insufferably Stylish And It Will Never Be In Your Closet” — Gatekept

• “You Don’t Want A Sustainable Business...You Might Not Even Want A “Slow” Life!” — Holisticism

THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: Company XIV’s baroque burlesque fantasy intepretation of Little Red Riding Hood, Petite Rouge at Théâtre XIV through May 24th

SMELL: Sidia The Body Mist in Midas

HEAR: HPS IRL vol. 004

TOUCH: your credit card to snag your spot on the Tuscany retreat

TASTE: Fishwife Smoked Rainbow Trout

THE LATEST ON-DEMAND

Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET—completely free and unlimited for HPS on-demand members and paid Substack subscribers can still join for free 1x/month (if you’re a member/Substack paid sub and can’t find your comp code, email hi@helenphelanstudio.com). Non-members and free Substack subscribers can drop-in anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Catskills Retreat July 23rd-26th, 2026

  • Join Lulu Soni and me for a somatic summer camp— we have only 3 king bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• The Tuscany Retreat August 20th-25th, 2026

  • Registration for my pilates, yoga, and pasta in Tuscany with Beth Cooke and opens this weekend! Comment below with your email to get on the early access list to ensure your spot.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention (live course cohort starting in May)

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Obligatory, shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach. Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

*This email may include affiliate links where I gain a small commission

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RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

I am not a idiot.

I understand part of the reason diet culture is such a successful sell on the internet is because we’d all much rather someone tell us which foods to eat, which to avoid, what exercises to do and exactly how often to do them than do the arduous work of listening to our own bodies to come to those decisions on our own.

I’m right there with you, and I’ve been doing this work for thirteen years.

Alas, poor Yorick!!!

We cannot entirely outsource decision making about our food and exercise to even the most authoritative sounding fitfluencer, because, and trust me, how I wish this weren’t the truth, there is no one sized fits all approach to eating and exercising that will work for every single person.

We are just simply different.

Each of us has our own situation going on regarding:

• genetic realities: my legs will never be longer no matter how much pilates I do

• weight set points: the theory that the body has a roughly 10-20lb range of healthy function that it will fight to stay within through hormonal and metabolic regulation no matter how disciplined you are in your diet or exercise program…and if you do manage to leave this range, your health suffers catastrophic consequences…food for thought for the celebs taking drugs for the last few vanity pounds and not for health

• lifestyles/amounts of leisure time: one thing I know for CERTAIN, working in luxury wellness in this city for over a decade, is that we do NOT in fact, all have the same hours in a day as Beyoncé. Beyoncé’s job is to be Beyoncé, and thank goddess for that, but she ABSOLUTELY has people who handle everything else. I have not trained Queen B, (but I am available!!!) but, I have worked for plenty of other fancy schmancy folks with multiple assistants, household staff, and concierge medical. Let me tell ya, they’re not juggling their career, carpool to their kid’s soccer practice, grocery shopping, making dinner, and squeezing in their workouts. They’re working with an entirely different time table made possible with the support of their teams. And good for them, but you can’t compare the 15 minutes of free time you might have a day to their wide open afternoons...or feel guilty if fitness is not the way you can realistically spend it.

• access to wellness resources: from the advanced, like $$$ for the expertise of a chef or private trainers or specialized testing like Dexa scans or holistic functional doctors not covered by regular insurance, to the basic, like do you live in a full on food desert or have enough money to eat a diet that isn’t entirely processed foods?

• pre-existing conditions: things like heart or lung issues that impact capacity for athletic performance, chronic illness, food sensitivities, and age-related physiological changes like peri/menopause and bone/muscle density decline

• traumatic physical events and injuries: challenging birth stories, sexual assaults, physical abuse, stroke, full blown CPTSD, ankles that always sprain, a college ACL tear…dictating what type of movement we do and to what intensity

• functional goals: are we training for the Olympics, Swan Lake, to tote a baby carrier, to play a superhero for a film, or to just get up the stairs without huffing and puffing?

• race/sex: are you a woman whose doctor tells her her pelvic pain is hysterical and psychosomatic for the 4-11 years it takes the average woman to be diagnosed with endometriosis? or a Black mother who is at 2-3x the risk of mortality during childbirth from pre-eclampsia or hemorrhage due to systemic racism?

These things don’t individually set your fitness/health potential in stone, but cumulatively, create a realm of reasonable possibility it doesn’t do us any good to ignore.

So what is one to do if we can’t actually rely on the hottie selling a “30 Days To A Snatched Waist And A Perfect Life” bundle on the Instagram to tell us what to do in broad strokes?

Exercise intuitively.

And no, I don’t mean only exercise when you feel like it, or to become clairvoyant.

I mean listen to your body, set small, realistically attainable goals, and be less of an asshole to yourself.

Without further adieu, here’s a manifesto of sorts I’ve created for Helen Phelan Studio.

The HPS 10 Principles of Intuitive Exercise

1. Aim To Take Up More Space, Not Less

The first thing you have to do to truly tune into your bodily intuition is break up with diet culture, for real. And not in a clandestinely using the word “strong” as acceptable code for “skinny”….genuinely work on shifting your focus to skill, endurance, relief, and longevity and away from shrinking. Only then can your movement practice truly be additive and nurturing for your body, whatever your goals may be. Unfollow the fitness influencers who use their body and their fancy houses as their business cards instead of getting legitimately certified, throw away the magazines and the fad diet books that make huge unrealistic promises about radically changing your body shape with unsustainable, sometimes dangerous practices. Let yourself feel MAD diet culture has taken up so much space in your brain for this long. Abandon the idea there is a such thing as a miracle program, else you may live with the sneaking suspicion that if I just “___” I would be fixed/healed/perfect wedged into the back of your psyche forever. Respect, fuel, and care for your body today, here and now, regardless of what it looks like.

2. Work With Your Energy, Not Against it

Sleep enough and devote enough time to recovery to set yourself up in a way that allows you to show up fully energized to the workouts you do do, otherwise the stress you put on your body is way worse than the consequences of missing a workout. If you don’t learn how to listen to your body when you need to rest, body awareness and body trust feel impossible to cultivate.

3. Give Yourself Permission to “Half-Ass It”

“No excuses” and “Never miss a Monday” type verbiage might motivate you in the short term, but gentle consistency > sporadic intensity when it comes to really building fitness into your life in a meaningful way. Repeat that to yourself every time you feel like snoozing the alarm (because no matter how much you love pilates or “insert modality here”, there WILL be days you just don’t feel like it. All movement counts, even if it’s not the most hardcore workout you’ve ever experienced. While fatiguing our muscles til JUST before the failure point is how we build muscle, there are so other benefits of movement that you might miss out on if you think it has to kill you to be “worth it”. Starting a practice is always a lot harder than maintaining consistency, so while periods of rest are also integral to a well rounded practice, subbing gentle movement in lieu of totally skipping can help you keep your sense of routine and momentum. That can look like choosing a chill-er class (you can use the filters on Helen Phelan Studio to sort by intensity for this very reason), or doing your same favorite workout but taking more breaks, not pushing as hard, using less resistance, or even opt for something like a little stretch session or a podcast hot girl walk instead of a formalized workout. It’s more important to keep the appointment with yourself than to conquer Mt. Everest every morning. Giving yourself this permission means you progress further over time and are way less likely to experience the burn out that comes from super rigid plans that don’t actually work with your life.

4. Neutralize Your Wellness Toolkit

When you feel that conditioned messaging bouncing around your head that you are “good” for squeezing in that early AM workout or “bad” for skipping it (same goes for the foods we eat), or less than in any way for not having the same time, energy, or resources to dedicate to wellness as the influencer’s whose whole career revolves around performing wellness…challenge those thoughts! Remind yourself that movement and food are neutral, and you’re not a better or worse person for just trying to get by and feel your best. The authors of Intuitive Eating call this “challenging the food police who monitor the unreasonable rules that diet culture has created.” Over our lifetimes, we’ve internalized the diet culture messaging around food and exercise so deeply that we almost reflexively feel guilt, shame, or “badness” for being human. Reframing these automatic thoughts through mantras, journaling, following body-neutral fitness professionals, or even placing reminder post it notes on your dumbbells, are all critical to learning to rewire these gut reactions to build a healthier mindset over time. (Over time being the key word, as restructuring your mindset after a lifetime of diet culture is no easy feat and getting down on yourself for not being “perfect” at intuitive movement, is just another way perfectionism rears it’s ugly head.

5. More Pleasure = More Progress

In the American-puritanical-hustle culture-capitalist-rat race, we’re pressured to deprioritize pleasure and fun, as if progress towards any goal must be a miserable sacrifice to really be well deserved. Movement should be enjoyable, for the most part. It won’t always be enjoyable, as let’s face it, crunches over the ball and 8 million reps of leg lifts build to a pretty intense burning sensation…but it should never be painful, just uncomfortable. Figuring out which type of movement you like to do is important, as is the cueing the instructor uses to set up the intellectual environment and your mindset. We’re not always super in control of our physical space, whether you’re working out in your tiny apartment living room or in the middle of a big box gym, but there are little things you can do to tweak things to create a more positive holistic experience, like lighting a candle, wearing a set that makes you feel great, throwing your hair in a slick back bun, choose a playlist you love, etc; Crucially, fitness doesn’t need to be aesthetic, and trust me I’ve done plenty of at home mat workouts in my underwear with my hair in a rat’s nest to just get the job done (gentle consistency!!!) but it’s worthwhile brainstorming things that help you make the entire experience more pleasurable from start to finish— even when you want to curse me for the 50th plank variation of the day. Enjoying yourself means there’s one less barrier to consistency, which means results, growth, and evolution.

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. To read the rest of this essay, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

Read more

Registration for my Tuscany retreat with Katonah yoga genius angel Beth Cooke starts this weekend! Join us at THE MOST STUNNING villa you’ve ever seen for five days of pilates, yoga, meditation (and infinite homemade pasta) August 20th-25th, 2026! Comment your email below to get added to the early access list to get first pick of rooms and ensure your spot and start bothering your friends to get their summer calendars in order so you can all get pilates and yoga high with us in Italia!

LATELY

My business coach has been heavily encouraging me to share more of what she calls “founder lore”.

It occurred to me, while I talk to the camera all day long in HPS classes, I for some reason still feel a little weird doing face to camera vids on IG, and I certainly feel naked naked talking about the why behind The Repertoire—but I did it! I’m simultaneously relieved by the amount of messages I’ve received from y’all about it being a relatable story, and a bit weepy that this type of grief is such a universal experience for women. It does, however, confirm that somatic work and creative play is so needed in a world that encourages us to be productive for productivity’s sake, not our own pleasure or joy.

In an essay on Substack and in the below vid, I talk about how regularly doing something even if it’s scary is the only way to make it not. I know for a fact that’s true with my experience getting back into dance—I never thought I’d feel this free in my body again—and so I’m making a little declaration to you here that I will nip this social media anxiety in the bud by doing more talking content…as long as you keep watching it!

Reminder, early enrollment pricing is over, but you can sign up for The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention is open until May 3rd!

Recently on Well Hell

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

THE DIGEST

• “Artemis II Is Competence Porn And We Are Starving For It” — Liz Plank, Airplane Mode

• “The New Moon, What It Means For You” — Aliza Kelly’s The Practice

• “Tending Your Garden, Part 1: 21 Values-Based Ways to Save Your Money, Time, and Mental Capacity” — Bad Art Every Day

• “If You Were Lazy, You’d Be Having Fun” — Trying In Public

• “Stop Trying to Be Interesting” — A Tini Bit Of Advice

• “Blinded By Vision” — The Creative Pragmatist

• “How To Feel Like You Have Your Life Together” — Plant Based

THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: Dance Theatre of Harlem’s “The Firebird” | New York City Center | April 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th

SMELL: Cherry Blossom Season | Brooklyn Botanical Garden | while in bloom! (and a virtual tour if you’re not in NYC)

HEAR: Fort Greene Orchestra’s Bruckner’s 7th Symphony | St. Joseph’s Cathedral | April 16th, 18th, 19th

TOUCH: Nylon Taffeta Shorts | Los Angeles Apparel

TASTE: Vanilla Collagen Peptides | Sports Research

THE LATEST ON-DEMAND

Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET—completely free and unlimited for HPS on-demand members and paid Substack subscribers can still join for free 1x/month (if you’re a member/Substack paid sub and can’t find your comp code, email hi@helenphelanstudio.com). Non-members and free Substack subscribers can drop-in anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. HPS Weekly is always free, but to read the rest of Well Hell’s columns, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

Subscribe now

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Catskills Retreat July 23rd-26th, 2026

  • Join Lulu Soni and me for a somatic summer camp— we have only 3 king bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• The Tuscany Retreat August 20th-25th, 2026

  • Registration for my pilates, yoga, and pasta in Tuscany with Beth Cooke and opens this weekend! Comment below with your email to get on the early access list to ensure your spot.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention (live course cohort starting in May)

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Obligatory, shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach. Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

*This email may include affiliate links where I gain a small commission

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RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

I don’t have any memories before dance. To say it has molded the way I exist in and experience the world is an understatement, from both an artistic and neuroscientific perspective. Dancing increases white matter volume in the brain and strengthens the corpus callosum (the connector of the brain hemispheres) which means dancers literally train to process information faster than non-dancers. Dance training enhances proprioceptive mapping and kinesthetic empathy. Because the majority of brain architecture in early childhood development occurs by/around age three, children who start dance studies young learn to mirror and respond through even subtle (I’m talkin’ imperceptible to most) shifts in posture and body language. This gives them a heightened ability to link physical sensations to emotional states…basically it makes us all a little psychic in the name of artistry.

We’re also socialized to to hide and perform through pain from a young age. (That’s foreshadowing, y’all. 👀)

This complete enmeshment with my sense of self is what made the combination of an eating disorder, a foot injury, and being a neurodivergent, emotionally and energetically sensitive person without the sufficient tools to set boundaries or differentiate between my energy and others’ culminate in me quitting in my early twenties.

It was not just most devastating heartbreak of my life, but a confounding loss of my entire identity. To complicate things further, it also overlapped with when I met my ex-husband. We met in April 2015 and c’etait un coup de foudre—total, disorienting love at first sight. By October, I’d moved abroad for a year-long dance program that I’d already committed to before we met. Even now, I can still viscerally recall it physically ached to take a deep breath with a whole ocean between us. You know, the type of love only a twenty-three year old can fall into…and the type of love I hope never finds me again!

I ended up not being able to hack the long distance, I quit the program and came home, moved in with him immediately. I had just finished my pilates apparatus certification right before I left, and when I settled back into New York, I found myself using teaching to avoid auditions and classes and all the complicated feelings around worth, body image, and lovability it brought up for me. Despite feeling pretty lost without it, stepping away from dance in a professional context was actually necessary for me to address the disordered eating. Being weighed in for fittings, for example, was just not healthy for me for at the time, and it was absolutely the right thing to do to take space.

Unfortunately, it was too painful to have dance in my life at all if it was just as a hobby and not…everything. I couldn’t enjoy it if it wasn’t this extreme version of this thing that had entirely defined my life up to that moment (though, one could argue I hadn’t been enjoying it really in that context either) so, I wiped it altogether.

Never one to do things halfway, I numbed *all that* with this romance and poured myself 1000% into teaching pilates. Dancer Helen was gone. Poof! She never existed. I became one of those girls who can’t help but bring up her boyfriend in every conversation, you know the type. I stopped socializing with my friends as much and made him the sun. The relationship became my primary sense of worth, value, and meaning amidst the dance shaped void in my heart. When conflict arose, which it did often, I made myself amenable and small. I dulled all my sharp edges because keeping that relationship was more important than being fully me, and to ask for more put that prize at risk.

From where I stand now, it’s difficult to reconcile I was capable of losing myself in someone so entirely. This was potentially harder to grieve than my marriage ending; realizing I voluntarily stripped myself of my sparkle. I did so because conducting the investigation to unearth who I was if I was not only not a dancer, but also not his partner, seemed insurmountable.

As my gut piped up time and again to warn me the relationship was unhealthy and unsafe, I metaphorically plugged my ears and replied “NA NA, I can’t hear you!” to my once strong intuitive abilities. I was more willing to believe him than myself. If my instincts were correct, that would’ve meant I had hard decisions to make and I simply did not want to make them! I wanted the fairy tale I thought I signed up for and I was willing to say, do, or be whatever I had to to make it happen.

I worked overtime to suppress the very physical symptoms of my body SCREAMING at me to wake up and choose differently. I was always flu-level, bone tired. I had a high libido and was physically attracted to my husband, but penetrative sex became debilitatingly painful out of nowhere, even with my dancer pain tolerance. I had to coach myself to get through it with tears in my eyes and the anxiety I had about being touched became overwhelming. I had recurring nightmares (which turned out to be 100% correct premonitions, for the record) and didn’t sleep. I stopped taking great care of myself. I didn’t get dressed up or do my makeup unless it was a big night out and didn’t love looking at myself in the mirror (and if you’ve ever taken a dance class with me, you know this should’ve been the most obvious giveaway, lol). I had a million friends but couldn’t imagine mentioning any of this to them, felt it was admitting defeat, and that in some twisted way, I deserved how I was being treated.

I was profoundly lonely.

Recommended reading:

I kept it under wraps and it worked for a while. Or I convinced myself it did.

Until one day, I received definitive, unignorable proof my husband, the very one I contorted myself into a husk of myself to “keep”, had been living a fully double life all nine years of our relationship.

Below the paywall:

• how horribly my first dance class after a six year hiatus went

• how taking the style of dance I was the least natural at actually made me the most confident

• how slutty choreography isn’t actually about the male gaze at all

• how I fused my favorite somatic tools and modalities to formulate The Repertoire’s methodology (and came back to life in the process)

• how relinquishing control through somatic practices made me more magnetic/doubled the size of my business

• how dance brought my appetite back

• the similarities between improvisation and channeled writing/how they allow you to access your higher self and communicate with your spirit guides

Well Hell is a reader supported publication. To read the rest of this essay, receive product round-ups, technique guides, access to Zoom classes, and support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

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LATELY

Like clockwork, the sun comes out and the “fitfluencers” start posting shady, icky “summer body” content.

I recognize my feed is a little warped as someone who works in wellness (and I do hit “not interested” with abandon) so maybe (I hope) it’s not as prevalent on your feed as it is mine, but I do know it’s a pervasive problem.

ESPECIALLY these days, when every celebrity we see is wasting away before our eyes and everyone is just…cool with it? It’s chic?

“Summer body” content is everything I hate about the fitness industry and why I feel so *uncomfy* identifying as a fitness professional or as a trainer.

Here’s your reminder that it’s human to have things you want to change about your appearance…but letting the aesthetic take precedence over the functional or discipline for the sake of discipline over actually enjoying your precious, precious short time on this planet is NOT going to make you as happy as you think it will.

When you see “summer body” nonsense content, I ask that you take a second to think about how you actually want to FEEL this summer, not just how you want to look.
Then, make sure your habits and choices align with joy and confidence (which does include fitness, obviously!!) instead of punishment and self-criticism.

Check out my post on IG the other day (linked in the photo above) for a list of what I’m calling in feelings wise this summer if you need some non-size related *fitspo*.

THE DIGEST

• “How To Stop Your Fear Of Being Seen From Holding You Back” — Crystal Clear

• “If I Were Your Chinese Medicine Doctor I Would Fix Your Energy Like This” — Dr. Felice Chan’s Substack

• “To Break Is To Arrive” — The Creative Pragmatist

• “Dopamine Rule: Effort-linked Reinforcement Or The Brain Rewires Itself To Always Pursue Immediate Gratification” — Nicole Neuroscience

• “How NASA Astronauts Exercise In Space” — @Astro_Jessica

  

  @rebmaselCarroll, now a bright spot on our Moon, because four people, who traveled farther from Earth than any human has ever been in the 4.5-billion-year history of our planet, loved someone so much, they carried her the whole way there.

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THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: Gibney Dance Company | The Joyce Theatre | April 7th-April 12th

SMELL: New York Botanical Garden The Orchid Show | through April

HEAR: Fort Greene Orchestra’s Bruckner’s 7th Symphony | St. Joseph’s Cathedral | April 16th, 18th, 19th

TOUCH: Bluebella Luxury Satin Cami & Short Pajama Set

TASTE: Pure Encapsulations Creatine Ok, this doesn’t have a taste, but a client shared this study with me about how important creatine is for women for mood, bone health, and lifespan and since I’m training for a half marathon, I’ve been dutifully imbibing every day since. This is an affiliate link for the brand I’m currently using, but any 3rd party tested brand will do!

THIS MONTH ON-DEMAND

HPS Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET. HPS Zooms are completely free and unlimited for HPS on-demand members, and paid Substack subscribers can still join (live only) for free 1x/month. All replays are uploaded to the HPS On-Demand studio library. Non-members and free Substack subscribers can drop-in anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

*If you’re a member/Substack subscriber and can’t find your comp code, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com and I’ll set you up!

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Retreat

  • Pilates, yoga, dance, & breathwork with Lulu Soni in the Catskills 7/23rd-26th, 2026 — we have only 3 King bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention (live course cohort starting in May)

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• The Sardinia retreat 9.25-9.30 (sold out, but email me to get on the waiting list!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

*Affiliate links included in this email

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

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RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

A seasonal drop of a few things things that have made the past few weeks better:

1). Adanola Track Pants

I have worn these at least once a week since they arrived (as evidenced in the video in the on-demand studio)—they are a little long tbh and the XS is super baggy, but I love the baggy look high waisted and wearing them rolled down twice to dance in.

2) Maison Louis Marie Bois de Balincourt candle

Nothing revolutionary here, just did a re-up on my favorite scent.

3) Aritzia Contour Capri

When my client started rolling into our reformer sessions in capris I had a real tower moment. She looks impeccably cool in them, as ever, but I immediately filed this trend away into the “do not participate” category. I have long lived by the self imposed (dancer brain) sanction that cutting my line off at the knee was not a good look for me…but in a bold moment of exposure therapy (and feeling frustrated with my entire activewear wardrobe), impulsively ordered these and I have to say, I love them? And I love how strong my calves look in them? 24 year old me could NEVER.

4) Lesse Every Tone SPF

A very solid SPF! I slacked a bit on my sunscreen use over the winter (your face needs it every day!) and the excellent packaging has been motivating me to use it consistently.

5) Sezane Matheo Trousers

At 5’6” these are crazy long in flats but with a heel they are the perfect moody-pool-y length without tripping over them so I think I’m going to leave them long. Mine are a 2 and they fit high on my waist perfectly which is quite rare for my ferret like torso.

Below the paywall:

• A sculptural blouse

• Sexy silk pajamas that make me feel like Sandra Bullock in The Proposal

• Tinted SPF that makes you glow

• A statement necklace I wear several times a week

• The low back bodysuit I wore in this reel that I got 87,000 dms about

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Something that comes up in conversation with clients constantly, especially when I give them homework between sessions, is how overwhelming it can feel to cram all the wellness things we’re “supposed” to be doing into a realistic schedule.

I am certainly not dry brushing, meditating, strength training, pilates-ing, fascia flossing, foam rolling, gua sha-ing, cooking every meal from scratch, drinking a gallon of water, going to therapy, journaling, deep conditioning my hair, eating 95,000 grams of protein…whatever, you get it, all in the same day. It’s impossible to keep up.

I love wellness, but even as a “wellness professional” I am at my bandwidth level too.

This is honestly one of the reasons why pilates, or that way I do pilates, at least, is so important to me. I know pilates makes me strong, and I know breathwork and slowing down helps me tune into my body, and I know fascial release work helps my body recover faster and function better, and I know intentional body-scanning and reflection heightens my intrinsic motivation and body image satisfaction levels, and I know somatic exercises like shaking and tapping and humming can get “the issues out of the tissues”, as they say.

I have shifted towards blending these practices into one method over the years because I want to (need to) benefit from all of them, but don’t have a million free hours a day to dedicate to self-care. I usually have 30 minutes and I want the most bang for my buck.

This is part of the reason I created The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention. I wanted to create a sampler of ways to integrate somatic work into the workout you’re already doing in a way that doesn’t feel too woo-woo or “out-there”.

The Repertoire isn’t strictly a workout, although there is pilates strength threaded in, but it’s also a creative exploration using your body as an instrument. It’s a way to process and move through both mild stressors and the big, life-changing hurts.

Thinking about the body as an instrument, as if I were a professional musician and the “health” of my instrument is my livelihood (because, cough, cough, it is!) is one of the ways I keep myself out of the diet culture-y, punitive, editing and shrinking mindset.

Movement in it’s various forms is not just about building muscle, though we love, it’s also about transforming how you feel—and that’s really what The Repertoire is all about.

Inside, we’re working on:

1. physical, somatic healing, and fascial release modalities to feel grounder, powerful, and shake shit off

2. journaling and interoception exercises to learn not just how to listen to your body better, but how to trust what you hear, develop your intuition, and build up your sense of agency

3. simple, non-intimidating, gesture based improvisational dance prompts to reclaim your sense of play and creativity and using embodiment as a form of manifestation

I’ve never felt more excited or more sure about putting something out into the world and I hope you’ll join me to build out your Repertoire.

Early enrollment is officially on with code: SOMATICSHEDLIVE20 or SOMATICSHEDLIVE20PAYPLAN for the payment plan option.

PS: I’m offering the next 5 sign-ups a bespoke astrology reading of your Moon and Venus (the parts of your chart that speak to how you love, how you grieve, and how your heart heals) to get you a huge head start towards understanding your body better with !

THE DIGEST

• “You Fuck The Way You Spend Money” — Dark Feminine Codes

• “Romanticizing Your Life Is Pretty. Eroticizing It Changes You.“ — Love Notes By Tugce

• “Femme-Surrealism & The Mystery of Creation” — Jada De Luca

• “Stop consuming, start creating!” — Raindrops On Roses

• “Living In Alignment Is The Most Magnetic Thing You Can Do” — Feeling Good With Emilina

• “The Scream That Doesn’t Heal” — Words From This Body

@yoni_bootcamp#greenscreen out here giving the reminders I need… #decentermen #personalgrowth #addictionrecovery #healingjourney

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TLDR: this NYT vid talks about how the squat and deadlift are the most effective exercises to prevent falls and injuries and if you’re looking to SUFFER through a deadlift series, look no further than this past Friday’s Zoom replay (linked below!)

THE SENSORY EDIT

SEE: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago | The Joyce | March 24- April 6

SMELL: New York Botanical Garden The Orchid Show | through April

HEAR: Fort Greene Orchestra’s Bruckner’s 7th Symphony | St. Joseph’s Cathedral | April 16th, 18th, 19th

TOUCH: Lesse’s EveryTone SPF 30 | ’s flawless glow when she comes to my class was all it took to make me a Lesse devotee

TASTE: The Dirty Gertie pickle brine martini at Gertrude’s in Prospect Heights | I always joke that I like my martinis so filthy that it’s just a cup of olive juice with a splash of Tito’s…and I now amend that statement to include pickle brine

THIS MONTH ON-DEMAND

HPS Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET. HPS Zooms are completely free and unlimited for HPS on-demand members, and paid Substack subscribers can still join (live only) for free 1x/month. All replays are uploaded to the HPS On-Demand studio library. Non-members and free Substack subscribers can drop-in anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

*If you’re a member/Substack subscriber and can’t find your comp code, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com and I’ll set you up!

QUICK LINKS

• Abs, Asana, Affirmations: The Retreat

  • Pilates, yoga, dance, & breathwork with Lulu Soni in the Catskills 7/23rd-26th, 2026 — we have only 3 King bedrooms remaining! You can book ‘em solo for a luxe weekend or grab a bestie/lover to share the room.

• HPS on-demand pilates membership 10-day free trial

• The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention (live course cohort starting in May)

• HPS: The Format IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm

• HPS Friday live noon Zooms (12pm ET, free for HPS members, $25 drop in, paid Substack subscribers get one free Zoom a month, too!)

• The Sardinia retreat 9.25-9.30 (sold out, but email me to get on the waiting list!)

• Virtual and in-person private sessions

xx,

Helen

*Affiliate links included in this email

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your email replies, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

RECENTLY ON WELL HELL

I taught the biggest masterclass I’ve ever lead this past Saturday am—210 of you showed up to The Somatic Shed: A Spring Equinox Movement and Journaling Masterclass. Ngl, I’ve taught even corporate events before, but to have 210 people sign up for ME was a real pinch me moment for me (and I was nervous teaching for the first time in a minute). In addition to the fact that there were so many of you, part of my nerves were related to the fact it also felt a little like a coming-out.

Many of you know me more for strictly fitness content (though I maintain pilates is a holistic healing art first and foremost!) and The Somatic Shed was my way of introducing my new course, which includes pilates for sure, but is more focused on how a movement practice can change you as a person than simply working out.

The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention is a six-week container to metabolize emotion, reclaim your identity, and embody joy again through improvisational movement, somatic ritual, and artistic exploration.

Think of it as: HPS’s cerebral athleticism x modern dance’s rebellious experimentation x The Artist’s Way’s ritualistic self-study with a healthy sprinkling of neuroscience, light witchcraft, and literary analysis.

I feel naked as hell putting it out into the world, but have received download after download this week— angel numbers every hour on the hour! The most heartfelt dms from y’all! Prophetic dreams! The clearest knowing in my stomach I’ve ever felt! — that this is what I’m meant to be doing.

Pilates and dance have been the springboard to get me here and makeup the very basis of it’s core methodology:along with: esoteric anatomy, fascial release, breathwork and pelvic floor/diaphragm co-contraction and integration, channeled writing and guided journaling, poetry divination, ancient mythological analysis, archetype embodiment, digital collage, and gesture based improvisation — no dance experience needed, promise.

The Repertoire is a collection of somatic and creative tools that brought me back to life after experiencing trauma, and continue to serve me whenever life hands out a dose of difficulty.

I can’t wait to share it with you. Early enrollment is open now.

The digest

• “How To Remember What You Read” — Better Brain by Dr. Julie

• “Hungry For It: A Study In Kissing” — Club Reticent

• “Running Gets Smart” — The Sweat Lookbook

• “You Don’t Want Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s Style, You Want Her Taste” — Frugal Chic

  

  @tellthebeees#secretlivesofmormonwiveshulu #hulu #discourse #lovestory #tellthebeees lindy West, Belle Burden, strangers book

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The sensory edit

See

• Moon by Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble | Brooklyn Academy of Music | March 26th—Mar 29th, 2026

• Hubbard Street Dance Chicago | The Joyce | March 24- April 6

• New York Botanical Garden The Orchid Show | through April

Hear

• Aida | The Metropolitan Opera | March 9th-June 12th

Touch

• Sandy Liang Sample Sale | 41 Division St. | BYO bag! | March 26th—March 29th

• New York Botanical Garden The Orchid Show | through April

Smell

• Burn my favorite candle (and perfume) Maison Louis Marie candle in No. 4 Bois de Balincourt

Taste

• Savor some croissants while working remotely at gorgeous new Bed-Stuy shop and café Apartment Ra’el | 1124 Bedford Avenue

The March program

The noon Zoom

ICYMI, HPS Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET and ~45 min. HPS Zooms are completely free and unlimited for HPS On-Demand Members, and paid Substack Subscribers can still join (live only) for free 1x/month and all replays are uploaded to the HPS On-Demand studio library. Non-members and free Substack subscribers can still join class anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

*If you’re a member/Substack subscriber and can’t find your comp code, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com and I’ll set you up!

Come Away With Me

• Catskills Weekend Retreat 7/23rd-26th, 2026

• 3 King bed rooms remaining!

• Sardinia Retreat 9/25th-30th, 2026 — SOLD OUT!

Quick Links

• HPS IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm. Sign up here.

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here.

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership 10-day free trial

• Join The Repertoire: Body-Based Creative Practices To Transmute Heartbreak & Grief Into Reinvention, live course cohort starting in May

• Book a private (virtual or IRL) session.

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your emails, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

Recently on Well Hell

Some Time Sensitive Announcements

• I’m teaching a FREE masterclass this Saturday 10am ET—The Somatic Shed: A Spring Equinox Movement and Journaling Masterclass. It’s a two parter in 75 minutes: in part one, The Format, we’ll move through a 50 minute version of the Helen Phelan Studio signature class, a creative blend of contemporary mat pilates, bodyweight strength training, fascia flossing, functional breath technique, and somatic release…in part two, The Inquiry: I’ll take you through guided journaling prompts inspired by the seasonal symbolism of the spring equinox; shedding the heaviness of winter, creating new space, and preparing for renewal. Class is free.99, my spring equinox gift to you, and replays will be sent out to all sign ups. Sign up here.

• All of the shared twin bed rooms for my pilates, yoga, breathwork, meditation, dance, and somatic release retreat in the Catskills with Lulu Soni this July 23-26th have sold out!!! At the time of publication there are still 3 king bed rooms left, which can be booked as a luxe solo experience or shared with a bestie or lovah. Check out the remaining options here and snag ‘em before they’re gone.

Something I Learned The Hard Way, Unfortch

Some Things I Read/Watched This Week That Made Me Violently Nod My Head Up And Down In Agreement And/Or Intrigue

• “The 5 Scariest Neuroscience Facts About Women’s Health I Wish Everyone Knew” — Mental Currency With Nicole Vignola

• “Surviving The Liminal Space Before Your Dreams Come To Life” — Crystal Clear by Erifili Gounari

• “5 Ways To Reset Your Space & Your Energy Body In Under 5 Minutes” — Intuitive Living with Kate Van Horn

• “The Clever Insight of the SNL ‘MAHAspital’ Sketch” — The Atlantic

• “What Your Cult Protein Bar Says About You” — Selleb Sisters

• “Harry Styles and Haruki Murakami On Running” — Runner’s World

@elenidiluzioLet’s talk about taste. More over on Language of Fashion! ❤️ and a big shoutout to the voices that helped shape my article @Sophie Hood @t + Loui Burke! #taste #personaltaste #substack #fashioncommentary #CapCut

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@pink_prayers_when you radically accept and live in the present moment, the work is the reward itself!!!!! ⛸️🩵✨ love u queen @frigouscigous #alysaliu #mindfulness #olympics #substack #videoessay #meditation #zenbuddhism #philosophy #losangeles #dance #songwriting #creativity #artistsway #radicalacceptance #act #acceptanceandcommitmenttherapy #erptherapy #ocd #anxiety #depression #absurdism #optimism #nihilism #figureskating #emdr #trauma #healing #ifs #internalfamilysystems

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HPS On-Demand March Class Program

Friday Live Noon Zooms

ICYMI, HPS Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET and ~45 min. HPS Zooms are completely free and unlimited for HPS On-Demand Members, and paid Substack Subscribers can still join (live only) for free 1x/month and all replays are uploaded to the HPS On-Demand studio library. Non-members and free Substack subscribers can still join class anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

*If you’re a member/Substack subscriber and can’t find your comp code, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com and I’ll set you up!

Things To Do/See If You’re In New York City This Month And Need To Feel Something Other Than Existential Dread

• Romeo & Juliet Suite | Benjamin Millepied, Sergei Prokofiev, & LA Dance Project | Park Avenue Armory | March 2nd-21st

• “Soft Earth” | Egg Collective, Thank You Have a Good Day, and Fox Fodder Flowers | 151 Hudson St. | Friday, March 20th 5pm

• Likes vs Life | In Session |Third Person Point of View | Berry Dreamin' | Streams | Ailey II, Renée I. McDonald, Rena Butler, My’Kal Stromile, Chalvar Monteiro, | The Joyce Theater | March 17th-22nd

• Moon by Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble | Brooklyn Academy of Music | March 26th—Mar 29th, 2026

Come Away With Me

• Catskills Weekend Retreat 7/23rd-26th, 2026

• 3 King bed rooms remaining!

• Sardinia Retreat 9/25th-30th, 2026 — SOLD OUT!

Quick Links

• HPS IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm. Sign up here.

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here.

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership 10-day free trial

• Book a private (virtual or IRL) session.

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your emails, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

Recently on Well Hell

PSA: Registration for my pilates, yoga, breathwork, meditation, dance, and somatic release retreat in the Catskills with Lulu Soni this July 23-26th opens this week! We have had so much excited interest, which is incredible, but we are anticipating it selling out right away! To guarantee you get first dibs, reply to this email to let me know you want to be on the VIP first notification list, and you’ll have a 24 hour head start to book your spot before we open it up to the public!

May your spring cleaning endeavors feel just like this:

Some Things I Read/Watched This Week That Made Me Violently Nod My Head Up And Down In Agreement And/Or Intrigue

• “In Defense Of Oversharing” — Time Magazine

• “Being Loved by a Man-Hating Feminist is the New Social Currency” —

• “I Wear My Pretty Dresses To Bed” — Mouthful of Marigolds

@justhopinalongThank you @Sav for sharing <3

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@sedodiariesThe Kiss - Gustav Klimt #arthistory #thesedodiaries

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HPS On-Demand March Class Program

Friday Live Noon Zooms

ICYMI, HPS Zoom classes are every Friday at 12pm ET and ~45 min. HPS Zooms are completely free and unlimited for HPS On-Demand Members, and paid Substack Subscribers can still join (live only) for free 1x/month and all replays are uploaded to the HPS On-Demand studio library. Non-members and free subscribers can still join class anytime for $25/class. Sign up for this week’s class here.

*If you’re a member/Substack subscriber and can’t find your comp code, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com and I’ll set you up!

Things To Do/See If You’re In New York City This Month And Need To Feel Something Other Than Existential Dread

• Romeo & Juliet Suite | Benjamin Millepied, Sergei Prokofiev, & LA Dance Project | Park Avenue Armory | March 2nd-21st, 2026

• The Waves | Noé Soulier | The Joyce Theater | March 4th-5th

• La Nuée | Nacera Belaza | New York Live Arts | March 6th-7th

• EXIT ABOVE, after the tempest | Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker | NYU Skirball | March 5th-7th

• Sol Invictus | Compagnie Hervé KOUBI | The Joyce Theater | March 10th-March 15th

• g r oo v e | Soa Ratsifandrihana | New York Live Arts | March 11th-12th

• You’re the one we love \ and when we change the landscape…\ Leïla Ka, Robyn Orlin, Choreographic Ensemble of the Paris National Conservatoire | L’Alliance New York | March 12th-13th

• WE WEAR OUR WHEELS WITH PRIDE AND SLAP YOUR STREET WITH COLOR... WE SAID “BONJOUR” TO SATAN IN 1820 | Robyn Orlin | NYU Skirball | March 13th-14th

• Early Works | Lucinda Childs | The Guggenheim | March 14th-15th

• Likes vs Life | In Session |Third Person Point of View | Berry Dreamin' | Streams | Ailey II, Renée I. McDonald, Rena Butler, My’Kal Stromile, Chalvar Monteiro, | The Joyce Theater | March 17th-22nd

• Moon by Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble | Brooklyn Academy of Music | March 26th—Mar 29th, 2026

Come Away With Me

• Catskills Weekend Retreat 7/23rd-26th, 2026

*sign up page live very soon, if interested, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com to be the first to know before I open sign ups to the public

• Sardinia Retreat 9/25th-30th, 2026 — SOLD OUT!

Quick Links

• HPS IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm. Sign up here.

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here.

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership 10-day free trial

• Book a private (virtual or IRL) session.

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

I love getting your emails, but if you leave your note in the comments instead, it helps more people see Well Hell! Shameless request for you to like, share, and engage with these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

Recently on Well Hell

First, This

Some Things I Read This Week That Made Me Violently Nod My Head Up And Down In Agreement And/Or Intrigue

• “Patterns In Emotionally Intelligent Women Who Are Stuck” —

• “How To Trick Your Brain Into Doing Difficult Things” —

• “The Ugly Side of Success” —

• “Discomfort Is The Price You Pay For A Fulfilling Life” —

HPS On-Demand March Class Program

Things To Do/See If You’re In New York City This Month And Need To Feel Something Other Than Existential Dread

• NY City Center Flamenco Festival | Eva Yerbabuena, Manuel Liñán, El Farru and Juan Tomás de la Molía | New York City Center | February 26th-March 8th

• Romeo & Juliet Suite | Benjamin Millepied, Sergei Prokofiev, & LA Dance Project | Park Avenue Armory | March 2nd-21st, 2026

• The Waves | Noé Soulier | The Joyce Theater | March 4th-5th

• La Nuée | Nacera Belaza | New York Live Arts | March 6th-7th

• EXIT ABOVE, after the tempest | Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker | NYU Skirball | March 5th-7th

• Sol Invictus | Compagnie Hervé KOUBI | The Joyce Theater | March 10th-March 15th

• g r oo v e | Soa Ratsifandrihana | New York Live Arts | March 11th-12th

• You’re the one we love \ and when we change the landscape…\ Leïla Ka, Robyn Orlin, Choreographic Ensemble of the Paris National Conservatoire | L’Alliance New York | March 12th-13th

• WE WEAR OUR WHEELS WITH PRIDE AND SLAP YOUR STREET WITH COLOR... WE SAID “BONJOUR” TO SATAN IN 1820 | Robyn Orlin | NYU Skirball | March 13th-14th

• Early Works | Lucinda Childs | The Guggenheim | March 14th-15th

• Likes vs Life | In Session |Third Person Point of View | Berry Dreamin' | Streams | Ailey II, Renée I. McDonald, Rena Butler, My’Kal Stromile, Chalvar Monteiro, | The Joyce Theater | March 17th-22nd

• Moon by Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble | Brooklyn Academy of Music | March 26th—Mar 29th, 2026

Come Away With Me

• Catskills Weekend Retreat 7/23rd-26th, 2026

*sign up page live very soon, if interested, shoot me an email at hi@helenphelanstudio.com to be the first to know before I open sign ups to the public

• Sardinia Retreat 9/25th-30th, 2026

Quick Links

• HPS IRL at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm. Sign up here.

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here.

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership 10-day free trial

• Book a private (virtual or IRL) session.

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

Shameless request for you to like these posts after you read them— it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

Recently on Well Hell

Objects Of Interest

Where are all the links??

After doing a very intensive apartment purge this weekend in an effort to maximize the final dregs of the year of the snake, I felt kind of disgusted with how much STUFF is in my apartment. I live alone, I shouldn’t feel overwhelmed with clutter. I do seasonal clean-outs and yet, still I have so. much. stuff. I made some great progress, but it motivated me to start the year of the fire horse on a different foot.

In an effort to shift my own shopping habits, I’m going to be de-emphasizing product links in the weekly newsletters. When I have something I’m really excited about, it’ll make it’s way in, and I’ll still be doing periodic round-ups centering a theme when it makes sense…maybe monthly?? We’ll see.

Instead, here are some mantras I love this week:

Media I Consumed This Week That Made Me Violently Nod My Head Up And Down In Agreement And/Or Intrigue

“Why Pilates Keeps Pissing People Off”—The Cut (peep some quotes from yours truly!)

“The Less You Care, The More You Live” — Over My Years On Substack

“Abundance Is A Discipline, Not A Desire” — Things You’ll Learn The Hard Way But Wish You Didn’t On Substack

“Literally Just Do Things” — Crystal Clear On Substack

“Become The Person You Would Like To Be Around“ — Postcards By Hasif on Substack

A poem comparing women to show dogs and toxic beauty standards:

Some rituals of famous creative women:

On the cool girl trope and how it benefits men and harms women:

Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand February Class Program

Virtual Classes & Privates

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here.

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership for less than the cost of one in-studio class a month. Start your free 10-day free trial here. (HPS members and paid Substack subs get Zoom classes free and replays get uploaded to the online stood!)

• Book a private virtual mat or reformer pilates session.

New York City IRL Classes & Privates

• HPS x Studio Bocce Saturday 2/28 11-1pm. Pilates and hormone-balancing mocktails made Biologica, plus a goodie bag filled with nourishing snacks from The Goods Mart and a natural fragrance from Ayond. Sign up here.

• HPS FORMAT (mat pilates) at Good Move every Wednesday 5:30pm. Sign up here.

• Book a private reformer pilates session with me in Brooklyn or in your home (NYC only).

2026 Retreats

• Sardinia, Italy 9/25-9/30 | Pilates, Breathwork, Reiki, and Sound Bath Healing Learn more and book your spot here and use code: HELEN for $250 off :)

xx,

Helen

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

Shameless request for you to like these posts after you read them—it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Curiosity piqued?

Follow me on IG and TikTok—I share tutorials, technique breakdowns, flow inspiration, visual meditations, fitness fashion that hopefully doesn’t suck, astrological moodboards, and life in Brooklyn.

Refer a friend

Give a gift subscription

Recently on Well Hell

Jaded and cynical as I may sometimes get, at the end of the day I’m just a big Cancer sap and I do get into any holiday that celebrates love. Here are a few ways you can treat yourself this year, partnered or not.

Abs, Asana, Affirmations: A Self Love Themed Pilates, Yoga, Meditation, and Breathwork Zoom Master Class with Lulu Soni and Helen Phelan | My best friend and favorite yoga instructor, Lulu Soni, and I are leading our third iteration of AAA, a 90 min master class blending signature HPS athletic mat pilates, Lulu’s functional and spiritual yoga flows, yogic breath work for clearing stagnant energy and unblocking your heart. 90 minutes flies by and you feel hotter, stronger, and sexier at the end. We’re also donating 15% of proceeds to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota so you’re practicing loving kindness/metta meditation for both yourself and your community. Join us Valentine’s Day morning 2/14 at 10am ET. (Yes, the recording will be sent to all registrants!)

Violette_FR Petal Bouche in Amour Fou | While a liquid lip does take a little more skill to apply, the true vampy blue-ish red shade of Amour Fou (at least for my fellow Cool Winter/Olive skinned gals) and the ability to tailor the intensity of the pigment of Petal Bouche cannot be matched. Violette developed this lip based on a rose she saw at Jardin Bagatelle in Paris, which is very sexy in and of itself.

Little Birds by Anais Nin | A collection of feminist erotic short stories for certified yearners by the OG herself .

Fleur du Mal Juliet Lace Demi Bra, Juliet Lace Thong, Juliet Lace Garter Belt, and Guipure Eye Mask

It’s not a Valentine’s Day gift guide (or an HPS roundup, really) without some fancy panties. One redeeming feature of marriage pre-prefrontal cortex development was the many glamorous lessons I learned from my French ex-MIL. One of which being that even le pire jour is less horrible if you have a red lip and pretty underwear on underneath it all.

Alexis Smart Flower Remedies | WholeHearted and In Love | Taking flower remedies is basically kitchen magic. Taking either of these love centric remedies and setting the intention for how you’ll move through the world and your relationships throughout your day each morning is a romantic ritual to have with yourself.

Fleur du Mal Leather Handcuffs | While we’re splurging on lingerie…

Fox Fodder Flowers What We’re Loving 4 Week Subscription | Buy yourself the flowers…every single week. Fox Fodder Flowers is my fav NYC florist right now, but if you’re out of the city I’m pretty positive you can inquire about getting a “set it and forget it” floral delivery subscription to make sure you’re treating yourself even on a regular old Tuesday.

Le Wand Arch | What is Valentine’s Day if not an opportunity to get a prettier version of something you already use?

Wanderlust Couple’s Intimacy Deck by | HPS member and professional sexologist created this beautiful card deck with prompts to deepen intimacy with your partner. While intended for partner use, you could use the cards as journal prompts to get to know yourself and your own sensuality better too.

High Light Rituals The Seeker Pendant | Founder, designer, and shamanic reiki healer Donnie Soddu infuses each of her jewelry pieces with a spelled intention. The Seeker sterling silver and baguette diamond mini egg pendant is meant to celebrate free spirits who are unafraid to take the road less traveled. ICYMI, I interviewed Donnie a few months back and detailed our energy session and the customized spelled jewelry she created for me in my Wellness Little Black Book.

Honorable mention:

HPS On-Demand Membership | Obviously, I have to promote HPS here too—pilates is great for your posture and confidence, strengthening orgasms, and overall just making you feel energized and happier. I’d be fully lying if I didn’t admit I truly believe my on-demand mat classes are the best of the best. Just being honest!

Heels Classes | Dancing in general will make you feel more embodied, confident, and sensual, but a slutty heels class will make you feel like you could lift a car over your head then throw it at your ex and then he would thank you for it. My favorite Heels teachers in New York right now are Tomoko Ishikawa and Courtney Sauls. Both offer Advanced Beginner classes in NYC and are fun and light hearted even when you feel like a baby deer stumbling around in your shoes. If you want to get proper “heels dance” pro shoes, Burjus are highly recommended in the biz, though they are not my personal favorites. Honestly, though, a ton of the girls in class (including myself) wear this $30 pair from DSW. You’re gonna roll around on the ground and scuff ‘em up anyway. Pro-tip: if you’re nervous about slipping out of shoes without ankle straps, wear a stirrup tight over the pump so you feel strapped in.

Sardinia Pilates, Breathwork, Reiki, and Sound Healing Retreat | And if you REALLY want to treat yourself, join me in Sardinia this September 25th-30th for a week of slow, sensual reconnection with nature. Daily plates to strengthen your body, breathwork to reconnect to your intuition, reiki to clear your energy, and sound bath healing to ground and reset your nervous system with plenty of free time to recharge and explore the gorgeous Sardinian landscape. Use code: HELEN for $250 off :)

Virtual Classes & Privates

• Friday Live Noon Zooms (12pm EST): Sign up here. (NO ZOOM 2/6)

• Join the Helen Phelan Studio On-Demand Pilates Membership with a 10-day free trial (HPS members and paid Substack subs get Zoom classes free and replays get uploaded to the online stood!)

• Book a private virtual mat or reformer pilates session.

New York City IRL Classes & Privates

• HPS FORMAT at Good Move in Williamsburg every Wednesday 12pm. Sign up here.

• Book a private reformer pilates session with me in Brooklyn or in your home (NYC only).

2026 Retreats

• Pilates, Breathwork, Reiki, and Sound Healing Retreat in September 25th-September 30th in Sardinia, Italy. Book your spot here.

If you’re new to my Substack, hi!

My whole schtick is that intuitive movement is a springboard for creativity, a necessity for mental health, and the most effective way I know to practice embodiment and mindfulness. The Well Hell Substack is a place for me to word vomit all my thoughts on well-being, body image, psychology, creativity, diet culture, and movement as medicine based on my 12 years of experiencing teaching boutique fitness in NYC. I rant about things I hate about the wellness industry, share products I’m loving, articles/books that made me think, and anything else I just want to wax poetically into the void about.

Shameless request for you to like these posts after you read them— it’s free, takes zero seconds, and helps the publication get way better reach! Save it, send to a friend, restack it. You get it. LOVE YOU.

Curiosity piqued?

Follow me on IG and TikTok—I share tutorials, technique breakdowns, flow inspiration, visual meditations, fitness fashion that hopefully doesn’t suck, astrological moodboards, and life in Brooklyn.

Recently on Well Hell