Pilates

Pilates has been a buzz word for a few years now and so ‘core’ , ‘power house’, ‘energy centre…. I teach it everyday and still find people wanting to attend classes but not sure exactly what they entail and who would benefit from them.

Pilates has a set system of exercises that can be performed with or without apparatus, each exercise has a purpose or a focus.  Unlike conditioning classes, the repetitions are very low in these classes.As with Yoga the benefits include amongst others, improved strength, flexibility, posture, mental awareness and body control. 

These classes are primarily geared towards increasing core strength and balancing muscles very much like the exercises a physiotherapist would prescribe to clients with imbalances.  Our classes also target the weaker muscles and aim to extend the stronger and more overused muscle groups.

There is a confusion as to what exactly the core is.  The core consists of the deepest muscles that exist closest to the spine.  These include the Transverse Abdominals which runs like corset around the spine and what helps us attain the flat tummy we all after. If we were to peel away the layers of muscles starting at the innermost, next to our skeleton, it would be those on our sides and in the lower back.  We are therefore strengthening all the way around and not just underneath the Abdominals.

For this reason, Pilates is recommended for everyone from the elderly, teenagers to the competitive athlete.With a strong core, we are preventing injuries, protecting our spine, wasting less energy by recruiting the correct muscles for each movement and preventing the back pain that more than 70% of our society suffers from.

I am often asked if Pilates will help a person lose weight and what I will say is that I often have models attending these classes as it prevents bulking of muscles and promotes lengthening with strengthening which gives people the slim and tall look.

A suggested two sessions a week will make a remarkable difference to a person’s quality of life.