What is Pilates?

Is Pilates the same as Yoga? This is the number one question I get asked when I tell people that I am a Pilates teacher! Whilst there is cross over between the two movement methods they are very different, yoga originates from India where as Pilates origins are a little more recent.

If you have you’ll have seen the various pieces of equipment with bars, springs, pulleys and leather covered beds and will be forgiven if you felt you’d entered some kind of torture chamber, many of my clients raise an eyebrow when they first the equipment! Whilst the Pilates equipment can look intimidating we will explain why using the Pilates equipment can do amazing things for your body.

In Joseph Pilates famous quote he says “if your spine is inflexibly stiff at 30, then you’re old; if it is completely flexible at 70 then you are young”. This was back when we were far less sedentary as human-beings so it is even more applicable today when the majority of us may spend most our day sat down. If your back feels stiff or sore are you going to be able to enjoy your daily life?

In this blog we’ll talk about the amazing design of your back and how it is meant to function and we’ll share with you out TOP 5 Pilates exercises which will help you to maintain a flexible and healthy spine.

If you’ve recently had a baby and want to get back into exercise it can be difficult to know where to begin, especially when you factor in exhaustion and lack of time. In this blog we’ll guide you through the main considerations before resuming exercise, introduce you to a specific post-natal programme which will help support your recovery from pregnancy and birth.

Hearing the cues ‘engage your core’, ‘brace your core’ or pull your belly button to your spine can not only be confusing but can actually be detrimental to correct muscle firing patterns. Keep reading to find out why!