Why do Pilates at all?

Pilates is more than a fitness or exercise class. Pilates is a great way to add to your existing exercise regime, start exercising or getting back into exercising after a long hiatus. The basic principles of Pilates apply to all movements of everyday life: control, breath, flowing movement, precision, centering, stability, range of motion and opposition. For people who are already active working more on these principles will only help improve performance.

Pilates offers a lot of variety with exercises on the mat using just your body weight and gravity and using various pieces of equipment offering resistance. There are many “toys” or “props” to add variety and challenge to exercises. i.e. foam roller, stability ball, toning balls, flex bands, fitness circle and more. Pilates is low impact and will help strengthen muscles around joints, help improve stability of joints, in particular the shoulder girdle and pelvic girdle, help with posture, improve “core” strength and more.

In many cases the benefits are so subtle that it takes being away from Pilates to realize the benefits. There are benefits that are not as obvious. The increased energy achieved from Pilates can help motivate better habits in other areas, such as eating, exercise, sleep, leading to an increase in overall health and wellness. For some there is weight loss, steady and gradual but easy to maintain as the habit of going to Pilates classes is now part of their lifestyle. For others there is increased tone which results in clothes fitting better and overall increased confidence and desire to continue with Pilates. Another common benefit of regular Pilates classes is increased consciousness of how one carries themselves throughout the day.

The benefits of Pilates are as individual as the bodies that benefit.