Benefits of Pilates

People come to Pilates for various reasons - they want to get fitter, improve their posture, gain a flatter stomach and have looser, more flxexible joints. They may be recommended to do Pilates as their doctor, physiotherapist or medical practitioner has told them that if they do Pilates exercises it will help them control their back pain, help them recover quicker from a hip replacement operation or recover from any injury.

Pilates can be practised by anyone of any age. My youngest client is 14 years old and I teach women and men who are young at heart but benefit from free bus passes.

Lifting weights at the gym will shorten and tighten muscles. For example, if you do biceps curls, within weeks you will noticed that your biceps take on definition and if you take it to the extreme you will look like Popeye in the cartoons. Pilates is different. The exercises you do lengthen and strengthen the muscles whilst ensuring the body is correctly aligned so that the muscles work to their full range of movement. Once a muscle is elongated the mobility of the joints increases and any stress on the joint is reduced.

At my studio, I teach clients on an individual basis so the exercises will be devised to meet you own particular needs. So if you have sciatica, a sprained ankle, shoulder inpingement or tight shoulder muscles from sitting at your computer for too long, Pilates can relieve you of the pain. If you are pregnant or have just had a baby then Pilates can be practised providing you have done some Pilates before you got pregnant and are over 13 weeks of pregnancy. Once you have had the baby, it is not recommended to do Pilates until you have had your 6 week checkup.

Please contact Deborah if you have any queries or concerns about whether Pilates is right for you before you embark on a great journey!