Why everyone should do Pilates
I believe Pilates should have a place in virtually everyone’s fitness schedule. It has a reputation as being a bit girly or for the elderly as its ‘nice and steady’ but trust me, Pilates, when done properly, can be as gruelling as the hardest gym routine – if that’s what you’re after – It’s just in a different way and as I often say when I teach, “It’s your workout, so you work as hard or as gently as you want” It can be adapted to nearly everyone’s requirements. So let’s look at a few of the main benefits Pilates can offer.
Fitness is made up of several different components and one of them is flexibility but this is often missed out. This leads to injury down the line for many sports persons or regular fitness enthusiasts, very typically the ones who snubbed Pilates as boring and slow – I was one of them! You may be a person who sits at a desk or has a job involving a lot of driving and a good stretch out is exactly what is needed to counter the position you hold your body in for hours on end.
You could be one of those many long suffering folk with a ‘bad back’ – you need to strengthen your core, asap! This goes for post natal mums, anyone injured in an RTA or if you have a bad posture. Strengthening the deep internal core muscles is imperative for absolutely everyone, especially when you think of it as protecting your spinal column!
Then there’s that modern day epidemic called stress. The beautiful oxymoron Pilates can produce when you focus is relaxation and stress relief while you work hard physically. So if it’s an hour of peace from a busy household, stressful job or you just need some quality ‘me’ time, or any of the above issues apply, be you man or woman, young or old – Pilates really does work!
This Article has been published in the October edition of Life Magazine – http://www.lifemagazines.co.uk