5 Reasons You’ll Love Pilates

Not sure if you’ll love Pilates? It wasn’t a love at first sight thing for me, either. It had to grow on me! I enjoyed attending my Pilates classes because it was a break from all the teaching I did. I was also at a place in my life where I realized that my lack of stretching and mobility work was catching up to me. In the beginning, I just wanted to move, and Pilates helped me do that. 

There were definitely moves I loved more than others at first. I liked the hard ones, like teaser, that challenged me but that I could still do. The ones I really didn’t like were swimming, backstroke, and stomach massage. They were hard and felt very uncomfortable to me. At the time, I didn’t have the mobility, strength, or body awareness to do them well. I wanted to feel my muscles “turn on” and work hard, and these exercises didn’t check those boxes right initially. Now that I understand the movements and can execute them… I still don’t like them! It’s not uncommon that the exercises you hate are the ones your body needs the most. As much as I’m tempted to skip them even now, I make myself do them, and they are much less awkward and uncomfortable these days. 

It was as I began to find the connections within my body, and saw improvements in my mobility and flexibility that I fell in love with Pilates. As an instructor, I also loved how it can be modified for almost any body out there. I have clients who have done Pilates on and off for over twenty years around the world. Though they’ve taken breaks for one reason or another, they always come back and tell me how much they’ve missed it. 

Why You’ll Love Pilates

There is something for everyone in Pilates, and the following are five frequent exclamations of appreciation that I hear from my clients: 

1. “OMG that is such a good stretch.” I know that when I first teach someone the mermaid on the chair, footwork on the reformer, or push through on the tower that someone will comment on how good it feels. There are others, but these get the most “Oooh that feels great!” comments. 
2. “That is way harder than I expected.” I’m not the only one who likes a good challenge. Almost anything on the chair gets this comment, as do pull straps and T on the reformer. This also happens when we slightly adjust your posture or how you initiate a movement. It presents a challenge that people want to achieve. 
3. “I love that I have to really concentrate.” When starting out, particularly on the apparatus, clients will often notice that it’s difficult to control the springs, to move smoothly, or keep the springs quiet. It takes concentration on how you move and breathe, and soon you’ll be seeking out better control. (Pilates was originally called Contrology, after all!). Again, it’s a search for improvement that people enjoy. 
4. “It keeps getting harder.” It’s easy to assume that as you get to know the Pilates choreography and exercises it will get easier. In some ways it does, but in others, it keeps getting harder. (I love this!) A big reason it keeps getting harder is that you become increasingly more aware of how your entire body is moving and working together. In the beginning, there’s a lot to think about. You may be so focussed on how to breathe, you forget about your legs. Or you pay attention to curling your spine, but maybe not finding length through it. Slowly, the bits and pieces come together. It also depends on how your body is feeling from one day to the next. Some days you feel tight, while others you might have less energy. It all plays into how hard or easy you find the movements. 
5. “I feel so much better when I ______.” I ran into a client yesterday who took three years off from Pilates. She is an avid golfer and told me how much better her golf game is since she resumed her Pilates practice. Specifically, her rotation has greatly improved. Another client told me that she can do more housework (poor thing). Seriously, though, it’s made her life better. Another client shared how she’s been using what she learned in Pilates to help with rehab from knee replacement surgery. This is her second knee surgery, and she said her recovery has been so different (in a good way) this time around because she’s more aware of how she holds herself and moves. 

There’s a lot to understand with Pilates, but you’ll get there over time. It’s my job as an instructor to meet you where you are now and help you progress over time. I hope you’ll love Pilates as much as I do. While you may not turn into a Pilates nerd like me, I’ll be happy if you see an improvement in your strength, mobility, flexibility, and mind-body awareness.