I discovered pilates the summer after I graduated from high school. I had learned to lift weights my senior year, and we were guided into the sort of lifting I have no desire to do anymore, like maxing out on squats. Thanks to that and stuff like it, I was an 18-year-old with back pain.
I think it was Gwyneth Paltrow’s raving about pilates that got me interested and led me to careful self-study on those summer mornings at my parents’ home.
(Side note: I really don’t recommend teaching yourself to do pilates. There is so much a teacher can help you with, and it’s nice to have them there to make sure you’re actually doing what you think you’re doing. However, I didn’t really know that then, nor did I know where I could find a pilates teacher within 100 miles, and so it goes.)
Three months later, I realized my back didn’t hurt anymore.
And my abs were killer.
So pilates is good stuff and I highly recommend it. I also appreciate how what I’ve learned through my pilates journey carries over into the rest of my life.
Deep and Continuous Breathing
Between pilates and yoga, I’ve come to understand the power of good breathing. Yes, there’s such a thing, and you’re probably not doing it.
Body Control
Even as a high school athlete (including high jumping and gymnastics), I never had near the body control that I had after those first three months of pilates and beyond.
Body Awareness
Simply knowing where I am in space and what my body is doing has improved every aspect of my fitness life, especially now that I find myself in a rumba class where the instructor’s hips do things I didn’t know mine were capable of…but they are.
Connection
Pilates focuses on the connection between your mind and body, and, much like in yoga, the breath helps make that connection. I don’t do anything strenuous nowadays, from lifting a couch to going on a run, without thinking about how my breath plays into the work and how I can use that breath to move my body.
Have you ever done pilates? How has it changed you?