Regular Pilates practice has huge benefits for our health, mind and body including:
- Improved flexibility
- Increased muscle strength and tone, particularly of your abdominal muscles, lower back, hips and buttocks (the ‘core muscles’ of your body)
- Improved muscular control and stabilisation of your spine and limbs
- Better posture, co-ordination and balance
- A safe way to rehabilitate or prevent of musculoskeletal injuries
- Increased lung capacity and circulation through deep breathing
- Better concentration
- Greater body awareness
- A way to relieve stress and promote relaxation both physically and mentally
Pre-pandemic, most people would traditionally attend Pilates classes face-to-face whereas, now many people have discovered the benefits of attending on-line pilates classes from the comfort of their own home.
Investing time and effort into building your health and fitness continues to be absolutely vital. With new hybrid ways of working from home, practicing Pilates online means that you have immediate and convinient access to quality teaching.
What advantages are there of practicing pilates at home?
There are lots of reasons why practicing Pilates online might suit you more than a face-to-face class.
Life can sometimes be busy and hectic, so exercising at home will save you the time of travelling to and from a class. You can practice pilates whenever you like, no matter the time of day (or night), so you’re not tied down to the specific time the class you like is running. Essentially, practicing at home is far more convenient and when something is more convenient, the more likely we are to make it a habit!
Availability in online class is also never an issue … you can learn with the instructor you like the most without having to put a reminder in your diary to book into the class before it gets too full. It’s often less expensive then face-to-face classes and you’ll also save on travel costs too.
Some people just prefer to exercise in the privacy of their own home, without any feelings of self consciousness about the way they look when practicing. You might like the idea of being able to try out a new exercise without worrying about making mistakes at first in front of others and being able to go at your own pace, without any no pressure to keep up with others around you or to push yourself beyond what is comfortable.
Many people enjoy working without any distraction concentration or focus and being in control, able to pause and rewind the class to try an exercise again, have a break or take a drink. With an online class, there’s no rush and you won’t have to miss out on anything. You can do part of the class and then stop and return to it at a later time. The power is totally in your hands and if you want to relax on your mat at the end of the class, that’s totally up to you.
How do I get started?
The first step is to find a place in your home where you can exercise comfortably. You will need enough space to place an exercise mat (or towel) and to be able to move your arms and legs freely. You do not need much equipment to get started. A mat and a small head cushion (or you can use a folded up towel) will be everything you need. As you progress through your pilates journey you might want to invest in a few inexpensive pieces of small equipment like resistance bands, light weights or a soft ball to increase the difficulty of the exercises but you don’t need any of this to start with.
Here at Pilatesfit our Online pilates classes are all run by physiotherapists. We demonstrate and talk you through the key safety features of each exercise carefully to reduce any risk of injury and ensure you are confident in the movements you are undertaking.
We run a variety of classes from beginners to intermediate, older adults, pregnancy and postnatal, so everyone can find a class suitable for their needs and we offer a free 7-day trial without any commitment.
If you have any questions please contact us on 01223 914140 or e-mail us on enquiries@vineryroadstudios.co.uk.
Hope to see you online soon,
The Pilatesfit Team!