Pilates offers an opportunity to improve strength, flexibility and balance. Students find themselves becoming longer and leaner and so much more. Pilates has invisible, intangible benefits . . . lessons for life that go way beyond the mat.

You’ve seen the infomercials for the Pilates equipment promising 30 days to a better body. Of course, the chick demonstrating that intimidating apparatus is already a swimsuit model. What do you do? Flip the channel and figure Pilates is only for the young and the very fit? Think again.

It’s that time of year when holiday activities, social commitments and family gatherings make it difficult to keep a sane and manageable schedule. It’s so easy to scrap the hour of Pilates for a luncheon gift exchange or shopping spree. Wait a minute! Where do you get some very real and lasting benefits? Practicing Pilates. Those benefits extend far beyond the hour spent on the apparatus or the mat.

For many of us, sitting in front of a computer is a necessary evil.

Not only is that scenario hard on the eyes, it is taxing on the body and the mind as well. So what’s a girl to do? Nearly everyone knows that exercising is necessary for a healthy body and mind, and even more so when the typical workplace involves a computer and desk, as opposed to physical activity. Sitting for hours on end, day after day, weakens core strength and is usually mentally stressful. Core strength is a buzz phrase in the fitness community, but do most people know what that means? Think about a big tree. Its trunk is its core, just as your torso or trunk is your core.

Did your mother ever tell you to stand up straight
when you were a teenager? And did you? So what has happened since you don’t have anyone to remind you? Life happens, and you’ve been spending your day driving to work to sit in front of a computer before you drive home to sit in front of the television or the computer. Sitting takes its toll on your posture, and not in a good way. Rounded shoulders develop over time. Slumped shoulders create with a curved spine which not only eventually impacts your internal organs but even your hips and knees, all the way down to the feet.

As women age, many learn there’s no better way to use it and improve it than resistance training. Pilates is a safe exercise that can help combat many of the negative effects of aging. Resistance training includes activities that use weights, machines, resistance bands or even body weight to work your muscles properly.

Balance. . . a state of equilibrium, serenity and calm. Balance is also associated with the ability to manage your life, to keep things in perspective, to handle adversity with a positive response.
Practicing Pilates offers an opportunity to develop both physical and mental balance.

It’s that time of year when holiday activities, social commitments and family gatherings make it difficult to keep a sane and manageable schedule. It’s so easy to scrap the hour of Pilates for a luncheon gift exchange or shopping spree.

Use it or lose it! As women age, many learn there’s no better way to use it and improve it than resistance training. Pilates is a safe exercise that can help combat many of the negative effects of aging.

“I want to lose weight”
This might be the top reason women say they want to start an exercise program or change their workout program. Forget about the scale, at least for awhile. Fixating on those digits can lead to frustration and may even have some people ditch their fitness goals in despair.