Meet our NEW Clinical Pilates Instructors!
Spring has finally arrived – after the recent Saharan dust storm turned the sky yellow and gave us all a taste of the beach, to clean off the car, windows, patio…etc! We hope that you’re able to enjoy some sunshine over the weekend, in the garden, by the river or in the parks.
Sadly, it’s almost time to say goodbye to Mia, but we’d like to introduce our two new Clinical Pilates Instructors who’ll be joining us in April. Although Gemma has been away from her teaching role at the studio, both her and Isla (!) have been working behind the scenes to find the best people to carry on Mia’s work. We’re all really excited by who will be joining our team. read on for more details.
It’s Mothers’ Day next week. If you’re looking for idea, why not consider one of our Gift Certificates? Read on for more details.
We have now opened the calendar for bookings in April – all of the classes will remain at the regular times (except for the Easter bank holiday) – check out the timetable and reserve your place below.
Before the clocks go forward next weekend, why not take advantage of the early morning daylight to join one of our online Mat classes. They’re at 7am on Mondays and Fridays and for those needing slightly longer in bed, on Wednesday, the class is at 7.30am.
It’s great to see everyone enjoying our latest Find Your Flow® themes in our online classes – as a reminder, we’re focused on:
Twist on Mondays
Side-Lift on Wednesdays and
Bridging on Fridays.
Read more about each movement by following the links.
If you’d prefer to do your Mat class in person, don’t forget that we have a Mat Class in the Studio on Wednesdays at 6pm – reserve your place below.
Over on Instagram this week, we’re looking at the Squat. It’s great for strengthening the leg muscles that support your knees and ankles and is a great stability exercise – read more below.
Whatever the coming week holds for you, we hope you enjoy it!
Meet Lucy!
Lucy trained at the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance and spent 6 years performing as a freelance artist alongside teaching ballet, contemporary and GCSE dance.
Lucy gained her Masters from the British School of Osteopathy with Distinction in 2016 and has worked in several practices throughout London and at a GP practice in Guildford.
Keen to pursue a lifelong interest in injury prevention and rehabilitation, she trained as a Pilates Instructor with Body Control Pilates (BCP) and has been teaching for over 10 years. Her diverse experience includes private, group, clinical rehabilitation and corporate environments, working with people from a wide variety of backgrounds. For 2 years she taught classes at BCP and was a supervising teacher there, preparing trainee instructors for their exams.
Through this background, Lucy has developed a keen eye for movement and alignment and integrates her skills as a dancer and teacher into her clinical practice.
Lucy will be teaching on Tuesdays from April and we couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome her to the team. We are looking forward to working with her and learning from her.
(One of the essential skills needed to join the team is an ability to hold a baby – happily, as a mother of two, Lucy passed that test with flying colours! Here’s a picture of Isla welcoming Lucy to the team. It also offers a little update on Isla, who is growing bigger and stronger and, we think, is now starting to resemble her Mum!)
Meet Jacqueline!
Some of you may remember that Jacqueline taught at the studio some years ago and we are thrilled to welcome her back to All Things Pilates!
Jacqueline has over 14 years’ experience of educating people on movement and whole body health through Pilates, The Franklin Method and Indian Head Massage.
Having started practising Pilates initially to rehabilitate from a minor back injury, Jacqueline has long been an advocate of holistic health and exercise. She trained with two of the UK’s leading schools of Pilates (Body Control Pilates and Polestar Pilates) and mentored students training to teach on the Polestar Comprehensive (all equipment) Teacher Training Course. Jacqueline is also a Franklin Method (Pilates) Educator and Pelvic Floor Fascia Trainer given her an in depth knowledge of human anatomy and the natural movement rhythms in the body.
When not teaching clients to move well, Jacqueline loves to hike, cycle and kayak.
Jacqueline will be teaching on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from April and we are delighted to welcome her to the team. We are looking forward to working with her and learning from her.
Mothers’ Day!
With Mothers’ Day just around the corner, some of you may be looking for a novel gift for your Mum.
Consider the gift of health, well-being and time for self-care with an All Things Pilates Gift Certificate.
You can buy gifts of any value below and let your Mum decide whether to enjoy a 1:1 session, mat classes online or in the studio, or Reformer Plus classes.
All Things Pilates Community Corner!
This week on Instagram we’re show-casing the Squat.
This is a great movement to improve your knee and ankle stability and strengthen muscles supporting those joints (calf, quads, hamstrings, glutes and lower back), as well as promoting alignment of hips, knees and ankles.
This is important for every day activities such as walking and climbing stairs and it’s a great exercise for runners and hill-walkers.
It can be challenging if you have tightness in your lower back, leg muscles or a lack of stability in your knees or ankles, so initially you may not be able to squat as deeply as Andreas is demonstrating here. But don’t despair – things will improve with practice!
If you experience any pain in your knees or ankles when you’re practising the squat, have a word with your teacher who’ll be happy to discuss other movements that will help you find the freedom in your body to return to the squat with greater ease over time. Make that your goal and try again in a couple of months!
Take a look here – and if you like, send us a video or photo of your Squat – we’d love to see how you’re getting on with it!
Stay safe, stay well and enjoy your time at All Things Pilates!
Gemma and the All Things Pilates team
