We have been having lots of fun with our new Find Your Flow® themes in our mat 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.

It’s also inspiring to see how everyone is progressing in their Twist themed program in Reformer Plus classes.

You’ve also been asking some questions about the muscle groups that you feel working during these sessions – read on for more about the core muscles.

Are you feeling any benefits in your day-to-day activities?  We’d love to hear how your weekly Pilates session is helping you towards your fitness goals.

Over on Instagram this week, we’re looking at the Roll Over – it can be a tough movement for some, but we have some tips to help you – it’s also great fun and reminds us of the freedom we enjoyed in our bodies as children!  Read on for more.

We are still on countdown to Mia leaving us and are making good progress in recruiting someone to fill her shoes.  We really appreciate your views and ‘likes’ on our Instagram recruitment video – it helps to bring the search to a wider audience.  If you have a moment, perhaps you’d like to ‘like’ or even add your comment to help our search.

The diary is filling up with bookings in March – thank you.  Don’t forget, we have a new Reformer Plus Class on Saturdays at 10am.

Reserve your place below!

Whatever the coming week holds for you, we hope you enjoy it!

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Let’s talk about the Core!

Someone mentioned recently that they’re not really sure what we mean when we say that a particular movement is working your core muscles.  It’s great for us to have that feedback as it challenges us, when planning programs, to think about the particular muscle groups we’ll be using and to offer verbal (and sometimes, tactile) cues that help each client get the best from their bodies in that session.  So we’ve been thinking about what we mean when we talk about ‘the core’.

Sometimes, when trainers refer to ‘the core’ they’re talking about the abdominal muscles (the six-pack!).  For others, ‘the core’ means all of the muscles supporting your trunk, (including your spine, organs and your pelvic floor).  Neither of these is wrong, so if you’re not sure, ask your teacher which group of muscles you might expect to feel working.

Many Pilates movements will focus on isolating muscles (particularly under-used smaller muscles) supporting your trunk to strengthen them and help them share the load.  These muscle groups are crucially important as they help us to stabilise our joints and for balance.  Our core muscles can be weakened by injury or underuse.    This can lead to poor posture, back pain, neck pain and sometimes headaches.

For large parts of every class, even when you’re focusing predominantly on movements to strengthen legs or arms, you will be using at least some of the muscles in your core, whether to stabilise the spine or joints, for balance, or even to breathe!

If you have any questions about the muscle groups you’re using, or cues you may not fully understand, please ask your teacher.  You’re probably not alone, so it will help us all improve our understanding!

To find out more, book a place in one of our classes below

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All Things Pilates Community Corner!

This week on Instagram we’re show-casing the Roll Over.  For some of us, it’s a really fun movement, taking us right back to childhood when we enjoyed much more freedom in our bodies.  For others, it’s a real challenge, particularly if we experience tightness in our lower back and/or if we don’t have strong abdominal muscles.  Fortunately, Andreas is demonstrating variations of the movement and shows us how to get there  by involving your arms, using props – if you don’t have weights, try using chair legs?

If Roll Over is beyond your reach right now, ask your teacher what movements you might focus on to free up your spine and strengthen abdominal muscles to help you get there – then make it your goal and try again in a couple of months!

It’s a full body movement – in the Roll Over position you may feel a great stretch in your hamstrings, while returning your feet back to the floor will require abdominal strength.  And don’t forget to breathe!

Take a look here  – and if you like, send us a video or photo of your Roll Over!

If you have a moment, please take a look at our short recruitment video – help us in our search by adding a ‘like’ or comment about your experience in the studio!

Stay safe, stay well and enjoy your time at All Things Pilates!

Gemma and the All Things Pilates team