My new addiction (Pilates)

Member Name: jennikitten

Product:	Pilates
Date:	04/02/09 (137 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Firms, tones, stretches and strengthens all your body

Disadvantages: Cost of classes/DVDs/books

If you've read my Kundalini yoga review, you'll know I'm on a mission to find an easy and cheap way to exercise of a cold winter evening.

After yoga I decided to try Pilates, despite my high school's best attempts to put me off several years ago!

Don't get me wrong, I love yoga as a form of exercise, but I was looking for something a bit more strenuous and upbeat to go alongside it.

After doing a short 40 minute Pilates workout several days over the past few weeks, it's surprising how much muscle I've built up in my arms and legs. Last year when I saw a nutritionist she said it can take years to put a decent amount of muscle mass on, so perhaps my arms are becoming a bit stronger but more toned. This is a well established effect of pilates, and my arms and legs do feel stronger - however I didn't expect to see results so quickly!

I have been advised that Pilates is all about strengthening and stretching, which is good because it's the part of exercise I tend to skip the most (bad I know). Incorporating a little yoga into pilates movement makes it even more enjoyable and less like a workout.

One of the biggest advantages of Pilates for me is the little amount of equipment required. I don't have the space, the money or the effort required for complicated workouts. Standing Pilates requires nothing whatsoever except a floor, which is great. You may also want to invest in a mat for floorwork if you aren't comfortable on your floor for whatever reason. You can also buy Pilates bands which stretch in various ways (as shown in the picture above). I haven't got around to using these yet. I'm a beginner, so I'm starting off with easy moves, but I may well progress onto more difficult things over time.

As with most other forms of workout, your local gym or leisure centre should do Pilates classes; if not, there are plenty of books and DVDs on the market. Many of these can be used together, it all depends on what you prefer. I personally like a good visual and verbal guidance of what I should be doing. As a beginner, it's also useful to be able to see what's going on without having to stop and pick up a book or keep the right page turned down, but each to their own.

Overall, I'm glad I got back into Pialtes as it is much more fun than I remembered and I'm seeing results quickly.

Summary: Perfect winter exercise