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Is Pilates Really for Beginners?

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Another question we are often asked at Pilates Physique is whether you have to be a dancer or a serious athlete to do Pilates. The answer is absolutely not! Pilates is a great way to build strength in your core muscles for better posture, balance and flexibility, no matter how fit or flexible you are. Pilates can be adapted to provide a gentle strength training and stability program or a challenging workout for seasoned athletes. At Pilates Physique we have created Pilates classes that cover different types of Pilates exercises and Pilates equipment and cater for all levels of experience and fitness. Let us introduce you to a few of our Pilates classes: Pilates Reformer Class: The Pilates Reformer provides finely tuned exercise resistance that allows you to work very precisely to develop good alignment, core strength and flexibility. It helps to tone your arms, legs, glutes and stomach. We offer 3 levels of Reformer Classes at Pilate Physique so you c...
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Pilates Is an Excellent Way to Perfect Your Posture

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When most people think of good posture they may remember their elders telling them as a child to “stand up straight, head up and shoulders back” as if you were a solider standing to attention. This may get you to stand up straight but it doesn’t necessarily mean you have good posture. In fact most people find it quite uncomfortable to stand up straight with their shoulders back. This is because of the different types of postures seen in today’s society. Every posture I come across is different, mainly due to muscle imbalances created through injuries, medical conditions, daily habits and most of all work offices. Many people spend countless hours hunched over computers, steering wheels and now phones, it is no wonder why their posture is out of alignment. But how is it possible to achieve good posture? Through body awareness. I find that if I get a client to become more body aware of their alignment, they will become more conscious of correcting it.  Pilates is an exc...
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Power Plate – What It’s All About

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From Madonna to Martha Stewart (yes she really does have one) celebrities swear by their Power Plate machines. Add to that devotees like Claudia Schiffer, Elle Macpherson and Kylie Minogue and we have something to talk about! Power-Plate is a machine that gives the body’s muscles a high-speed workout by using vibrations to stimulate them to contract and relax. They generally contract once or twice a second, but by standing on the Power-Plate, its vibrations cause an automatic reflex muscle contraction of 30-50 a second. The body has to subconsciously contract a variety of different muscles in order to stay balanced during the vibrations created by the Power plate . It is precisely this constant muscle tensioning that makes the Power plate so effective. Developed by Russian scientists for their Olympic athletes in the 1970’s and later used to train cosmonauts, the Power Plate® platform vibrates as you perform a series of simple exercises. A pose is held for up to 60...
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8 Benefits of Pilates

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A US Fitness Magazine suggests that these are the top 8 reasons why Pilates is so good for you: It’s Ah-Mazing for Your Abs Pilates hits your core (or, in Pilates speak, your “powerhouse”) unlike any other workout. In fact, after completing 36 weeks of Pilates training, women strengthened their rectus abdominis (the muscle responsible for six-packs) by an average of 21 percent, while eliminating muscle imbalances between the right and left sides of their cores, according to a Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise study. It Can Ease Back Pain A stronger core equals a better back, says Tracy Zindell, Flex Pilates Chicago founder and master instructor. That’s why those with chronic lower back pain who practiced Pilates for just four weeks experienced more relief than those who visited a physician and other specialists, says a Journal of Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy study. What’s more, their pain stayed away for a full year post-Pilates. Researc...
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