My Experience With Pilates

I was first introduced to Pilates about 8 years ago by my ballet teacher. When I meet other Pilates aficionados I am always curious as to what made them first start and why they continued.

For me it was a niggling back pain that first started in my teenage years and the desire to improve my ballet. Pilates is fairly popular throughout the dance world and though I did not realize it, I had been exposed to Pilates exercises since I was a little girl during ballet class.

I started doing studio Pilates about 8 years ago. Since then, I have had a whole host of physical benefits, such as the disappearance of my back pain, increased core strength, shoulder girdle organization and pelvic and leg alignment. But the favorite thing for me was the lack of pressure and the lack of perfection. In ballet it was all about perfection, and the constant pressure and stress to attain it at all cost. To come to Pilates and to learn about my body type, its limitations, and to be accepted and even celebrated for our differences was delightful. And strangely enough, doing Pilates helped me to enjoy dance a lot more and achieve much more than before I did Pilates.

You’ll probably be surprised but biomechanics and the moving anatomy was not a huge part of medical school. Pilates really helped me put it altogether and definitely helped with medical school. It offered me a clearer insight into the body and a greater appreciation for it. It also lit the interest in sports medicine for me.

Having done it for a good 5 years, I was not satisfied with merely knowing the repertoire, I wanted to know more, to understand more and so I decided to pursue Pilates Instructor Training. I was offered the opportunity to teach after I finish my training and started to discover that I really love working with individuals to help them achieve their goals and to learn, understand and appreciate their body. When my students are able to translate what they learn into real life and achieve efficiency in their movements, it really shows me just how wonderful Pilates is.

The human body is a marvelous thing and Pilates has taught me how to respect it. So what is the story between you and Pilates?