From our previous blog posts, you would have noticed that we were indulging in generous scoops of ice creams that were overladen with calories and because we wanted to burn off those excess calories, what could be a better way to do so other than going for an invigorating Pilates class?

Jacqueline’s cute socks for the Pilates class.

Well, thanks to the friendly and generous people from Pilates Fitness, both Jacqueline and I were offered a complimentary one month unlimited Pilates trial classes at Pilates Fitness and ever since we had our first Pilates class last Friday, we are always looking forward to our next class.

Now, many people would probably have the notion that Pilates and Yoga are the same but they are not. Pilates is unlike Yoga. Yoga poses are considered as a preamble to center, calm, and prepare the body for concentrated sessions of seated meditation. In contrast, Pilates was developed as a logical system of exercises specifically designed to enhance and balance the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of the human body. In other words, Pilates is not about sitting still or holding poses; Pilates is about movement! Although both Yoga and Pilates are breath-based disciplines, the primary styles of breathing are quite different. While Yoga teaches the individual to breathe in and out through the nose, which helps to calm the nervous system down; Pilates teaches the individual to breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. The Pilates breathing is called diaphragmatic and it helps to engage the core muscles throughout the exercise.

Pilates can be done on a Mat or on a Reformer and because both Jacqueline and I were newbies in using the Pilates Reformer, we had to go for an “Introduction to Reformers Class” where the Instructor from Pilates Fitness taught us how to use the Reformers safely and the various footworks/exercises that could be done on the reformer.

The Reformer glides forward & backward on rollers and uses springs for resistance, along with other attachments, for a wide variety of exercises and positions such as lying down, seated, and/or standing.

Pilates was developed by Joseph H Pilates [1880 – 1967] and it was originally named as Body Contrology. Pilates created “The Pilates Principles” to condition the entire body; proper alignment, centering, concentration, control, precision, breathing, and flowing movement. You probably would be surprised to know that this unique set of 500 different exercises are being practised by more than 11 million people worldwide today!

During the Pilates class, my body was literally shaking all over and because Pilates is a mind-body workout, I encountered some difficulty in engaging my mind to coordinate between my physical movements and breathing techniques. Even then, the Pilates class was still an enjoyable session throughout.

After the Pilates class, both Jacqueline and I felt rather invigorated and even when we were expecting our body to ache the very next day, it didn’t and we felt so active that we decided to take a 4KM stroll along Punggol Park.

Over the next 1 month, we will be sharing with you about the progress of our weight-loss through Pilates and we hope to share more with all of you soon.

Stay tuned!