This blog will outline why Pilates and relaxation is such an important part of your health journey.  Feeling stressed is normal for most women and caring for yourself can feel alien. Meditating and being mindful is an important part of our lives, you know you SHOULD be doing it, but accessing that moment of restorative health is difficult for many with a busy life and juggling different roles in life.

Pilates & Meditation the perfect balance

Pilates will offer you the time and the space to relax and connect back with your body and restore your mind.  Relaxation is essential for your health and Pilates can offer you this with a calming and reflective approach that will renew your energy.

A client recently confided in me that she felt guilty for doing something for herself, it felt wrong.  She felt that she had to justify a reason to go out with her friends or spend money on herself.   She was bottom of the pile when it came to her to-do list.

And yet research shows that when you do take time out for yourself when you relax and shut down a stressful situation and move away you are more productive.  It is empowering and my client discussed how proud she was of herself when she stepped away from stress and into gentle kindness to herself

From that place of kindness, and relaxation comes great intuition and productivity. Taking the time to exercise in a way that you enjoy, exercise for yourself will create both a physical and a mental benefit to you, and in turn to those you care for.

How does Pilates restore your inner balance?

I have been teaching Pilates for over 20 years and I’ve seen changes in my own body and mind and I have observed the same transformations in my clients.  Connecting back to my body is the easiest way for me to forget everything else that going on in my life outside my Pilates zone. The inner calm that is created whilst exercising is transformative to my state of mind and even to my blood pressure.

Back in my 20s and 30s I had one small child, a busy advertising career, a husband, a home, a headache and constant grumps and groans. It felt like I was on the road to burn out. The simplest of thing, the lightest of loads, suddenly triggered a huge, emotional outburst and one day I simply walked out of my office and walked into the local Drs waiting room to get signed off.

Whilst arguing with my boss, who also happened to be the head of the company (note to self: not a great career move).  My husband suggested a career change. This was a difficult conversation, with a company car, a  pension and a career I had worked hard at and invested in, I was reluctant to give this up.    But after some time, I realised I couldn’t go on as this and I’ve never looked back.  Pilates is the perfect career path for me, I am highly suited to physical work and working with clients fills me with joy.  Changing my career path to become a Pilates instructor and a Health Coach was a great decision; one of the best I’ve ever made.

Taking time out, reviewing your life and your choices open up more doors and opportunities.

How stress and anxiety affect your health and manifests in your body.

Stress can manifest itself in your body in many ways from headaches, stomach aches, digestive issues, back pain, muscle tension, dizziness, even rashes and skin disorders. Stress compromises your immune system, disrupts your sleep, and creates tension in relationships. Stress leads to weight gain.

Perhaps one of the best things you can do for your health is to manage your stress and anxiety levels.

Pilates can be incredibly powerful in providing a place for the body to relax, rejuvenate and release tension. It also provides a space for the mind to focus on the present moment, leaving worries at the door. The Pilates principle, breath, oxygenates the blood which triggers the brain to calm down. The breath creates a physiological response in the body that naturally decreases your stress and anxiety. Learning to release unnecessary tension in your body will help you to find ease and flow in movement and in the rest of your life.

Prefer Video? Watch My Video Pilates: an easy path to relaxation

Looking for a personal state of peace, calm and tranquillity is an important part of your health. Modern life is busy and full of distractions and stresses. Timeout is a great way to get your thoughts back into perspective.

Inner balance can come from self-improvement techniques like meditation, simplifying your life or affirmations.  Using a mind-body discipline is a powerful and easily accessible relaxation tool to help you balance your life. Not everyone can simply switch off the monkey chatter or simply sit still but practising Pilates will help you to quieten that monkey chatter.  Pilates gives you a focus, a distraction from your daily life. By focusing on your body and the Pilates moves, your troubles float away.

Using Pilates as a gateway to further your meditation practice is a simple and an easy way forward.

Whilst most customers first approach the Pilates method with a view to:

• achieving a flat tummy: if you are interested in finding out more read my blog on 5 exercises for a flatter tummy
• easing joint pains
• reducing bodily discomfort
• rehabilitate after a surgery
• improve their athletic performance

It is good to know that Pilates can do all of that and more. The most amazing change occurs when Pilates participants start to appreciate the benefit not only to their bodies but also in their minds, in their emotions and in their lives.

If you want to support in making personal changes that will increase your feeling over wellbeing but feel overwhelmed and confused about where to start then pick up a copy of Gorgeous!

Get Your Copy Now 

How you can adopt the Pilates Principle of Relaxation into your everyday life

Relaxation is an essential principle of Pilates. Learning to use just the right amount of effort needed for a particular task without developing unnecessary tension is an important Pilates concept.

And yet you often think that working out should require lots of sweat, tension and effort. However, it does not need to be an all-out effort of every muscle with every exercise.

When practising Pilates your body becomes relaxed and you learn to tense only those muscles that you are working on. All other muscles remain relaxed. This “selective relaxation” teaches you to use just the amount of effort needed to complete the exercise correctly, no more, no less.

Pilates allows your muscles to move more effectively and to use less energy.

Next time you are sitting at a desk or participating in your favourite exercise notice where your body is tense and ask yourself if you can release even a little of that tension. You may find that your movements become smoother, your frustration level goes down and you can suddenly see a new way to approach the problem. This is relaxation at work!

Pilates is a whole-body discipline

Pilates is fundamentally about integration: integrating movement into a flowing whole body experience and integrating the mind and body to create clarity and purpose. This whole-body movement is really the crux of mind-body exercise. It is not tuning out while running on the treadmill with your iPod – it is an interactive form of exercise.

By integrating your mind with your body you will rejuvenate your spirit and will be on your way to creating a life of balance.

If you are interested in a little more Pilates practice or homework  join me for a Pilates class at home

Have you ever considered working with a Health Coach!

It’s taken me years (and loads of mistakes) to work out how to fit in nourishing nutrition, fulfilling exercise around my life which includes my coaching business, my Pilates obsession and 3 kids!

And now I coach busy, successful woman over 40 to do the same – via my membership community: The Gentle Reset – and I’d like to invite you to join me see what it is like find out more: read the blog The Gentle Reset

Based on the latest science from the world of nutrition, neuroscience and exercise I’ve created a coaching programme that will create habits that will keep you energised for life.

Find out what others have to say about Adele’s Pilates…

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