FAQs

I took a long break from Yoga and have just started again. Should I start at the level I was or take a step back?

First of all- welcome back :-) It is wonderful when people take breaks and then come back to their practice, as usually soon after that they feel really good and it’s lovely to see them flourish!

As for your question- I would suggest going back to basics as it is ALWAYS  a good idea to remind yourself of the technique points- how to do the postures well and what cues/imagery help you get the best results. When you feel that your body is handling the challenges well and you remember the postures and sequences without having to look at the screen too much, allow yourself to progress on to more challenging classes until you gradually return to the level at which you have practiced before.

The process described above will allow you to build up your fitness level gradually and also to notice what has changed in your body since you last practiced regularly. Our bodies are very dynamic and they constantly change for better and worse. If you start at a level that is not appropriate to you, your body will have to prioritise “surviving” the class and you won’t have the chance to observe and correct yourself. With a bit of patience, I am sure you will discover that your body remembers how to move and will adapt itself before long!

Enjoy the classes.

I'm fairly strong and fit but I still struggle with lifting and hovering the legs off the floor in the 100. Any teaching points that could help?

Lifting and hovering the legs off the ground is probably one of the most difficult ways of getting into position for the 100 (unless you have a heavy upper body and short-light legs…). It takes time and a lot of practice to be able to do it this way so if it is too difficult for now then you should not feel bad a bout it!! Just get into position in the same way you did previously and focus on all the teaching points the teacher gives for the exercise.

 

If you do wish to improve this particular way then I can suggest a few things:

 

  1. Place a block/ thick book/ foam roller under your heels and lift the legs off of that raised level. When it gets easier make your “assist” smaller and build up the strength this way.
  2. Lift your head off the floor and start the 100 with legs on floor. As you go lift one leg off and place it back down (alternate legs) and then lift one leg and then the other so that both legs are now off the ground
  3. Start the 100 with the legs straight towards the ceiling. As you exhale lower the legs down as far as you can (without strain on the back) and as you inhale lift them up again. Think if your tail bone being lifted (curled into you) 10% off the ground at all times.
  4. Turn the legs out slightly so that the heels touch but the toes are apart and think a lot about the backs of the legs- make sure you squeeze your heels, the inner thighs and the sits-bones together and activate all these muscles prior to lifting the legs off the ground and for the duration of the exercise.

 

I've discovered that I'm pregnant (currently about 6 weeks). Is it still ok to continue with the Intermediate level classes I’ve been taking until I get to the second trimester when I can swap to your pregnancy classes?

Assuming all is well with the pregnancy and that your health care provider is happy for you to continue with your activities as usual the answer is yes. Women I work with in the studio continue with their normal classes well into the second Trimester. Usually the first thing we need to change is exercises lying on the stomach when these are no longer comfortable and so we replace them with others that serve the same purpose. The second thing to have to change is usually the abdominal exercises. In the first Trimester there is no risk that Abdominal exercises will put too much pressure on the Rectus Abdominis (the “six pack” muscle) and lead to a separation. This becomes an issue only when the bump is much bigger and the woman is no longer able to “draw it in” so every time you curl up the abdominals “dome” and might be pulled apart.

Once again- assuming all is well and you have your doctor’s approval,  you should be able to continue with classes as usual until the above two issues become a reality, at which point you are probably better off doing the specialised classes.

I've recently joined yoopod and find it very good. Is there any class in particular concentrating on the lower back? I’ve been told to start Pilates for my back and stretch as much as I can.

This is a great question and one that I hear a lot. People are often told to do Pilates “because it is good for their back” and that they should stretch X and strengthen Y in order to get rid of their back pain. Yes, Pilates can most certainly help your back get stronger and more flexible but I just want to point out that the problem with the advice above is that it is often given around dinner tables by people who heard it from someone else or read it in a magazine etc. Even when coming from GPs or physiotherapists it can unfortunately be quite generalised and often misleading.

 

The truth is that anyone’s back (whether healthy or in pain) will benefit mostly when they improve their overall fitness and movement capacity and quality. The back is one important part in a long chain that relates to everywhere else in the body, not just to the abdominals. How we stand and walk on our feet, how we sit for many hours a day, how we carry our shoulders and neck as well as the health and vitality of our internal organs will all have an effect on our back! This is why we do our best to make sure that all PilatesOD classes work the body in a holistic way.

 

/pilates-classes/level/complete-beginner and follow the classes from 001 to 009 gradually.

            

My body feels a bit sore after a class. Is that OK?

Feeling sore is a very individual thing. Some people don't feel sore at all and some feel quite sore after some classes. It depends on your fitness level, your strength and flexibility and on what you “put into it” during the class. The important thing to remember is that it is fine to feel muscle soreness after physical efforts- the kind of pain that tells you that you have worked hard and your muscles need to recover for a day or two… It is not fine to feel sharp and sudden pains or pains shooting down your legs or arms. This could mean that you have flared up an underlying problem or an old injury by doing too much too soon. So always remember to do only what is safe and reasonable and to progress gradually.

My body feels a bit sore after a Yoga class. Is that OK?

Feeling sore is a very individual thing. Some people don't feel sore at all and some feel quite sore after some classes. It depends on your fitness level, your strength and flexibility and on what you “put into it” during the class. The important thing to remember is that it is fine to feel muscle soreness after physical efforts- the kind of pain that tells you that you have worked hard and your muscles need to recover for a day or two… It is not fine to feel sharp and sudden pains in your joints or pains shooting down your legs or arms. This could mean that you have flared up an underlying problem or an old injury by doing too much too soon. Always remember to do only what is safe and reasonable to you and to progress gradually.

My card has expired and I have a new one - how do I update it?

lPease contact us and we'll talk you through the process.

My hip joint keeps “popping out” when I do the Leg Circles. What can I do about it??

This is a great question as it is a common problem that many people experience. The reason in most case would be due to muscular imbalances (tightness/ weakness) around the hip joint. And here is why- The pelvis lies right in the centre of the body and needs to “negotiate” most of your body weight through the hip joints and legs down into the ground and vice versa- the forces coming from the ground trough the legs into the spine and upper body. Sitting for many hours a day puts your pelvis and hip joints (and your whole body…) in a very compromised position that can lead to imbalanced muscular development around the joint. Postural habits too will lead to imbalances and it is not uncommon to see people with apparent leg length discrepancy. It is actually quite unusual to see an individual whose pelvis is not somewhat tilted, twisted or shifted to one side. We are all like that!

So… what can we do about it? First of all you need to be super aware of how you stabilize your pelvis. The feeling should be that your pelvic bones are well “connected” to your trunk; draw your sit-bones together and “into” your pelvis and draw your hip bones together and up towards your navel. Then keep the motion of the leg within a controlled range- make sure to keep your moving leg “wrapped” (in slight outwards rotation) and progress gradually as your hip muscles get longer and stronger. Using an elastic band can really help get the right feeling for this exercise and support some of the weight of the leg while working on your technique.

My standing balance is not as good as it used to be. Can Pilates Mat practice improve it?

The most common reason people lose their sense of balance is aging. When you stand, touch receptors in your feet send signals to your brain. These touch receptors and other signals from your joints lose acuity with age, lack of stimulation or injury. Balance is created by integrating input from vision, touch and position sensors with information from the vestibular system (a mechanism inside your inner ear that detects gravity and acceleration).

Standing balance practice involves stimulating the touch sensors on the soles of the feet and then using movement to create and reinforce functional connections with the entire system.

Pilates Mat classes offer many elements that will help you improve your standing balance:

Stimulation of the feet by way of articulating it and weight bearing on it- pay attention to the alignment of the feet and ankle joints as you flex and point your feet to ensure even development of the muscles that stabilize and support the ankle joint.

Doming exercises- some teachers add doming exercises to stimulate and strengthen the arches of the feet; the arches act as a supporting system to the feet and the whole body and play a big role in balance and agility

Joint mobilization and strength- Pilates looks at the whole body as one functioning organism; by improving the overall ability of your joints to align, move and coordinate with each other your standing balance improves as well.

Standing exercises- many teachers incorporate standing exercise into their classes. Some exercises will be done next to a wall to help you stabilize the body while improving your balance and overall integration of all the input your brain receives. More advanced exercises will be done while standing without support and may incorporate other movements that will challenge your standing balance further.

My workout space at home is quite limited. Any advice on how to maneuver myself during the classes?

Great question… and one that many people could benefit from as well, so thanks for asking!

If your workout space is limited then you must learn over time when to quickly move forward/backwards on your Mat at the beginning of certain exercises. Since many classes tend to follow a certain order or a certain flow this should help tackle many space issues. I list below a number of tips which I hope will help deal with this problem and I also recommend following the below class which is designed for tight spaces and demonstrate how you can modify exercises and still enjoy a great workout!

/classes/class-176

  If the teacher says you are about to do any of the rolling exercises (such as Rolling like a Ball or Open Leg Rocker) then you should know to quickly move all the way fwd on the Mat before the exercise begins

  • Any exercises where we take the legs overhead such as the Roll Over or the Jack Knife are best performed in the middle of the Mat to allow the legs to move overhead but also to lower down towards the ground (away from the head)
  • Any sitting exercise are most comfortable when you sit far enough back on your Mat to allow your stretched out legs to still be on the Mat
  • All the side lying exercises require that you position yourself in the centre-back of your space (not necessarily the Mat itself) to allow the top leg to kick in front as well as behind you
  • When we do the sitting rotation exercises (Spine Twist, Saw etc) you can either turn 90 degrees (if your space allows for it) so that your stretched out arms can move freely or if that is not possible then you can always bend the elbows or interlock the hands behind your head where necessary.
  • For exercises that start on All Fours (hands and knees) position yourself on the front of your Mat so that when you stretch your legs behind you, they will still be on the Mat.

 

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