Did She Say "Free Pilates Exercises for Pregnancy?"

Sweating, breathing, squeezing your partner's hand; they finally tell you that it's time to push!

You have no choice but to dig in and wait for the next contraction. You feel that crazy powerful pressure coming on again, so you bear down and do as they tell you. It's unlike anything you've ever felt. It's awkward at first. You try again....

The clock ticks as everyone shouts at you like your running with a football. But you've had a bad back for months and you've spent most of your spare time resting. You've allowed your muscles to weaken in an attempt to avoid pain or injury. You're completely exhausted. You can't push anymore.

Pregnant with my first baby, I remember telling my OBGYN that I was sore after doing water aerobics. I was offended at first when he started laughing. He gently let me know that I don't need to be concerned about the normal aches that go along with a good workout. He let me know that it won't hurt the baby and that it would help make the birth easier!

As I had more children I saw that the more reasonably active I was during the first 36 weeks, the easier it was to get through the last four, and the quicker I recovered! My free local pilates sessions are uniquely designed to keep you strong and flexible and feeling great before and during your pregnancy.

When the baby comes and you are home-bound for a while, safe, online pilates for birth recovery classes are a convenient and affordable way to get your body back in the shortest time possible. And you can try it for two weeks free.

Why Pilates for Pregnancy?

• Safety. Pilates exercises are slow and controlled.
• Ease. You can start at any fitness level.
• Convenience. You can do them at home on the floor.
• Effectiveness. Women who do pilates are stronger and less prone to injury.
• Universalness. Physical therapists use many pilates exercises for their patients.

What Is "Junk Exercise"? With your Mat Pilates Instructor

Health and fitness professionals are beginning to use some strong language to describe what seems like a great idea, but leaves many injured and wishing they knew better before starting a “Junk Exercise”.

Junk Exercise is when people move their bodies and feel as though they are getting a great workout, but they don't really progress in building white muscle mass. White Muscle mass is a special type of muscle that is partially responsible for twitch movements and tends to fatigue easily. These muscles are located near our joints, and when developed, create greater balance and less likelihood of injury. Pilates is a great exercise to build white muscle mass.

The four most common mistakes people make are:

1.   Using only cardio

2.   Omitting resistance training

3.   Doing too many sets of the same exercise

4.   Lifting weight too fast

Junk classes are usually the latest dance, punching, or competitive weight pushing class that you may have heard of this past year. Just as there are “miracle” diet pills, there are also workouts (junk exercise) that promise quick results. Pilates has been around for over 90 years and will continue on long after the latest crazes have disappeared. Mat Pilates concentrate on strengthening your core and the movements in Pilates are all about quality over quantity.

I always recommend a cardio program when beginning Pilates classes. Cardiovascular exercise is crucial for staying resistant to your insulin and keeping weight off, but we must strengthen through a variety of slow controlled weight-bearing movements. Mat Pilates Classes are one of the most perfect ways to prepare to perform those types of exercises. The slow controlled resistance of Pilates while moving and stretching makes Pilates more effective than even yoga for preventing injury.

We are conditioned to be consumers. Our ears perk when we hear about something new in diet and exercise. We think, "Maybe this will be the answer!" So we buy. When it comes to self-improvement be it physical, spiritual, or improving relationships, real results will happen when we first look within ourselves and then commit and purchase a program we can feel really good about.