Welcome to this week’s Newsletter, and welcome to May which started with such promise sunshine and blue skies, however — as I sit writing this today I look out of my window and its grey, dull and pouring with rain — ahh well…  I’m sure the sunshine will return when it's good and ready.

The only Face-to-Face Classes running as normal this week are Jenny’s at Rempstone, on Thursday 9 and Friday 10 May. The full timetable of Face-to-Face Classes returns week beginning 13 May.

Online Classes are running as normal this week. 

How are you getting on progressing this wonderful flowing Pilates combination? 

The Roll Down with Push Up combo really does fully demonstrate all that Joseph Pilates believed in when moving the body. 

Flow is one of the key principles of Pilates. Joseph Pilates in his book Return to Life Through Contrology and Your Health, writes about the continuous, smooth transition from one exercise or movement to another will help to increase strength and stamina in the whole body. 

So let’s do it … remember to work appropriately for your body, building and progressing gradually, and keep away from pain.

If you have any questions about any of the Exercises of the Week, please message me, or simply reply to this Newsletter.

I took my granddaughter shopping this week, and we had a little debate — not heated — she saw and loved a soft cuddly toy rabbit and said she wanted it. She’s a little young to be debating about the difference between wanting or needing the cuddly toy, but it did get me thinking about what we want isn’t necessarily what we need.

As this section is about Your Whole Self, and each week I like to look at an area of self care, the want and need debate is very relatable. 

Self care is very individual to each and everyone of us, what is good for your best friend will not be the same for you. My best friend loves the gym, and this is part of her self care, but after spending lots of time working in a gym when I first entered the fitness industry it is definitely NOT on the list when it comes to self care for me.

So working out what your self care looks like is really important. Consider these words when searching for what you need from your self care plan — nourish, nurture, resource, recharge, refuel, love and kindness, light, happy. Use these words when you are considering what it is you want, and go deeper to realise what you need. 

We might like the sound of working out in the gym, we might even use the words I want to go to the gym today but then pause and ask yourself is that what you actually need. 

Self care will change, it will look different at different times of our lives. When busy, or going through a major stress such as moving house, your self care will be different to when you are feeling energised with lots of time to spare. 

For my granddaughter, it’s the start of many life lessons, learning that perhaps one more cuddly rabbit in her world which is full of cuddly toys might be wanted but not really what she needs.

Keep moving — keep looking and feeling good.

With love

Jane xx