Your Pilates News

Published: Mon, 05/13/19

Hello

Welcome to another week with Jane Thomas Pilates.

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT ON SATURDAY 18TH MAY THE 9.30AM QUORN CLASS WILL BE HELD IN THE OLD SCHOOL, SCHOOL LANE, QUORN, NOT THE VILLAGE HALL.

I just want to apologise to those who attend classes in Quorn Village Hall, Old Woodhouse Community Hall and Hathern Village Hall for the state of the floors last week — just to confirm that we have reported the issues to the appropriate bodies so hopefully this was a one off.

In case you didn’t know, I have recently started my own podcast. I wanted to do this as a bit of fun but also because I enjoy talking to people about Pilates and finding out about why they started doing Pilates and what they love about it and how it has helped them, but also I am really interested in finding out about peoples' lives, so over the next few weeks I will be inviting various people to have a chat and feature their stories on my podcast. If you fancy sitting down with me sharing a coffee and cake and telling me about your life and how you have found Pilates then I would love to hear from you.

It's still early days for the podcast so I currently only have two real episodes the first was me just talking about basic Pilates breath, feet and balance, but the second is talking to Keith about how he discovered Pilates for himself and what he feels he loves about it and how it has helped him. Look out for further episodes, it can be found in various formats: iTunes, Anchor, Spotify etc.

Have a great week folks — keep looking, moving and feeling good.

Jane, Keith and the team xx

View this Newsletter (and, indeed every recent Newsletter) as a webpage

Exercise Of The Week

This week I am looking at our lateral muscle system by sharing a Side Bend/Lift with you.

This is a strengthening exercise and works all the muscles on each side of the spine but also crosses the body so that we have muscles working together to create balance throughout.

With every Exercise Of The Week work at the appropriate level for your body. I provide a variety of alternatives/modifications here. If you want to see how many muscles you are working when performing this exercise see Your Whole Self below.

Feel the difference, move differently, and look more balanced.

See the video here

Your Whole Self

Ever since I started to teach Pilates I have always taught a whole body approach, even with specific conditions when I work with someone on a 1-2-1 basis I still look at the whole body. When I work with other teachers this is something I always emphasise that — in order for a body to operate effectively and efficiently — if one bit of the body isn’t functioning, it has effects on the whole.

So we consider the problem area, look and assess the whole body and then devise an exercise programme that is beneficial to the injured or affected area, but that actually works the whole body.

A recent example of this is with one of my 1-2-1 clients who originally came to see me because of issues with her feet and ankles. What I observed was restricted mobility in her spine, and yes there was stiffness in her feet and ankles. I therefore work with her to increase the mobility in her spine, strengthen her core to support this, get her gluteals switching on and working, mobilising her shoulders and her cervical spine, opening up her chest and encouraging flexion and extension through her mid/upper back. I also gave her some low level mobility for her feet and ankles. This was the message I received from her this week:

Interesting improvements in my heels and ankles.... so some of those back stretches really seemed to have had an effect!!

Thanks.

Increasing the mobility in her whole body is having a positive effect on her feet and ankles — she feels that she can move more freely so she is moving more and her feet and ankles are responding appropriately. We have started a whole cycle of movement for her and this will continue and therefore she will continue to feel the benefits.

To emphasise my point that Pilates works the whole body, I am sharing a picture here which is the introductory level of a Side Bend/Lift but performed on the Reformer. As you can see from the diagram it shows all the muscles used and worked when performing this exercise.

My Exercise Of The Week this week is the same exercise on the floor, not on a Reformer — but it is the same exercise and by practising it you will still be working all of the muscles shown here..

The whole body will benefit from this one exercise, particularly if we also add our conscious thought to it and think about the whole body as we move and how it feels.

Pilates really is Mind, Body and Soul — it really is about Your Whole Self.

The Week's Classes

Click or Tap Below to View Interactive Calendar Online

All classes — matwork and Reformer — are running as planned, on the correct days and times. One matwork class however — 18 May Saturday 9.30am in Quorn — is in the Old School Main Hall and NOT in the usual Village Hall.

Book a Catchup/Missing Class

If you know you will have to miss a class in your course for any reason, want to let us know or would like to book a space in another class instead, just follow the link to register it. Our Glamourous Assistant Karen runs the Catchups system, and this link is the quickest, most direct means (it's even faster than emailing her!) of letting Karen and your class Coach know.

Simply tell us the class you will miss and — most important if you want to book a Catchup — please give us as many alternatives as possible. If you only give us one alternative, we cannot guarantee you will get a Catchup.

Please let us know if you will miss your class but don't want a Catchup — the whole Catchups system relies on knowing when spaces will occur.

Finally, please don't just tell your class class Coach you will be missing a class, as your Coach is not aware of Catchups spaces and has no means of registering your space. Karen needs to know, and the link here (it's also at the bottom of our website too) is the best and fastest way to let Karen know.

Book your Catchup by clicking here

Important Links

Our Privacy Policy ◆ Book a Catchup Matwork Class

Matwork Timetable 2018-19 ◆ Matwork Timetable 2019-20

Reformer Timetable 2018-19 ◆ Reformer Timetable 2019-20

Our Full Interactive Online Calendar

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