This was a really interesting article that I came across about the "healing powers" of Pilates. From a knee injury as a child through to undiagnosed fractured ribs after a car accident later in life, she believes that Pilates was the reason she managed to avoid costly surgery and rebuild her life, pain free. I am really excited that we can now offer chair-based Pilates - which is great for those with mobility issues, spinal conditions or pre and post surgery. Recently I have been able to offer two clients these sessions; to recover from a knee operation and spinal surgery (before they were able to get back to their usual mat-based class). My passion is to help everyone and these new classes really are allowing us to do that. There are no limitations! Further details of the chair-based sessions can be found here. Don't forget to get in touch if you have any further questions or if you would like to book a seat! "...Growing up, ballet was my life. I started dancing when I was 3 years old, and did everything from ballet to tap, as well as jazz and modern dance. By the time I reached middle school, I was dancing five hours a day, six days a week.
But in seventh grade, I got an itch to try something else. I didn't want to stop dancing, but I also wanted to be more like the other kids in my grade, so I decided to join the track team. My dance coach was NOT a fan of the idea, so I ended up keeping it a secret. You know when you’re a kid and you sneak out of the house, and you know you’re doing something bad? That’s how I felt when I joined track. Then, in the very first meet, I competed in a long-jump event, which involves sprinting and then jumping into a sand pit. When I landed, it felt like someone stabbed me in the knee. My stomach dropped—I knew something bad had happened. I knew I'd screwed up, and I was devastated. My mind started spinning—I knew people would be upset with me, and worse, I was upset with myself. I was dancing in The Nutcracker at the time, and I knew I'd have to drop out. When I saw a doctor, I learned I had torn my miniscus, and all my fears were confirmed. At 13, I realized I wasn't invincible. But I started physical therapy to help rehabilitate my knee, so I could hopefully dance again. But then, my physical therapist put me on a reformer—the machine that's used in Pilates training—and I thought: What the heck is this crazy contraption? It made my body feel so good—I could feel my muscles working, and I felt very connected to my body, similar to how I felt during dance. I actually started looking forward to PT—injury aside, I wanted to get on the reformer as much as possible. That was the first time I'd ever done something that wasn’t a performance sport. It was more about rehabilitation, and learning about all the intricate muscles that stabilized my joints. I loved it, it made me feel amazing. After my PT was complete, I went back to dancing. I also ended up joining a performing theater group in the Bay Area, and I traveled around California with them. When I was a sophomore in high school, I got into a summer program at CalArts. We were dancing all day, six days a week. It was such an amazing program, but at one point toward the end of that summer, when we were at the ballet barre, my knee literally gave out and I collapsed. The instructors carried me out, and I went straight to the program's PT office. The verdict: I needed to get back into Pilates. After that, I started to take Pilates regularly, on top of dance. Then, at the end of high school, I got into an awful car accident. I didn't think I'd suffered any major injuries at the time. But a few years later, during my junior year of college at UC Irvine, where I was pursuing a degree in theater and dance, I started to experience serious pain around my ribs, especially when I was dancing. It got so bad that there were times when I would pass out on stage. I finally went to see a doctor who told me I had broken my ribs in that car accident, and they were now covered in scar tissue. The injury was likely made worse by all the crazy twists I was doing while dancing. The doctor told me I had two options: Get a $300,000 surgery; or rehab with Pilates, and strengthen my core muscles so they could securely hold my ribs in, almost like a corset. I remembered how much Pilates had helped with my knee, and decided to go with that option. Luckily, it worked—I never had to get the surgery, and to this day I feel great..." Check out the full article here! Ellie x
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Lovely quote here from a blog about how the mind - body connection, proper controlled breathing, core-strengthening and centring technique used in Pilates can really help ease anxiety for sufferers. It is so true, and will resonate and feel relevant for many of you, who say exactly this every week...
'Ultimately, Pilates can help people alleviate anxiety and daily stresses because it rewards (rather than punishes) you for your practice. It’s not about perfection. Yes, you’ll see amazing changes, but the mental connection/control it can provide is, for me, unrivalled.' ... [click here to be taken to the full article at Ten Health & Fitness] |
AuthorI'm Ellie - I started my Pilates journey when I had a bad back. I fell completely in love with it! Archives
April 2019
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