The PM’s work outs consist of Pilates and regular jogging sessions, this is a great combination. And if you have a cuddly layer of adipose tissue (fat!) hiding your ‘ripped’ physique then your Pilates workouts will need to be complimented with 5 x 30 minute cardiovascular workouts per week to reduce your body fat percentage. In order to get optimum results you should participate in 3 or more sessions per week. Pilates is a fantastic way to sculpt your muscles. By coordinating the body as a whole, we are stronger, thus reducing the chances of injury caused by overuse of one area. Pilates teaches you to consciously maintain optimum anatomical alignment in all positions and during movement.

If your parents didn’t teach you to sit up straight, then Pilates is definitely for you. According to the BBC Health web site, ‘4 in 5 adults experience back pain at some point’ (BBC Health). Poor posture accounts for a variety of aches and pains that hamper a large percentage of the population. This is the way that the body is designed to be used and the movement sequences performed can prepare you for the physical challenges of everyday life.

Pilates works the body in a functional way, using muscles in synergy with each other. Pilates has developed over the years to become a credible system of conditioning and rehabilitating the body. After this he worked with injured World War I soldiers who were unable to walk owing to their injuries. He worked as a circus performer, boxer and self defence instructor in the UK in 1912. According to the Pilates Foundation website, Mr Pilates apparently suffered with asthma, rickets and rheumatic fever. Pilates is named after German born Joseph Pilates (1912-1967), a man who overcame his own childhood weaknesses through developing and practicing his own regime of exercises. This results in a greater control of motion and vastly improved technique. Pilates trains the mind to maintain a constant level of awareness of the way the body moves. The connection between the mind and body is crucial to Pilates. The deep stabilizing muscles of the body are conditioned and strengthened using sequences of movements that use gravity, body weight and specially designed equipment as forms of resistance. Pilates is a form of exercise that focuses on using both the mind and body to achieve optimum performance. Everyone has heard of Pilates, even if we aren’t entirely confident of it’s pronunciation, but what is it and what can it do for us? What is Pilates?

Pilates for weight loss at home