OK – Pilates is trendy – right? I am proud to say I have been doing Pilates for the past 8 years. My middle daughter is a professional ballerina and she got me going on it.
About 10 years ago, I was happily running my 35 miles per week, pounding away on the pavement and thinking – I can do this forever. I had no patience for my older siblings who were popping vitamins, glucosamine tablets, and complaining about aches and pains. I really was certain that all that would never happen to me. Low and behold, a few years later, my back started to hurt – my lower back especially. My daughter encouraged me to go to Pilates to help with my back and I thought – OK, I’ll give this a whirl but it will be so easy for me because I am in such great shape. WRONG!! I crawled out of that class with the realization that in all the years of running I was doing nothing for my core, the portion of my body that actually holds me up. I noticed throughout that first Pilates class that I had absolutely zero core strength or back strength. My lower back was a train wreck – I had no ability to do back extensions at all.
LIGHT BULB – I needed to stick with this. I found the more I did Pilates, the stronger I got and my back felt better. I gave up the running. I have never been happier. I saw no need to punish my body any further with consistent pavement pounding. Pilates led to Yoga and between the two, I am a contented early 50-year-old (at least with the exercise portion of my life.)
What does this have to do with 50? Realization – that’s what. You can deny that these things will happen to you – that your body won’t break down and start to show some wear and tear – but it does. It’s just a fact of life and yes, of that dreaded word, aging.
You wonder – Pilates – how to begin? What gym do I go to? How expensive are the classes? I’m going to post my first link on my blog – this Pilates class comes highly recommended by my Pilates friends and it’s free. It’s POP Pilates on YouTube, brought to you by Cassey – an ongoing series of Pilates classes that you can do in the privacy of your own home. You will become hooked.
My only advice is to go slow – you do want to be able to move the morning after your first workout!
Life Experiences Add Up 