So you want to start Pilates? Or maybe you have started Pilates already but you're not quite sure if you’ve got the right leggings, let alone the right studio.
There are some products out there that just make your Pilates journey easier.
You don’t have to spend a fortune and be Jo Blow who has ‘all the gear, and no idea’, but if you invest in a couple of key things, Pilates will soon be your happy place!
Leggings
Ok so full disclosure, I have a leggings problem. There, I said it. It’s out in the open! I try and palm it off as ‘oh it’s for work’ or ‘it’s part of my uniform’ and yeah sure, it kinda is, but seriously this is next level.
Safe to say, I’ve tried a fair few leggings and let me tell you, spending big bucks doesn’t necessarily mean best quality.
So here are my tried and true favourites for leggings:
Cotton On and believe it or not, Aldi actually do some good quality leggings that will not break the budget.
Lululemon, Lorna Jane and Jaggad are some of my favourite but more expensive ones. My most recent purchase were the Lorna Jane Thermal leggings, and they are a godsend on these chilly winter Melbourne mornings.
ASOS are a good one stop shop for your Nike, Adidas, Puma etc leggings, but a lot of them are nice to look at on the body, but not practical to actually work out in. A good test to do if you are wanting to work out in them, is the ‘squat test’. That is, can you see your butt through the leggings when you do a squat?! If so, they maybe refrain from doing your Short Spine in those leggings and keep them for grocery shopping instead!
Socks
There are two schools of thought with socks in Pilates.
Some people are absolutely, no way, they interfere with the foot connection and don’t allow for proper ‘foot work’, jeopardising the whole Pilates system.
OR
Absolutely use them, they keep you from slipping all over the shop, keep you from spreading foot germs on the shared equipment and they keep your toes warm in winter.
I think there’s a place for both. I do like them, but for some exercises they should come off, definitely no socks for the matwork either!
These are the brands of sticky socks that I like:
Useful Home Props
Once you’ve been doing Pilates for a little while, you might start feeling like 6 days is a long time between classes and you’ll be more inclined to do something extra in your week. Ask your teacher to give you ‘homework’, that way you’ll be able to achieve your goals quicker.
Here are some useful props to have at home. There are hours of exercises and stretches that can be done with these things. Make sure you always have some guidance before attempting anything on your own.
I’ve listed 3 places to get these types of props from, starting from the least expensive and lower quality to the most expensive and better quality.
Good Attitude
Sorry but I can’t give you any useful links of where to purchase one of these, it really is an inside job. I can only talk from my experience as a teacher of nearly 10 years, that the more open you are to learning new things, to listening to others, and to devoting just 1 hour (or more) of your mental focus per week to Pilates then the further you will go to achieving your goals.
I’ve taught many a client in the past who comes into class with old biases about movement and exercise and what or what it isn’t supposed to be, only to never see them again after their 1st, 2nd or 3rd class. Not because Pilates won’t work for them, but because they haven’t given it a chance. Joseph PIlates said “In 10 sessions you'll feel the difference, in 20 sessions you'll see the difference, and in 30 sessions you'll have a whole new body". That’s 30 sessions guys! At a minimum. Be patient and you will be grateful you stuck it out.
Good Teacher
You can have the snazziest leggings in town but without proper guidance it will all be a waste!
When seeking out a teacher, ask about their experience and credentials. Did they get their certification on a weekender course or did it take them closer to a year? Can they teach on all the equipment or just the mat?
There is a governing body for Pilates in Australia. It’s called the Pilates Alliance Australasia (PAA) and they are an independent and not-for-profit organisation established by the Pilates industry as an advisory body for regulation of quality instruction, member support and integrity within all legitimate approaches to the Pilates Method.
Go to their website to find the teacher right for you!
There you have it, an outline of some of my favourite Pilates bits and pieces.
Would you add anything to the list? I’d love to know if you think there’s something missing. Email me here and let me know!
You can catch me and all my leggings on Friday mornings at the MPS group mat class in Moorabbin from 9.05, so if you’re local to Bayside come and join in! Alternatively, stay tuned for more information on my next event in the latter half of 2022!