Classical Pilates for Modern Life

One lesson simply won’t do. 

The myth is that taking one Pilates lesson is enough to conclude whether or not it is good for our bodies and whether or not we should pursue it. 

The truth is that when signing up for the first Pilates lesson, we need to realize that forming an opinion after a 55 minute encounter with a movement technique that is new to us is not the best way to spend time and money. 

If you are skeptical about how Pilates can benefit you, plan on taking at least 3-5 lessons, no more than a couple of days apart. After you complete them, you will have enough evidence to make an informed decision: become a lifelong PIlates student or move on.

Remember, you don’t have to like it. Pilates is one of those facts of life, it is good for our body (and mind) just like brushing teeth or eating broccoli. We don't have to like it but we sure need to do it to remain healthy. 

When signing up for your first lesson, sign up for a private lesson with a teacher who has classical (traditional) training and teaches classical (traditional)l Pilates,( not something that is nowadays referred to as contemporary, fusion, etc.) Pilates has to be introduced in a one-on-one setting so that the teacher can give you corrections that are unique to your body. After that if your time and/or budget only allows for group classes, go for it. But learn the basics well first, so that if you participate in a group class you will be able to self correct and perform the movements safely, without injury and with long-lasting benefits.

For more on that subject, read my April 22nd newsletter Your first Pilates lesson, where I explain in detail what a well-structured first lesson should include and why.  newsletter

Why should you take more than one lesson to make a decision? 

Pilates is complex, it involves precise movements, breathing, body/mind connection, unfamiliar choreography, apparatus, new language. For those reasons alone, oftentimes the first lesson causes frustration, a sense of failure, not-so-good-feeling about our mental and physical abilities. 

Because the vast majority of us don’t have proper body mechanics, we end up perpetuating the wrong movement habits. We find that out during our first Pilates lesson and don’t always take it well. All of a sudden everything we knew about movement turns out to be wrong, the way we think about movement is incorrect and we are asked to basically “rewire our brains”. That is a hard thing to accept. But the more you get to know Pilates, the more you practice it, the more you realize that “rewiring the brain” is totally worth it. The feeling that you get in your body when it begins moving correctly, the feeling that you get mentally when you realize that you can control it, is priceless and definitely long lasting. 

Are we supposed to be able to correct the behaviors we have developed over decades of our lives in one lesson? Impossible. The teacher knows that it is impossible to achieve, you should know that too. Realizing that doing Pilates is a process, an investment ( both time and money) a discipline that needs to be studied, get to know, “tried on”, if you wll, is more than half the battle. The rest is simple: follow instructions, have an open mind, be ready to accept your shortcomings, welcome the change, be consistent, and be focused.

My two cents 

I have had many “one-time-clients" in the course of my 25 years of teaching Pilates. 

At first I used to blame myself for it, thinking that I didn't know how to explain well enough, and didn't know how to “sell” Pilates. 

Over time I have come to realize that it is not what I say, it is the new client’s mindset that they bring to the lesson that gets in the way. Trying to learn something new while applying old beliefs is counterproductive. Trying to learn something new with an open mind makes room for success:).