Classical Pilates

Contrology as Joseph Pilates himself called it, has had a revolutionary impact on the world of health & fitness. He started developing Pilates in the early 1900s to strengthen both the mind and the body. Joseph strongly believed that physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness.

Hence, Pilates develops the body uniformly, corrects wrong postures, restores physical vitality, invigorates the mind and elevates the spirit. When practiced regularly, Pilates improves flexibility, builds strength and develops control and endurance in the entire body. It puts emphasis on precision, alignment, breathing, developing a strong center to move from and improving coordination and balance.

The center or core, consisting the muscles of the abdomen, low back, and hips, is aptly called the “powerhouse”. When moving from the support of your powerhouse, you can shed excess effort from over working muscles. By bringing smaller, usually closer to the center and/or joints muscles online, you will improve balance in the body. This will allow you to move freely and without strain or pain.

What do you need for a Pilates class?

Willingness to learn will get you far!
Comfortable clothing, which allows big ranges of movement
A mat, a slightly thicker 1.5-2 cm mat would be ideal for Pilates, but a yoga mat with a bath towel on top works too
Water bottle

If attending in person, make sure to be on time. If attending an online class from home, a quiet space big enough for you to move around is very important. If you don’t have a mat, stack a couple of towels or blankets on top of each other. Remember to keep yourself well hydrated on the day of the class by drinking enough water. You also want to have at least 2-4 hours from your last big meal. Try our First Time offer Taster class for €10!

Book a Class

Meet The Pilates Equipment

Most people are not aware that Pilates is so much more than just Mat work! It was designed as a comprehensive movement system to uniformly develop the body, and does so by working on multiple different apparatus. The spring-loaded equipment gives a unique resistance: the springs work like human muscles, they stretch and contract. Therefore, while working with the springs you will gain strength and flexibility at the same time! Unlike any other equipment, the spring resistance creates integrated strength and long lean muscles. While the various bars, handles and pedals guide and support the body.

Universal Reformer

The spring-loaded gliding carriage allows you to move off gravity while working on your powerhouse safely. The Reformer helps to align the body and re-educates it to move without excess strain. Anyone with (back) pain would benefit greatly from working on the Reformer. The endless movement possibilities and varied repertoire of exercises from rehabilitative to acrobatic guarantee you will never get bored with Reformer work!

Tower

The Tower (also known as Pole) is a smaller, more condensed version of the Cadillac or Trapeze Table. With its variety of free hanging springs and spring-loaded bars, you can work the whole body through large ranges of motion safely. Because of the unique, elongating support of the springs, you will leave the studio feeling taller and freer!

Low Chair

Originally created as the smaller version of the Reformer, The Low Chair also known as the Wunda Chair, has tremendous value on its own! Unlike the other pieces of equipment, the chair repertoire involves a lot of standing work. It challenges your balance and encourages you to move from the center, and therefore re-educates the body to shed unnecessary work.

Small Equipment

These small, innocent looking contraptions can do so much for you! And some of them you could even have at home to use in your online classes or bring more variety into your home workouts.

Stretch and open you feet with the Foot Wakers & Savers, and strengthen them with the Foot Corrector or Toe Corrector. All of these little gadgets are designed to further your foot health. At the end of the day, your feet carry you through life so wouldn’t you want them well-equipped for the task!

The Foam Roller is an effective and inexpensive prop you could easily have at home. It is absolutely wonderful in opening tight shoulders and hips after working from home or walking for miles. So versatile and straight forward to use, no wonder it is a firm favourite of many!

There are so many little props like Theraband, Magic Circle, Spine Corrector and Hand Weights to help you get more specific in your workouts. Each one bringing a different focus into your workouts.