Author: Priya Tew

Stretch, Release and Strengthen.

Priya Tew

Often when people come to Pilates they just want to work their core, which I completely get. Coming to Pilates from a fitness instructor background I also had that mentality of wanting to work hard, wanting to feel it working and wanting to feel the aches afterwards. I’ve had to relearn things and now Pilates has changed the way I do other forms of exercise too. I hear some of our clients saying the same thing. It ruins you, this Pilates thing 😉

You definitely should feel your abdominals working in Pilates and you may well feel the aftereffects the next day. But just focusing on working the core isn’t enough. You need a whole body approach and body awareness. Knowing which parts of your body need strengthening, which parts are tights and need stretching and which parts are overworking and need releasing is so key. For example having weak gluteals can affect your posture and your back. Being tight in one hip can lead to your compensating and working harder on one side than the other. Tight hamstrings are something I often see and this can cause back issues and restrict movement as well as affect posture.

So make sure you are not just working your core. Also think about finding exercises that strengthen other areas such as your gluteals, shoulders and upper back. Take time to think about where in the body your are tight, where your movement feels restricted and then work on releasing. A foam roller or a spiky ball is your friend here. Always take time to stretch and try not to rush this, using a band can help you increase stretches and develop them further.  Ask your instructor for some good exercises to help you, or book a one to one session for a posture assessment and individual advice. It will really make a difference.

Pilates with Priya: Release, Stretch and Strengthen

We can order you rollers, balls and bands for collection from the studio.

To book a one to one session with Priya please get in touch,

Pilates, Calories and Weight Loss.

Priya Tew

Can Pilates help you lose weight? Absolutely. Will Pilates help you gain that lean, scuplted body. For sure.

So what is the catch? Pilates alone won’t help you achieve these aims. Combine Pilates with a healthy diet and some cardiovascular exercise and you will get there. Bear in mind that 1 Pilates class a week is a good start but isn’t going to achieve those aims all on it’s own. See my tips on doing Pilates at home.

Pilates is one of those types of exercise that I think is hard to quantify. Each class is so different. Some of the classes I teach focus more on stretching and releasing then strengthening. Other classes have an intense core focus. It absolutely varies from class to class and it really depends on how hard you work in the class. The simplest exercises can work you very hard if done with good technique. So when thinking about how many calories a Pilates class uses I would say it depends on:

  1. How long you exercise for.
  2. How intense the session is.
  3. Your Pilates technique.

The average calories burnt for an hours Pilates session is quoted on the internet is 200kcals.

How many calories does Pilates burn?

Pilates will help you tone up, improve flexibility and improve your core strength. You will be stronger, leaner and more body aware from regular Pilates. It will help with weight loss but not on it’s own. For the best results make sure you combine your Pilates with other cardiovascular exercise such as running or aerobics.

For example I teach and do a lot of Pilates but I combine this with Step aerobics, running, weight sessions and general running around after small kids.

Top Tips on doing Pilates at Home.

Priya Tew

Obviously I’m a huge fan of Pilates, because of my job I end up doing Pilates 5 days a week and I have to say if I don’t do enough Pilates I soon notice the difference. Similarly if I do too much I also notice it! The trick is to find the right balance.

One of the questions we get asked is if 1 Pilates class a week is enough. In all honesty I would have to say probably not. However that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to quickly try and find a second class to attend. Once you know the basics of Pilates I would recommend you find the exercises that help your body and practise these at home. For example if you have sciatica a few shoulder bridges, CAT’s and a glut massage may help release and relieve pain. If you have recently had a baby then practising some pelvic tilts, hamstring stretches and chest openers will strengthen your pelvic floor, help with abdominal muscle strengthening and release those tight muscles.

CAT

Top Tips on doing Pilates at Home:

1. Choose exercises that you are confident at doing and you know you can do correctly. Good technique is important in Pilates, so ask your instructor to check the exercises you plan to try.

2. Aim to do a couple of short sessions a week at home. Try not to fall into the trap of overdoing it or you could end up with tight muscles in places you don’t want them tight.

3. Try not to just choose the exercises that you like, these will probably be the ones you are good at and don’t really need to practise! For example I’m not a fan of the Saw, but I need to do it!

4. Look into buying a good DVD that will talk you through the exercises and give you a range of moves you can pick and choose from or an all over body workout. Try my DVD for example.

 

Foam Roller Exercises to release tension in neck and shoulders.

Priya Tew

I literally love rollers. They are so good for core workouts but also great for muscle and fascia release. If you don’t have one in your house you really need one.

If you sit for hours at a desk or feed and carry a baby then spend time hunched over playing on the floor and changing nappies then these exercises are going to make your shoulders sing with joy!

Pectoral Stretch

Lie on your side with your knees bent and the roller under your neck, both arms in front of you at chest height.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 2

Engage your core, then as you breath out open the top arm in an arc, keeping the hips facing forward so you don’t roll back. Keep looking at your finger tips, breath in and hold the stretch. Now breath out and return to the starting position.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 6

 Shoulder Drops

Lie on top of the roller, with it going down the length of your spine. Ensure your neck is supported and the whole of your spine is on it. Bring your feet to hip distance apart and your pelvis into neutral. Now open your shoulder over the roller, think about hugging it with your shoulder blades.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 3

 

Bring your arms up so your finger tips are towards the ceiling, as you breath out stretch up to the ceiling, release the shoulder blades back down to the roller, keeping your elbows straight. Think about releasing tension and dropping the shoulders back down with energy.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 4

Chicken Wings

Stay lying on the roller with the pelvis in neutral and the shoulder blades hugging the roller. Keeping the core switched on, bring the arms up with finger tips towards the ceiling. As you breath out slide the elbows down towards the floor, feeling the shoulder blades being squeezed together. Breath in to bring the arms back up and repeat.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 1

Double Arm Floats

Lying on the roller with the spine in neutral and the core engaged – bring the arms up to the ceiling once more. As you breath out take the arms towards your head, but not over your head. You want to bring your elbows to your ears, but not to go further than this or your shoulders will come out of the correct position. Keep your ribcage heavy and your lower back in neutral. Breath in to hold and breath out to return the arms to the starting position. Keep your focus on you shoulders and ribcage.

Pilates with Priya: Shoulder Roller Release 5

Beyond Your Bump: Postnatal Pilates DVD

Priya Tew

Having a new born baby is hard work. Amongst the nappy changes, feeds, lack of sleep and recovering from the birth itself, there can be little time to think about exercise! The demands of pregnancy and then the energies of labour put  a great stress on your body and it needs time to recover and heal. So you may not feel like rushing straight back into exercise and that is understandable. However your body also needs the strength to carry, feed and lift without causing aches, pains and issues later down the line.

Pilates is the perfect compromise with this. It is exercise that can be started soon after birth but won’t feel too strenuous. Being able to do just 10 minutes a day will make such a difference to your body. Getting to a class can be stressful with a baby. Help is at hand. We run postnatal classes with a creche provided. Or our “Beyond Your Bump” DVD means you get the experience and benefit of a postnatal class devised by a Pilates specialist, ready to do in your home around your baby.

Postnatal Pilates DVD "Beyond your bump"

This is an hour long DVD in several sections that will:

  • Strengthen your abdominals.
  • Targets your bum, legs and tum.
  • Help with any pelvis pain.
  • Work your pelvic floor in a functional manner.
  • Correct upper body posture.

ESSENTIAL FOR ALL NEW MUMS.

My little ones have always loved sitting in a bouncy chair watching me do exercise – why not see if yours does too!

Why is Pilates so essential for new mums?

Priya Tew

Pilates is still quite a new form of exercise in the UK.  It was developed by Joseph Pilates, a German-born gymnast, circus-performer and boxer  during the 1920’s.  He named his method “Contrology” and it was designed to rehabilitate soldiers during the war.  Later, it became popular amongst ballet dancers, then went mainstream, where now it’s suitable for just about everyone and is used by many atheletes as well as the general public.

Pilates is all about your “core” muscles, but what is that?  The “core” is made up of several muscles which wrap around your spine – a bit like a cylinder.  These are muscles at the front of your body (transverses abdominus/hip flexors), side (obliques), back (multifidis), top (diaphragm) and base (pelvic floor).

To find your core muscles, you just need to tighten/pull/draw your abdominal muscles in slightly.  Start by breathing into your belly first, then as you breath out, draw your tummy muscles in towards your spine and keeping that light tension switched on.  These muscles are slow to contract and slow to fatigue, so it means you should be able to hold your tummy muscles inwards with a low level of contraction, for a minute or two, then  move an arm or a leg, or the spine, to create an unstable environment and therefore provide a challenge for the muscles.

Postnatal Posture
Pilates helps correct postnatal postural issues and targets the correct muscles.

 

Pilates is particularly beneficial for postnatal women (trust me I have had 2 babies and used Pilates to help me), because it targets the very muscles which get weakened by pregnancy itself eg the pelvic floor and core.  It also helps you breathe better, puts your body in an optimal postural position and relieves tension in your neck, shoulders, hips and lower back from constant lifting, carrying, feeding and changing your baby. Without it you are likely to end up with all kind of aches and pains. Think about those lower back aches, those niggles in your hips, that shoulder and neck tension – Pilates can help with all of that and help relax you too. Win Win.

Top Tips for C section Recovery.

Priya Tew

  Around 25% of all births in the UK were delivered by section (2008). Some women have no choice and have to have a section, for others it’s an emergency procedure and for some it’s a choice. However it happens, recovery is different to a natural birth.

What is a c-section?

It’s an incision made horizontally, just above your pubic line.  Most people think the abdominal muscles are cut (I did until I researched it!) however they aren’t. It’s the outer coating of the muscle, and the connective tissue in between the 6-pack (rectua abdominis) muscles that is cut.  The incision is made on the outside of your body horizontally, and then your Linea Alba is puled apart (vertically) to gain access.  The Linea Alba runs vertically down your stomach, and separates your six pack muscles in half, above and below your belly button.  The outside incision is then sutured back together, but the inside tissue is not.

 What about my core and pelvic floor?

If you elect to have a section, there’s a misconception that your pelvic floor will be fine.  You might think that because your body won’t be going through the stages of labour and pushing out a baby, your pelvic floor won’t be affected.  This is where you’re WRONG!  Pregnancy itself puts tremendous pressure on your pelvic floor, as the weight of your developing baby gets bigger and bigger, and therefore weakens these muscles.  So, it’s still very important that you strengthen your core, pelvic floor and legs/bum muscles during and after pregnancy, even if you elected to have a section. You also want to protect and help your pelvis remain strong so Pilates style exercises are essential to help with this

 When can I return to exercise after a c-section?

A c-section is major surgery, so think about how muhc recover time you would need after abdominal surgery for example, you wouldnt’ go rushing back too soon would you. Make sure you have had your postnatal check up before your return to exercise, which, depending on your Doctor’s Practice/Surgery could be 6 weeks -10 weeks. Your midwife will also keep checking you and any questions should be directed to them.   I believe postnatal women should return to exercise following a c-section, after medical clearance and when they feel ready.  It’s major surgery after all, and your body will need time to heal. Whenever you return to exercise you will need to build it up, don’t go straight back to the levle of exercise you used to do 😉

 What is recovery like after a c-section?

After a c-section, your recover time is longer than a natural birth, you may have a loss of sensation, a numbness in your abdominals especially around the scar area, and the scar tissue itself may reduce your ability to do certain movements completely pain-free.  Your pelvic floor may take a little while to activate consciously too, but keep sending the signal from your brain to these muscles, and eventually, it will switch back on, I promise.

 

What exercise is safe after a c-section?

Postnatal-specific Pilates-based or core exercise is probably THE best form of exercise for any new mum to be doing, regardless of the type delivery.  Pelvic floor and core activation work makes up the main focus of any postnatal recovery program if you’ve had your baby via section.  I always perform a “Rec Check” to see if a separation is still existent in my clients abdominals, and  our classes and DVD then use re-activation and re-education exercises to the pelvic floor and abdominals to help the muscles return to their original strength and fire properly. We also work on strengthening the thighs and bum as the pelvis is often still fragile and needs supporting. Correcting your posture is also key, you wouldn’t thik it but bad posture such as hunched shoulders can affect your “mummy tummy” area from becoming strong, toned and functioning properly.

Unfortunately, there is no quick-fix cure for strengthening the abdominals following a section.  It can take months of training, careful instruction and lots of homework.  If your abdominals aren’t assessed and addressed early following the correct procedures and using the correct techniques, then they may stay in a weakened state for the rest of your life, which can lead to poor posture, pelvic discomfort and lower back pain.  The good news though, with the right assessment, instruction and homework, it is fixable.

Our “Beyond Your Bump” DVD will give you exercises and advice to help with your recovery postnatally.

Southampton Customer Service Award

Priya Tew

Venus Awards customer_south

We are thrilled to have been nominated and have made it through the to semi-finals for the Venus Awards Customer Service Award.

I must admit I don’t tend to tink a lot about our customer service, it is just something we do. We naturally try out best to accomodate all our clients the best that we can, respons to enquiries quicly and be approachable. We also love to get to know our clients and to help them out however we can  – which can range from meeting people for a cuppa, running with a new idea someone suggests or recommending other local businesses to them.

The voting for this award is only open until Thursday so if you could pop over and give us a little vote we would appreciate it 🙂

Thankyou

Priya and James x

Top 3 complications Post-Birth.

Priya Tew

Being pregnant, giving birth and then looking after a baby – it’s all particularly hard work on the body and comes at a time when you are more focused on the baby and less focused on you. However you need to look after your own body, you only get one and if it isn’t functioning as well as it should is makes life a lot harder.

Three of the key complications that can occur during pregnancy and postnatally:

1. Diastasis Recti.

This is a seperation of the tummy musclesDiastasis Recti that run vertically down the tummy (the Rectus Abdominus or 6 pack muscles). It can happen naturally but there are also things you can do to prevent it from becoming too large an issue whilst pregnant. After your 6 week check is then the time to get this checked out and to address it.

Top Tips: No sit ups in pregnancy and post-birth. Don’t go back to high impact exercise too quickly as it can make this worse and use safe postnatal Pilates exercises to fix it.

2. Pubis Symphysis Derangement:

Otherwise known as pelvic girdle pain or SPD. This occurs when there is movement in the symphysis pubis, and a misalignment of the pelvis. It leads to pain in the pelvis and groin region. This is usually worse on standing, walking, climbing stairs, getting in and out of a car and activities that involve having the weight on one leg. Pilates can help by strengthening the core (above the pelvis) and the thigh and bum muscles (below the pelvis). These strengthening exercises effectively help the body support the pelvis and take the pressure off. This can happen in pregnancy, during labour or after birth.

Pilates with Priya: The Pelvis

Top Tips: Your local obstetric physiotherapist may be able to help with misalignment. Then use Pilates specific exercises to help strengthen and maintain the correct posture and position.

3. Hunched Posture:

Being pregnant means heavier breasts, a bump and often rounded shoulder to compensate for the heavier load. Having a baby means you end up leaning forward a lot to play, pick up, feed and change your little one. Carrying a baby around leads to tense shoulders and feeding can be awful for the posture too. Having a rounded upper back leads to tight shoulders and neck, tight hamstrings, weak gluteals (bum) and tummy muscles. It also doesn’t look great.

Top Tips: Keep checking your posture in the mirror, think about it when you feed and carry baby. Make posture part of your everyday awareness.

For specific exercises and more top tips try “Beyond Your Bump”

Fit Pro Award of Excellence

Priya Tew

Priya-Tew large FB banner

Somehow, and I really am not sure how, but Somehow I’ve made it through to the semi-finals of the Fit Pro Awards. Now I’m just little me, running my little Pilates business around my family. We have over 100 people through our door every week and now have 3 other instructors teaching for us, taking us up to 19 classes, 3 antenatal, 2 postnatal, 1 step, 1 ballet and 12 normal Pilates classes with 1-2-1 session too. Life is busy!

I love my job, in fact I love it so much I taught throughout my pregnancy, literally up to the end and then was back teaching my postnatal class 3 weeks after having baby. Pilates helps my body and I love imparting the knowledge and showing others how it can help them. We have a lot of laughter in our studio and a lot of hard work too. Behind the scenes there are many late nights, a lot of admin, reading and practice!

I’m delighted to have made it through to the semi-finals, PLEASE help me get to the finals by voting for me and writing a review about us.

VOTE HERE

Priya-Tew email