Pilates with Priya | Pilates with Priya

When should I stop my normal pre-pregnancy exercise routine?

30 July, 2025 Priya Tew

We get a lot of emails from pregnant ladies who are worried about losing their fitness whilst pregnant. They have been working out and love their current exercise routine but obviously want to look after the baby too. Well the best way to look after baby and yourself is to keep exercising but modify as you progress through pregnancy.

Years ago, the advice was for pregnancy ladies to stop all exercise and to pretty much go on bed rest. Then this changed to a focus on only low impact exercise. However now we know from the recent research that exercise in pregnancy is a good thing, but that pregnant ladies tend to reduce their exercise. In the first trimester the advice is that you shouldn’t take up a NEW form of exercise, but this seems to sometime get misconstrued into “I must not exercise”. What this advice actually means is “Keep doing your normal exercise routine as much as you can/feel ok to do so”. Of course the nausea, tiredness and pregnancy hormones may mean you find exercising harder than normal, but some ladies do find doing exercise can help them through this trimester.

A study on over 1,000 pregnant ladies showed the rate pf physical activity was lower in pregnancy (20.1%) and that less than half received exercise advice in pregnancy (47.4%). Yes, when you are pregnant it is absolutely important to look after the baby, but part of that is looking after your own body so it is strong, fit and able to cope with not just the demands of pregnancy but of being a mum. Carrying, lifting, feeding, rocking and crawling after a small person is pretty tough on the body.

So can you continue your normal exercise routine? Yes to an extent. You will need to seek advice and modify some things. I was teaching spin until 7 months pregnant with my first baby and I taught Step Aerobics until 2 days before baby 1 and 1 week before baby 2. Through my 3rd pregnancy daily Pilates and functional work kept me strong and sane. Maybe surprisingly (or not) doing more Pilates and functional work lead to the pregnancy with the least aches and complications and a simple homebirth. So I’m not saying that you need to be running or cross-fitting your way through pregnancy, but that many forms of exercise can be adapted for you to continue whilst pregnant.

I have ladies who have run through pregnancy, who have continued to lift weights and to do modified cross fit. For all these ladies they have naturally tapered their levels of impact and exertion down as needed. Running may become a slow job with some walking, weights can be lighter and the range of movement smaller, cross fit moves can have some of the impact taken out.

All exercise needs to have a strong core as a foundation, this is even more important in pregnancy and postally. So for me, Pilates is essential as part of an exercise routine, but it doesn’t have to be the only thing you do. Having said that, it could be! Our pregnancy classes include whole body functional movements such as lunges, squats, wall press ups and wall planks that ensure our mums are working those global muscles as well as the core. It isn’t all breathing!

The 4 keys:

1. Listen to your body. When you feel hot, tired or just not right then stop.
2. Seek the advice of a trained exercise professional who knows their stuff. Someone who knows about pregnancy and if they don’t knows where to get help.
3. Expect to make modifications.
4. Keep your core strong. This is your foundation, with your abdominals being stretched and your pelvic floor taking a heavy load you need to have more focus on this. A specific Pilates class will do this for you or check out our DVD.

Pilates is more than just Exercise.

6 August, 2017 Priya Tew

I feel so totally blessed in my job. Pilates is so much more than just exercise. Yes there are always times I don’t fancy going to teach a class and moments I get that “rather be on the sofa” feeling but on the main I love what I do.

Here is why.

Movement heals and keeps me working.

I’ve taught my way through 3 pregnancies and put my body back together postnatally. The demands of young children and breastfeeding and not sleeping on my body are huge. I’ve been pregnant 3 times in 6 yrs and fed babies now for 4 out of the past 6 1/2 years. A woman’s health Physio told me that the functional movement I do in pilates is what has saved me. It has fixed me and because I move so much it keeps me strong. Without it I know I would have lower back pain, aching shoulders, neck and hips. In short I would be needing massage and Physio!

Pilates is mindful movement.

Mindfulness is so in at the moment. A chance to switch off the thoughts of life outside the studio, of family, of my other quite stressful work and instead focus on breathing and concentrating on controlling body movements. Switching on certain muscles and relaxing others. I always leave with a calmer mind. A calmer mind leads to clearer thoughts.

Community and friendships.

I meet such amazing people. Pilates has built up a fabulous community around us. Having small children can be lonely. Even though you can be out with them in a crowd you don’t always get the chance to talk to adults. Pilates gives me that adult company that I don’t always get in the rest of my day (husband excluded!). I pick up tips, local knowledge and find out what is going on in the world from the chatter in my classes! Friendships have been made in classes but also in 1-1 sessions and our postnatal cuppa sessions. I have made some wonderful connections through this and am super lucky to have added to my mummy friendship circle and also to my supportive friendships through what I do for enjoyment and work.

Pilates practise overspills into my everyday life.

My posture is something I am constantly working on. I totally loved studying but wasn’t aware of my posture in University days and suffered with a very tight upper back, shoulders and neck away. I know now that how I sit, stand and move creates patterns in my body, creates muscle tensions and so working on my shoulder and neck position helps me trendously. It is all about making the subconscious become more conscious.

Having a job that you enjoy is important. Having a job that provides so much more just makes me very lucky. I hope you get more from your pilates practise than just going through the motions.

Top Pilates Buys

25 July, 2017 Priya Tew

Pilates is one of those exercises that can be done on a complete shoe string. You don’t need any fancy equipment or snazzy clothing. You don’t NEED it, but sometimes it helps.

Here are the top 5 Pilates bits and bobs that I wouldn’t be without.

Thick Mat.

Do you need a mat at home? Hmmmm, I would say yes you can do. I sometimes try moves out when prepping for a class and don’t have a mat to hand and it is an altogether different experience. A mat offers a non slip surface and extra cushioning, it offers safety and gives you a set space to exercise on. That extra cushioned mat really makes all the difference for some of the rolling moves and the prone positions. So it is worth investing in a mat you love and a mat that brings you comfort. Personally I would steer away from anything less than an 8mm thick mat. Lots of the yoga mats are quite thin, which from my understanding is to keep you connected to the groud. Pilates is not yoga, you need that extra padding!

We have the Airex Coronella mats in the studio which are not cheap, but you can get a decent one on Amazon for a good price if you search for a thick pilates mat.

Toesox.

Now people who know me will know I’m always in my toesox for class. Why? They provide a great balance of grip for exercises like planks, yet let your feet slide along the mat for other moves. The toe separation thing looks weird and initially feels weird, but spreading those toes can help with your alignment and enables you to get better feedback through your foot. Normal socks constrict the toes so they cannot move normally. Foot issues can be linked to back pain and affect the rest of the body so it’s a great foundation to focus on. If you get weirded out by the toes then go for a lightly grippy soled sock. Either way socks are best for a lot of Pilates moves, it’s not just us being fussy in the studio with our sock rule 😉

If you are local to us then we stock these in our studio, or you can buy online from Pilates Mad and use the code PRIYATOESOX for 10% off.

Spikey ball.

These babies are amazing. Pop one in your bag and you can give yourself a massage wherever you are! Great on the feet, shoulders, neck and bum but can be used all over.

Good quality leggings.

Now I’m all for a bargain in life. But I’ve learnt now, pilates leggings need to be good leggings and it’s worth spending a bit more on them and checking them regularly. I see lots of leggings that are see through or have holes! One of my teaching friends uses the hashtag #leggingsarenottrousers which I agree with to an extent. If you have decent leggings then they can be passable on the school run too. Plus if you have fancy leggings life is just that bit better – or is that just me?!

I am an ambassador for Elle Sport and you can get 20% off using code 20PTAW16 (including sale items). I also particularly like the range over at Tikiboo

Resistance Band.

So versatile and great for stretching as well as adding resistance to those pilates moves. This is one great piece of kit as a band folds up so small so you can take it away with you on trips. Really useful for stretching your hamstrings after travelling or a day of sitting. Also fabulous for toning the arms and for adding variety to a range of pilates exercises. You can pick these up online pretty easily or come to the studio and we have a stock of them.

I’d love to know what pieces of Pilates kit you love…

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Are my hip flexors tight or weak?

13 July, 2017 Priya Tew

The hip flexors are a complex group of muscles that play a huge role in posture, pilates and day to day life. They are also a muscle that I often see people struggling with when undertaking curl up, roll ups, sitting up and any exercises with the legs in the air!

By Beth ohara – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=545389

What are they are where are they?

The hip flexors are the:

Psoas

Iliacus

Sartorius

Tensor Fascia Latae

Rectus Femoris

Pectineus

Adductor Brevis

So a whole host of muscles. They attach to the vertebrae of the lower back, the inside of the femur in the top of the thigh, the hip bone and some run down the inner thigh.

These muscles interact with each other, so if one is tight or weak it can affect the others. The same goes if one is too strong or overstretched. Ideally we want these muscles to be at the correct strength, length and position.

What happens if these muscles are not working optimally?

The peso and iliacus are commonly know together as the iliopsoas. These muscles stabilise the spine and if out of balance they can affect your posture. A tight iliopsoas causes an anterior tilt of the pelvis (bum sticks out behind you and a curved lower back). This can result in lower back pain and pelvis issues.

A weak or long iliopsoas can mean the pelvis is pushed too far forward (posterior tilt). The person may feel the hamstrings are tights and pull and the lower back weak.

Testing:

Try this out at home. Lie down on the floor with legs outstretched. Hug a knee into your chest. Now you are in a posterior pelvic tilt. If the iliopsoas is of optimal length the leg stays on the mat and knee stays down on the mat. If the foot flops out to the side or the knee lifts up it is tight.

Signs in class:

The hip flexors can try to take over and do the work of the core in certain exercises.

For example if your legs lift up off the mat in a roll up or your legs lower and ache in a teaser.

To fix this it is a case of going back to basics. Strengthen the core more and mobilise the lower abdominals by using a half roll up. Use a band for a teaser and focus on working through the spine going back down to the mat. To strengthen the hip flexors practise those knee folds and any exercise with the legs in the air. To rest the hip flexors practise being in neutral letting go of any tension and just being there for 5 minutes or try out some of the hip flexor stretches – there are so many of these so find one you like and be consistent with it.

I’m going to be focusing on this in class for the next few weeks. Join me on the mat!

Children’s Pilates is Starting!

6 June, 2017 Priya Tew

After much nudging and poking from my own daughter and other mummies, I’ve finally taken the plunge to put on a children’s Pilates class. My own girl loves Pilates and often asks to come into a class. She actually really gets the concept of it and it helps her move more, stretch and slow her busy mind down too.

Theses classes will be focused on partner work, posture, stretching, functional movements and chilling out. Mindfulness is the buzz word right now, we will be using body movements in a calm, flowing way to relax the mind and hopefully the children will really benefit from this and sleep well!

Get in touch if your child would like to come along.

Pilates for Dancers – Dance Circle Day.

4 June, 2017 Priya Tew

What an honour to be asked to teach at the first Southampton Dance Circle Day on May 30th 2017. This was an event run by local dance teachers, all working together to put on a great event for any children in their dance schools and in the local area. I love the collaborative nature of this, the non-competitiveness and the sheer passion the teachers all have.

Pilates is well known to have amazing benefits for dancers. Joseph Pilates himself worked dancers and in fact for a while Pilates was taken over by the dance world. So without a doubt Pilates can help children in dance too. I was excited and slightly nervous to see how a Pilates class would go down in a day of other exciting dance classes. I was part of an amazing line up including: Ballet/Contemporary with Louis McMiller (Royal Ballet Grad), Contemporary with Amy J Ireland, Musical Theatre with Sarah Evans (recommended by West End Star Ricky Rojas), Tap with Viki (trained with Tap Attack), Hip Hop with Cesa Hijo de Lalan.

The children there were a pleasure to be with. The older ones really worked hard and I could see them taking what I was saying on board. I was able to push them quite hard and they even posed nicely for the local paper!

The middle group of children had the definite mid afternoon slump session and so Pilates was great for them as they got a little lie down and some super stretching was done.

The tiny ones were super cute to teach, I could have cuddled them all! At the end of a very busy and active day a few were almost asleep but they gave such concentration to the class, I was super impressed.

Thankyou so much for asking me to come along and teach, I hope the children enjoyed it. Some of the feedback that I have heard so far is it made some of them feel all calm and relaxed, which is a good thing in my book! Maybe we should add in some mindfulness next time too.

Next Dance Circle Day is October half term. I know I will be booking my girl on it.

If you are interested in a Children’s Pilates class then do get in touch, we are launching one soon!

Pilates at Riverfest

30 May, 2017 Priya Tew

May bank holiday weekend is festival weekend. Well in Southampton anyway. Whilst Common People had all the big names over on the Common, our local park, Riverside Park, had it’s own first festival called Riverfest. This was a wonderful event that brought together so many from our local community and worked to highlight our local businesses, science, arts and celebrate our river and park.

With music from many bands (my fav being the Southampton Ukelele Jam), puppet shows, stalls, cafe’s, spoken word, fruit and vegetables, scientific experiments, boating, whisking (swapping of items you no longer need), yoga and of course, pilates.

This was the first time I’d taught Pilates outside. I’d often thought about it, Pilates in the Park sounds fabulous, but a studio with a comfortable floor, mirrors and easy access to equipment is always easier! We bundled some mats up into our pram and set off to the park with the whole family to give it a whirl. Setting out mats on the grass instantly attracted lots of children, so I actually ended up teaching quite a few small people. It was so nice to see them get involved and enjoy it, showing their parents what to do. I think we need a children’s class added to our studio timetable now!

The event had a real community spirit to it. It was lovely to see so many people (about 4,000 attended) come along, lots we knew, lots who knew who we were. It showed the local talent and amazing businesses we have.

So would I teach Pilates outside again? Totally YES. It obviously presents its challenges, but it was such a beautiful setting and so nice to be in the fresh air doing our thing.

The research into Pilates and Mental Health.

24 April, 2017 Priya Tew

There seems to be an obvious link between Pilates helping people wind down, relax, sleep better and reduce their stress levels. Just the act of slowing down your breathing, movements and bringing more awareness into your body is such a helpful principle. I love checking out the actual science on these things, so I’ve had a little search around and found a few articles. Here is a summary.

Pilates helps your brain function:

30 volunteers had their cognitive function tested after a yoga class, a treadmill workout and a baseline assessment. After the yoga session their cognitive function was significantly improved. This sounds like it would also translate over to Pilates. So Pilates could help keep your brain working, it definitely makes you think hard about what you are doing and teaches you a new skill.

Pilates and Mood:

There is a specific Pilates study on just over 300 subjects comparing Pilates and a “special recreation” exercise class which was a class suited to the subjects exercise ability and needs. This showed that Pilates led to a better ability to regulate mood, a more relaxed state and a better sense of wellbeing.

Taking this to look specifically depression a group of 146 women followed a 16 week Pilates programme. Depression scores were measured before and after, showing that Pilates lowered depression.

So Pilates is not just great for core strength, for all over body conditioning and for helping rehabilitate after injury. It is also helpful for keeping you mentally alert and is a great way to help regulate your mood.

Can pilates help with mental health?

24 April, 2017 Priya Tew

People normally start doing pilates with us because they have a bad back, want to gain more core strength or are pregnant. However Pilates has more benefits than just the physical ones. Joseph Pilates believed mental and physical health were closely connected and I think this is one area we need to explore further in this busy world where levels of depression are high.

I know for myself, teaching Pilates is the best job. After a stressful time in my other work as a dietitian or as a mummy, I get to chill out in a relaxed, beautiful space and teach a calm, mindful class. Focusing on your breathing, your body movements and your muscles is part of mindfulness so you can instantly see why Pilates has more benefits than just the physical ones. One statement I heard this week was “I always sleep best on a Thursday after Pilates”. I can see why that is. Pilates helps you slow down your pace of life, move your thoughts from work, home and stress to your body and draw plenty of oxygen into your muscles, using deep, thoracic breathing.

Mindfulness is a therapy that is being used for all kinds of mental health conditions now. A definition of it is: “a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.” It uses compassion and breathing to help you to let go of negative thoughts, stress and even pain. The similarities to Pilates are easy to spot. Even if you went to a Pilates class and did nothing except lie on the mat and breath you would feel some benefits for your mood and stress relief.

So there seems to be an obvious link between Pilates and mental health. One thing I always want to know is what is the evidence? Has there been any actual research done? There is actually quite a lot that shows a link between Pilates improving your mood, lowering stress and helping with cognitive function.

Look out for my next blog post that looks at the research.

RUNA Review

6 April, 2017 Priya Tew

Disclaimer – I was sent these clothes to review, all views are my own.

My days tend to go from school runs to pilates sessions to being a dietitian and seeing patients, then back to the school run and more pilates. So I either have to change clothes multiple times a day or have multi-functional clothes.

The lovely team at RUNA sent me some of their clothes to review and having initially been intrigued about how a dress could be used as fitness apparell, I’ve now been converted. One of their website statements is “Designed for life”, which is what I need. These dresses are stretchy enough to be used when I am teaching a 1-2-1 Pilates session and fitted enough to look great over leggings for the school run or for a meeting. I can easily see these becoming my staple wardrobe for the days when I do a bit of everything! The material is soft and dries fast too.

Prints and patterned leggings are popular right now and I could easily have a legging addiction brewing. What I love about Runa’s leggings is they have a very different pattern and look to the rest of the market. Each piece is inspired by a different location such as Dubai which gives them a grown up, sophisicated look. I have had quite a few positive comments about them, saying how different they are.

You can find the brand here or on Instagram: @runa_ldn

Tag: Pilates with Priya