BACK IN ACTION

from Sherborne Times February 2023

WINTER WARMERS

Emma Marfé, Stott Pilates Certified Instructor, Communifit

Aspinal surgeon once gave me an ultimatum: either surgery or steroid injections. I pleaded for an option that didn’t require something being stuck into my spine. I know surgery can be the best option in some cases but I am a big wimp.

Suffering from a herniated disc in my lower back, I had not been able to stand up without help and had hobbled into the consulting room gripping the surgeon’s hand for support. We discuss the possibility of physiotherapy and exercise. ‘The trouble is,’ he said, ‘too often people don’t stick to it, so it doesn’t work.’ I resolve that this will not be me.

I start following my physiotherapist’s advice. I was hoping for a massage and some stretches – instead, it was strengthening exercises three times a day before moving on to Pilates exercise sessions. Soon I could get out of a chair without screaming – a vast improvement! My back pain eases and my body is in better shape than it has been for ages. My confidence grows and I start enjoying other forms of exercise too.

Over the past almost 20 years, I have used Pilates to relax from a stressful job, rebuild my core strength after the birth of my daughter, recover from back issues because of carrying around said daughter and reach my fitness goals.

Pilates is regularly associated with helping to alleviate lower back pain and there is a long list of other benefits. Here are some I have experienced myself:

• A stronger core and stronger all over

• Developing longer, leaner muscles

• Greater flexibility and feeling more mobile

• Better sleep

• Better mental health

• Being more resistant to injury

• A better understanding of and control of my own body Joseph Pilates (1883-1967) developed ‘Contrology’ which has become the Pilates method. Pilates himself

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07854 163869 help@sherbornefoodbank.org overcame the impact of serious childhood illness by taking up exercise. It worked. He became a gymnast, a bodybuilder, a martial artist, a skilled diver and a skier, studying movement and exercise in all its forms. Joseph and his wife Clara went on to set up a studio in New York City with a loyal following. communifit.co.uk

Pilates has now grown into a worldwide phenomenon and is being hailed as the hottest fitness trend of 2023. The exercises are done with just a mat or with large apparatus such as a reformer (a bed-like frame invented by Pilates). They draw on a wide variety of other exercise regimens and philosophies to assist and challenge the body to its full potential.

Each class and instructor are different but we all follow the Pilates principles of breath, concentration, centring, control, precision and flow. Each exercise embraces these principles from the dynamic ‘hundred’ that focuses on abdominal strength to the controlled side bend – an elegant challenging take on a side plank. Each exercise can be modified to suit an individual’s ability, be it rehabilitation or an elite athlete looking for the edge in their chosen sport from football to cricket, to running to horse riding.

Pilates is for everyone – we really do mean everyone. All ages, all genders, all abilities, all shapes and sizes. For an exercise method invented by a man who was known to enjoy whiskey and cigars and may have used his experience in an internment camp during World War I to develop his exercise method, it is surprising we often equate Pilates as something for younger female celebrities in expensive gym gear. In reality, Pilates benefits a wide variety of people.

So with Pilates (and exercise more generally) becoming more accessible to all, we can feel welcome in a safe space and set goals on our own terms.