With city dwellers seemingly living increasingly-hectic lifestyles, it's essential to try and develop and maintain a healthy mind and body.
While long established as an additional activity complimentary to yoga and dance classes, these unique forms of exercise, created in the 1920s by German native Joseph Pilates, have really come into their own over recent years.
One good reason to check out Pilates classes at the Pilates Studio located at Mahutun Plaza is that it currently offers a free trial session. A 'first timer's' class is a form of orientation for people who have absolutely no experience of Pilates. This allows new students to familiarize themselves with the basics and practice the all important breathing techniques.
We'll now look at a slightly more challenging 'beginner's' class to get a closer insight into the various exercises involved in Pilates programs. Beginners' classes are for people who have already taken a first timer's class.
Control and focus
This one-hour session mostly involves lying down on a mat, on which you work on your posture and breathing techniques.
The basic warm-up exercises and more challenging aspects that follow will need your full concentration to achieve the required level of control. Each exercise may have its own appropriate breathing pattern, which the instructor helps you to develop in line with each movement. Indeed, breathing is an important focus throughout the course as it's thought to release tension and can help direct energy to the right areas of the body.
While still horizontal, you then get to use some Pilates equipment, including a circular resistance device, a foam roller, and a two-foot-long cylinder. The circular device is either placed between your knees or ankles. You press on the circle using either your knees or ankles in time with your breathing cycle. While this sounds simple enough, it requires quite a bit of effort to complete the exercise.
The foam roller device is even more intriguing. While remaining horizontal on your back, you have to try and remain still while positioned on the roller, which seems to easily roll away if you're not careful.
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At this point, it becomes easier to understand how each Pilates exercise works on a particular group of muscles. While using the foam roller you may find you're expected to focus on muscles within the back, shoulders, or stomach.
Post session, particularly during the following morning, you may feel a certain amount of stiffness due to the concentrated level of work carried out on the body's core muscles, which Pilates instructors refer to as the 'powerhouse'.
The Pilates exercise methods focus on strengthening deeper muscle groups, concentrating on alignment and creating a balanced 'whole' body, according to Or-yah Avni, the managing director of Pilates Studio.
The Pilates method is also a well-established form of rehabilitation, which is used in hospitals and clinics, and by therapists worldwide since it is said to improve circulation, balance, and can boost the immune system.
For those interested in developing their knowledge and use of Pilates, the Pilates Studio offers classes with spring resistance machines, such as the Cadillac, reformer, and the Wunda chair. People who are suffering with injuries should first consult their physician and inform an instructor before considering participation in a Pilates class.
For further information about Pilates Studio's Pilates classes, call Tel: +66 (0)2 650 7797, or visit http://www.pilates.co.th.
All photos courtesy of The Pilates Studio.
Transport connections:
Train: The quickest way of reaching the Pilates Studio is to take the BTS skytrain to Ploenchit station. Head for the exit nearest to Mahatun Plaza and you'll see the studio about 100 meters away on the right.
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Lifestyle
Whether it's traversing the relatively cosmopolitan “urban free-for-all” that is Bangkok, with its trendy malls, urban wellness centers and posh fitness centers, or perhaps traversing the wild trails outside city limits, explore activities to suit your lifestyle.
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