Any Body's Pilates Offers March Matness!

Come play March Matness with Any Body's Pilates! 

We are offering a promotion for the month of March -- 10 Mat Classes for $125! Clients may purchase the series at any time, but all 10 classes must be completed between March 1-31, 2015 (any remaining sessions will be forfeited April 1). If you already have a regularly priced Mat Series with us, you may pause it to participate in Mat Matness and resume at the end of March. 

At Any Body's Pilates we offer Mat classes focused on personalized instruction. There are NO yoga mats on the floor -- all clients are on raised, leather upholstery Mats.  Our classes are Mon through Sat with a variety of times -- early, late and midday, to fit various schedules. We add classes to the schedule as needed, so if our schedule doesn't fit yours, please tell us what would and we may be able to add more.

 Since we limit our Mat Classes to a maximum of 4 clients, we strongly recommend registering for class in advance to reserve your space. Registration can be made online, via our FREE mobile app ("MindBody Connect"), Email, text or calling the studio (843.732.3228). 

Why Take Mat Class at a Pilates Studio?

Joseph Pilates designed his exercises for the Mat - it is THE original Pilates apparatus. to help WWI veterans and others who had difficulty with the mat exercises, he began developing Pilates apparatus to create resistance using springs and pulleys. While exercises may seem different with Pilates equipment, they are all related, and all relate back to the Mat exercises.

Mat classes are accessible to all -- at home, while traveling, outdoors, at the gym or in a

Pilates studio. Mat exercises are challenging -- clients use their body weight and gravity for resistance and have nothing to hold onto or guide them. One can appear to be doing an exercise correctly, but still be missing the Pilates goal.

It can be difficult to learn Pilates from a DVD or TV show. Watching a screen while doing the exercise almost guarantees your body is out of alignment and it can be difficult to follow along in time. Many don't provide enough modifications. There is no instructor to correct your form, provide a modification just for you, or assist you in understanding the goal of the exercise, which can lead to frustration, unnecessary soreness, or potential injury.

Classes at a gym may be taught by a group fitness instructor who may not have much training in Pilates. Often, these instructors perform the exercises with the class which creates the same difficulties as trying to learn Pilates while watching a DVD. 

In a Pilates studio, you should receive personalized attention in the form of specific verbal and touch cues, form correction, assistance in understanding and achieving a particular skill or exercise, as well as modifications specific to your needs. Once you've mastered the principles and form, taking class at the gym or following a DVD is a great way to reinforce and practice more often, because you'll be able to follow the verbal instructions. 

Try taking a Mat class at a studio and see what a difference it can make to your workout and understanding of the exercises and Pilates principles.

Pilates Can Help with Lower Back Pain

A research study published in Clinical Rehabilitation focused on people with chronic lower back pain and concluded that improvements in pain, function and quality of life were improved in a 90 day period compared to those who did no exercises.

Researchers from Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo in Sao Paolo, conducted a study with 60 patients who suffered from chronic, non-specific lower back pain. The researchers split the patients into an experimental and a control group. The experimental group practiced Pilates twice per week for 50 minutes over a 90 day period. Both groups continued with non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Results showed that Pilates participants improved in pain, function and quality of life and used less pain medication. 

The researchers' conclusion:
"The pilates method can be used by patients with lower back pain (LBP) to improve pain, function and aspects related to quality of life (functional capacity, pain and vitality). Moreover, this method has no harmful effects on such patients."