Pilates

  Pilates is a movement modality that focuses on core stabilization, breathing, and deliberate movements to support increased strength, range of motion, and mind-body awareness.  Pilates can be a useful tool in helping people develop a better understanding of their body, how to work with, and feel empowered in the body that they exist within. Spring-loaded equipment provides feedback to the body to offer safe, grounded movement, which helps develop awareness of muscle engagement and movement patterns. This awareness can assist in integrating individual parts back into the whole and lead to better overall functioning of the body systems.

  Just like the mind, the body can get stuck in unsupportive patterns and sometimes needs a little guidance to find its way back.  There are a variety of ways to encourage this, depending on the needs of the body. Pilates is an integrative movement system, in that it asks for focus and intention on the mind, body and breath working together to find control and support in movement.  It asks nothing but the present moment, and that is where we are able to make changes. When we are able to make those deep connections with our mind and body, it creates new neuropathways that support a more embodied experience. 

    Pilates is versatile and is able to meet the needs of any body, no matter the age, level of physical activity or body awareness. It is supportive for all types of needs such as coming out of surgery or injury, pre or post-partum, strength and mobility training, as well as maintaing healthy, functional movement patterns throughout the changes of life. Pilates and mindful movement can also be a helpful tool in supporting mental health and chronic illnesses, aid in processing emotions or tensions stored in the body, and complementary to other support modalities such as therapy, bodywork, reiki, when working to heal from trauma or long term stress.