Pilates for Beginners

There is something about Yoga that doesn’t quite work for me.  I am not sure what it is.  But when I take the time to do a workout I would like to feel like I did something productive with my body. I never get that “I just worked out hard” feeling from Yoga and that’s not really what Yoga is all about.

However I like the stretching aspects of it and looked for an alternative.  Then I was introduced to Pilates. It really makes a difference in the way you stand and the way your body carries itself.  As soon as I started doing Pilates, people actually asked me if I got taller.

I started out with a fantastic DVD for beginners, which in my opinion is crucial for Pilates to start out by learning some basic moves.

I settled on Pilates Beginning Mat Workout which is part of the Living Arts Series.  They also have Yoga workouts as well.  I really loved this DVD for a few reasons…

The instructor’s name is Ana Caban and she is terrific.  I get irked easily by peppy instructors who act corny or do moves as if everyone in the free world is made of elastic.  Ana does everything in a very down to earth manner and she explains everything extremely well. There is also a modified version of most moves so you can work your way up to the full positions which was key for me since I was starting out with very limited flexibility.

If you are looking into trying Pilates, this is a great place to start.  I know there are a zillion others that are just as good and I plan on trying and reviewing those as well. (Well maybe not all zillion of them, but I’ll try. Joelle likes Winsor Pilates so maybe I’ll try that next.)

The only negative I can come up with is that after doing it for about a week it starts to feel a little slow, like you want to skip ahead. But once you get stronger you can move on to the Intermediate Mat Workout with Ana Caban which I am still trying to master.  Although I would not be able to do this one without the foundation of the beginner DVD.

I give this 4 donuts.