"Pilates is slow and boring".
I always chuckle when I hear this from people. I smile and acknowledge it but rarely comment much.
Yesterday I came upon a facebook post by a Pilates Teacher in America who had gone to a workshop with Jay Grimes. It made me smile as through my own Pilates education I have found when clients have their first class with me they are often surprised by how vigorous the class is!
Jay Grimes is a Pilates elder. He studied with Joseph & Clara Pilates in the 60's and teaches Pilates as it was taught to him. It is this that has made his own studio Vintage Pilates and training workshops much sought after within our Pilates community.
Jay Grimes has much to say on Pilates with one story in which Mr Pilates did pushups on a client's stomach while he was exercising to get the person to scoop more! Have no fear I won't be doing that to anybody!
The main points I took from this facebook post was that Jay Grimes repeated over and over that:
Pilates is exercise
Pilates is HARD EXERCISE.
Pilates is meant to be challenging
Pilates is meant to make you sweat
So perhaps if you hear someone say they find Pilates boring and too gentle send them my way and smile knowing that after a class with me they will have exercised been challenged built up a sweat and had a workout as Joseph Pilates intended!