Revisiting yoga and Pilates (#12before50)

I’m on a quest to try 12 new things before I turn the big 5-0 in June next year.

So far, I’ve embraced meditation and paddle boarding. This month, I’ve bent the rules a little (because I can) and, instead of something completely new, I opted to refresh and revamp my exercise routine.

If you caught up with my health update post last week, you’ll have seen me mention that I’ve continued with my yoga practice and also re-visited and reacquainted myself with Pilates.

Often a habit needs a change up. Our bodies and minds get used to the same routine and we no longer get the full benefits we were getting from said routine.

I realised before our trip to Hawaii that a couple of changes in yoga teachers at my studio meant that I was not enjoying it as much as I had been. And my body was copping a pounding from one teacher that was never meant for my 49-year-old body.

I knew something had to change. I couldn’t sit back, wait and hope that the teachers would.

So, I made the decision to mix it up and that’s just what I’ve done since mid-July.

Thirteen years ago I first fell in love with Pilates. I loved that you spent most of the class lying down on your back yet before you knew it, muscle definition appears from seemingly nowhere.

I did Pilates in the lead up to our wedding and then continued throughout my pregnancy. It all fell by the wayside once the youngest was born as I didn’t have baby or kid-free time except for when I was at work.

Earlier this year, I’d received a flyer from Body Smart – exercised physiologists also offering reformer Pilates classes just down the road from my home. I dug out that flyer last month, emailed for my initial one-on-one consult and haven’t looked back.

For non-Pilates people among us, Reformer classes involve the use of a machine that looks like a torture device – a torture device that you could easily fall or spring off at any time.

But you won’t. If I don’t, I can assure you you’re safe.

Pilates is like the silent assassin of strength building. You may think your legs are going to know about it the next day because you’ve done eleventy billion jump board exercises but it’s just as likely your core and glutes are going to also scream at you.

The classes have a maximum of six people in them, so you really do feel like you get the posture correction that you need to get the full benefits of Pilates. As a bonus, my health fund also offers a rebate. Winning.

In just a month, I’m feeling stronger and feel that the classes are a really good complement to yoga.

Now … yoga. I’ve become a bit of an addict over the past three years and I didn’t want to lose that just because the teachers and studio weren’t a good match for me.

I tell you, when you put it out there, the woowoo does deliver. I was invited to experience the new yoga studio/day spa/wholefood cafe in my ‘hood – Ground Collective.

It was a planets-aligning free Saturday between seemingly year-long Saturday sport commitments (the youngest, not mine). I headed along to a yoga class, followed by half an hour in the infrared sauna and brunch in The Common cafe.

That was it. In just more than two hours, I felt at home and immediately signed up for a 10-class pass (the bonus being five free coffees and unlimited infrared and steam room visits).

So, while I haven’t done something totally new this month. I HAVE shaken things up.

I say that’s always a good idea.

Have you tried yoga or Pilates? Have you tried anything new in the past month?

{If you do join in this 12 month challenge and want to share your new things each month, leave a comment in the comments section below – you can share a photo there or a link if you’ve also written about it on a blog or social media post.}