You may wonder what a post on Pilates is doing in a lifestyle blog for woman over 30. In my experience, a large part of feeling confident and sassy is tied up with how you feel about your body.
Now, a (childless) friend of mine has remarked that you can’t blame everything on having kids. I would beg to differ! One of the real downsides of having kids is the rubber jelly ring it can leave you with. I’ve not got enough will power to do stomach crunches every day to remove it.
Which is part of the reason I’ve been doing pilates (off and on) now for nearly 12 years. It’s an amazing form of exercise if you struggle, like me, with hypermobile joints or a bad back. Whilst it’s health benefits are pretty good, if you do Pilates regularly, it can help you get back a lean, toned feminine figure. I can attribute the start of the merest hint of a 4-pack to my weekly pilates sessions.
Now you may be wondering what do people wear when they go to a pilates class – after all, you don’t want to stand out like a sore thumb in your first class. Let me put your mind at rest. Pilates classes are full of real women, of all shapes and sizes. Yes, really. Most classes are almost exclusively female – so you need not worry about any men leering at you while you work out.
Pilates is not like aerobics – it is not a sweat-fest. Yes, you may do a few exercises which get your heart rate pumping – but these exercises are in the minority. Now, before you think that Pilates is an easy option, it’s not. You can take Pilates at your own level and pace – however, I can tell you now, my core always aches after my Pilates class. Any way, back to the subject of what to wear to a pilates class.
The first thing that needs to go into your sports bag, is your sports bra. Pilates is a low impact form of exercise, so whilst you will need a sports bra, it doesn’t need to be of the armour plated type – and the Nike Victory Shape Sports Bra is perfect for what you need.
Pilates does involve lots of stretching and bending over. Therefore, if you are wearing loose-fitting trousers, shorts or tracksuit bottoms, then please don’t wear your thong. I’m telling you, from experience, it’s not a great look for the people behind you…. Throughout the pilates class you will be working your abdominals, and your pelvic floor muscles. So, avoid any knickers or pants which can be classed as contour-smoothing shape wear.
I personally don’t wear socks when I do pilates. However, I am probably the only person in my class who doesn’t wear socks. I like to be able to feel exactly what is going on, and being barefoot allows me to check that I have my weight equally balanced across my foot. I find I get better grip for some of the balances if I am not wearing socks.
These Yoga-Mad Half Toesox socks, with their added grip on the bottom of the soles, are quite popular in my pilates class.
The million dollar question, is what do you wear on your top and bottom half over your underwear? Really that’s up to you – as long as it is loose-fitting and comfortable and doesn’t restrict your movement, then go for it. I personally love these Tribal Earth Cotton Yoga Trousers. They come in a multitude of colours and offer complete freedom of movement. If you are short, or have short legs avoid the capri pants or cropped leggings look, as this will make your legs look even shorter.
You may be thinking, what shoes should I wear for Pilates? The good news is that pilates is done barefoot or in socks…