When I think of Pilates, I picture a room full of middle-aged moms on yoga mats with expensive leggings, sports bras and matching ponytails. They mimic the instructor’s movements, perfectly in sync, and then afterward they go for brunch at some trendy new spot and joke about how they earned their bottomless mimosas. I participated in my first class at Swinney Rec Center last week for Plants and Pilates and, while some of it matched up with what I expected, it was more fun and less anxiety-inducing than I imagined.
In Pilates, the focus is on strengthening certain muscles and then relaxing them. Yoga, which I have more experience with (but not much), can help you relax, but it’s more about flexibility. Many of the same moves are used in both, but with a different emphasis. I expected the overlap between the two, but Pilates was harder for me because it required using muscles that I normally don’t use.
I’ve never been to the gym to work out. Any gym. I love hiking, kayaking and walks around the neighborhood, but I hate seeing people that I know when I’m sweaty. My fear about the gym has always been that I’ll get there, not know how to use a piece of equipment or end up straining a muscle and then be forced to exit in humiliation. However, as someone who’s converted all of the window space in her room into a makeshift greenhouse, plants are a powerful motivator. It also helped that my sister and I decided to go to the class together.
I don’t own much athletic clothing. I have multiple pairs of hiking boots and sandals, but only one pair of usable leggings and a single sports bra that I got on sale at Pink two years ago. For the class, I opted for my singular pair of black leggings and a black tank top. Flashy athletic wear is fun, but I was happy to blend into the background this time around.
We got to class just before it started and picked two mats in the back corner of the room. Pilates mats are more padded than the yoga mats I’ve used before, which I was grateful for when we planked five times. I don’t have a great sense of balance or coordination, so I struggled to find my center in the beginning and didn’t know where to shift the weight on my hands. By the end, my form was stronger and I could hold for ten seconds without wavering. This might not sound like a lot, but I was proud of myself for any gradual improvement –– and impressed with my own attitude in favoring growth over perfection.
Some of the other students were much better than me and others were also beginners, but we all took turns laughing at our own mistakes and trying to copy whoever had the best stance. We were too focused on our own poses to pass judgment on anyone else.
If you also have difficulty motivating yourself to go to the gym, for whatever reason, start small! Pick one class to sign up for and go from there. It helps to have a partner, but you don’t need to be afraid of going solo, either. You can even win prizes! The third-annual Best Roo Wellness Challenge will open for registration Feb. 1. Follow @umkcrec for more updates and register here.