Pilates, Yes or No

I am having to change my lifestyle quite a lot at the moment due to my back! Before I broke my back I did very little exercise as I don't really like it and I have always been naturally skinny but now i'm having to do a lot more. I aim to go swimming at least twice a week if not more which I love doing and always have done, I find it such an easy way to exercise and work every muscle in your body! BUT last week I had to try something new, Pilates! My physio told me just before Christmas that I was strong enough to start doing Pilates which would be a great benefit to me. I have always fancied it but never really looked into it. Although this is all to help my back I am now determined to tone up a bit in the process and Pilates seems to be the right way to go!

So many celebrities have admitted that they do Pilates on a regular basis, including Victoria Secret model Miranda Kerr who said to prepare for the 2013 she had green juice, protein shakes and did intense Pilates.

I started to become more interested in just how much this could change my body which only made me more excited! So which celebrities do Pilates to keep themselves toned... 

Elle Macpherson 

Jennifer Aniston 

Vanessa Hudgens

Megan Fox

and Miranda Kerr

Two thing all these women have in common? Flat stomachs and amazing bodies = my aim!

So anyway last week I had my first class and it was great! I just wore black leggings and a baggy white Topshop top but Stella McCartney does some gorgeous pieces of active-wear for Adidas if you fancy looking a bit more stylish. I can see how it gets you in such good shape within the hour I felt like i'd (and probably had) stretched every muscle in my body and every move involved using my stomach muscles which made everything ten times harder. I think the hardest thing of all though was the breathing...

Think of it like this when you stop doing something difficult you exhale out of relief but in Pilates you exhale when tensing and then inhale when relaxing, I realise this sound simple but try it out next time you pick something up that is heavy!

I'm definitely going back and would recommend it to anyone else who doesn't enjoy sweating and trying to run in the gym while trying to stay composed!