Pilates Possibilities

I’m copying a lot of this blog entry from a post over on Cathe’s forums regarding suggestions of good Pilates workout videos. I of course had to pipe in and give my own opinions, though my experience is probably limited (but not too limited considering what a freak I am about buying and selling so many workout DVDs).

I also write this entry because I have been considering adding more Pilates back into my workout rotation, and I will deal with that subject again in my next blog entry (possibly later today).

For a while Pilates workouts were something I did every other day or so but I have not had it in my rotation so often anymore. A lot of people talk about Pilates lengthening muscles or leaning them out, but I never noticed that effect. For me, it helped to strengthen my core and improve flexibility (2 things I still need). I also just liked that I felt graceful doing Pilates (no small feat for a klutz like me).

My favorite Pilates DVD instructor is Ellen Barrett. She has done a few Crunch Pilates videos and my two favorites are Crunch: Pick Your Spot Pilates, which has 4 10-minute sections focusing on different parts of the body, and Crunch: Super Slimdown, which blends Pilates and Yoga and it really just flows beautifully. You can find her stuff at Collage Video or on Amazon. Her workouts are generally beginner/intermediate. (One of the great things about Collage, by the way, is that you can view clips of workouts as well as read reviews by people who’ve done them.)

10 Minute Solution also has a few good Pilates workouts--each of their DVDs has something like 5 10-minute workouts so you have can do anywhere from 10 to 50 minutes of them at a time--great for adding on to other workouts.

I also liked the Breakthru Pilates DVDs with Michelle Dozois and Tracy York. These don’t seem to be available through Collage anymore but they can be found on Amazon.

I have a good friend (Lynnea--hi Lynnea!) who loves Mari Winsor's Pilates workouts. The ones I tried I personally didn't like, but I know she's quite popular, so that's another option for you. Some of her stuff is on Collage as well, so you could watch a video clip there.

There are plenty of other Pilates instructors out there, but these are some I would personally recommend if you are new to Pilates but interested in trying it out.