Stretch and strengthen with reformer Pilates

FROM next month, Wendouree’s OASIS Pilates Studio will facilitate a five-week reformer course for beginners.

Director Dr Megan May said the sessions are ideal for those keen to develop their core strength and fitness, prevent injury, or simply return to exercise after the isolation periods of 2020.

“This beginner reformer Pilates class is for anyone who’s a little bit hesitant, wants to take things slow and go at their own pace,” she said.

“A reformer machine is a sliding bed that includes ropes, pulleys and springs, which means you can have endless amounts of different exercises, change resistance levels to make things easier or harder, and suit all fitness levels.

“Whether we’re working with elderly people, pregnant women or experienced athletes, we can make things as easy or as hard as we need to with these machines.”

With a focus on “strengthening and stretching,” Dr May said reformer participants usually walk away from a session feeling refreshed.

“It’s always a controlled workout that targets the full body; arms, legs and core, but these beginner classes are taken at a slower pace.

“You’ll learn about the reformer, familiarise yourself with it and how make things easier and harder,” she said.

“Taking things back to basics at a slower place, it gives people a chance to have confidence that they’re doing things with great technique, activating the right muscles and areas, and reinforcing everything to progress their Pilates without any concerns.”

The sessions will run at 9.30am each Saturday from 6 February at OASIS’s Howitt Street studio.

“It’s nice and big with lots of natural light, and a relaxing place to exercise supported by Eureka Osteo’s clinic of health professionals,” Dr May said.

Visit eurekaosteo.com.au/reformer-pilates or call 5333 2232 for more information.

If you have any injuries or concerns, check-in with a clinician to ensure reformer Pilates is right for your body.