Hi everyone,

I just wanted to say bye for now.  My blogs have come to an end on here today and I have loved it and I hope you have too.

Please do continue to follow me on twitter.

Pilates on twitter, follow    sarahpilates

Or email me directly for information.  sarah@sarahpilates.com

Check my website for Pilates holidays www.sarahpilates.com

For one to one Pilates classes in London, also contact sarah@sarahpilates.com

Sign up for my Pilates monthly newsletter. sarah@sarahpilates.com

I hope to see you on one of my Pilates retreats very soon.

Bye and thanks to everyone.

Sarah x

Hi Everyone,

I have my course all confirmed for you, curtesy of Sweaty Betty Hampstead.

If you would like to participate, they start on tuesday 6th July at 6.30pm to 7.30pm.

7 of you can attend.  Sweaty Betty offer the course free to you, so please do take advantage.

The first session, we will be going through all the basics of Pilates and each class will build until, at the end of 6 sessions, you will noticably feel the difference to your body.  Once you have attended my 6 week course, any Pilates class you attend will make much more sense.  No matter how many people are in your group class, YOU will have a better understanding and work with perfect technique.

If you would like to be one of the 7 people attending this free 6 week course, please respond below.

I look forward to meeting you.

Sarah x

Hi Everyone,

I'm sorry to say, I won't be blogging for you at the end of this month, BUT, I will still be around and Sweaty Betty will still be asking me for my expert advice on an adhoc basis.  I've been really happy here and will continue to give you my input whenever necessary.

In the meantime, I hope you will make the most of my blogs til the end.  Please stay with me til the end of May.

I will also be running a 6 week Pilates course in the Sweaty Betty Hampstead shop in July and would love you to join me there.  The first session will be on 6th July at 6.30pm to 7.30pm.  Please enquire at Sweaty Betty Hampstead or here as places are limited.

Looking forward to teaching you very soon.

Bye for today.

Sarah x

Hi everyone,

Firstly, can I just say how great it is to be blogging on here.  I love this site and I also love that you get in touch with me this way.  I wish you would all put your comments on here.  I do appreciate your emailing me directly, but some of your valued comments are worth other readers.. reading!

Please do comment here for everyone to see and not just for my eyes only. 

So yesterday was a bit of a nightmare for me. My computer crashed AGAIN.. well actually just the wireless button, but it meant that I had to restore my whole computer back to factory settings.  And for those of you who have done that too.  YOU KNOW how it feels. 

So I can tell you. my PILATES relaxation techniques came in handy.  All those times I have taught my students to meditate, relax the body and mind, well it all came in handy yesterday.

When a crisis happens, there is nothing you can do but sit back, relax and let things take their natural course.  No point in stressing.  Just get on with it and slowly, but surely things will get back to some sort of normality.  AND THEY DID. Here I am, I've never been so happy to blog!

I have lost NOTHING and learnt so much and that's my moto of the day.

See you all for a bright summers day blog very soon with more lovely photos.

Bye for now.
Sarah xx

Hi Everyone,

I just returned from a wonderful Pilates & Massage retreat in the Lake District.  I took 12 Pilates students.  6 had done a Pilates holiday or class with me before and the other 6 guests I have never met before. 

Miller Howe, (our location for the 3 nights and 4 days) was and is the most beautiful place to visit.  Overlooking Lake Windermere with exquisite views, the setting for our 2 hour twice daily Pilates class was faultless. 

Miller Howe itself is a wonderful mansion house with limited rooms, most with Lake views.  The 2 course breakast, light lunch and4 course dinner were exceptional. The staff were charming and the wine tasting evening presented by Manager, Nigel on the last night was such fun.

On this retreat, unusually, everyone had done Pilates to some level before.  That is not always the case, but never the less, the first class always starts with the basics all over again and from there, each class builds until the final class where we move through exerises with perfect technique and those who want to modify, can do so as we have been through all the various modifications in earlier sessions.  Over the 4 x 2 hour classes, the difference in all 12 of my students was noticable.  Each and everyone of my class improved on all levels and it was a pleasure to see the difference.

Thank goodness for Catherine, our incredible Massage therapist. Without Catherine, some of my students MAY not have made it to the end!!!

What a truly magical retreat.  Thanks to Sweaty Betty who provided my students with water bottles, towels and headbands. I am and my students are very greatful for your generosity.

I am hoping some of my students will add their pilates comments on here and I will tell you more soon but for now, here's a lovely view from our windows. Don't be too jealous, come with me next year!

Sarah x

        A great view of down by the Lake

Hi Everyone,

Well, I'm off to the Lake District tomorrow (Bank Holiday monday) with my group of 12 Pilates students.  Some have been on my retreat before and some are new to me.  I can't wait to get started on them.  We will get there tomorrow afternoon and after a lovely welcome dinner at Miller Howe's top Michelin 3 star restaurant, we start on the first of 4 x 2 hour Pilates classes on tuesday morning.  I will tell you more about it when I get back. 

In the meantime, you can carry on practicing your Pilates without me.  How about a little Clam, or Oyster to tide you over?  There are once again many versions of this exercise.  Look at Mellie and Laura in the photo below, waiting patiently for my instructions.  You can make them out there in the middle of the shop amongst all the clothes and new Fit flops!

Anyway - lying on their side and lined up with the back of the mat.  Their shoulder, hip and ankles follow the line.  Knee on top of knee.  Place an imaginery piece of blue-tac between the knees and squeeze for a moment, activating the gluts.. (bottom)!

Now in position, you are already working.  Breath the Pilates breathes, in through the nose and out through the mouth, whilst holding the tummy in at notch 3 of a 10 hole belt.  Focus on not allowing the belly to go out and in.  Work your core muscles by not allowing them to let go.  Try not to lift or move the shoulders as the arm rests down the side line of your body.

The first version, once you have this set up is to very slowly open the blue-tack from between your knees, but DO NOT allow the hips to roll backwards.  Imagine I resting my leg against your hips, which are still aligned one on top of the other and as you open your knee, you must NOT lean on me. Try to push away from me with the hips, whilst opening and closing the blue tack.  If you are feeling your gluts in this first version, it is correct.  THe movement is slow and small and you can even hold the push at the top to enhance the work.  "OUCH" if you are doing it properly.  It is a deep stretch.

You can go to the second version... if you wish.  Separate the heels, with the toes towards each other and open and close the knees (think of the blue tack) as above.  You will feel it more than the last version.

There are more versions, but I'll leave you with those for now.  Make sure you work BOTH sides evenly.  Maybe 12 on each side with a hold for about 6 breathes on the last one if you can bear it.

See you after the Lake District Pilates and Massage retreat.

Next retreat is in Majorca in October and you can read about it on my website as usual.  www.sarahpilates.com

Bye for now

Sarah

Cardio-walk with Pilates stretches.

http://www.easyvigour.net.nz/fitness/h_Runners_Squat.htm

Hi Runners and friends.

A couple of points for you.  I found the above link, which I think you may like and today - you may need to do a lot of stretching, if you haven't done already!!

Here's a simple hamstring stretch for you.

Lie on your back with your knees bent.

Now, make sure you back is in it's neutral allignent. Bend one knee towards your chest, imprinting into the lower back.  Pull your tummy in to it's notch 3 of a belt.  Then try to move the leg forward into your neutral spine again. Try to straighten your leg towards the ceiling without losing neutral for a true hamstring stretch.  If you want to, you can also try lengthening your underneath leg along the floor as an anchor, but watch your lower back has NOT arched.  The underneath leg will be stretching the hip flexurs at the same time. 

*  IF you are not sure if you are in neutral, TILT YOUR PELVIS at the same time and feel your tummy muscles engage a bit more.

*  If you cannot straighten your leg, take a towel around your foot and you can carefully extend the leg away from you until you feel the lengthening of the hamstring, even if you have to have a soft bend at the knee.

*  IF you find this easy and you are in neutral, with your tummy engaged, encourage the leg closer towards you, whilst lengthening your spine and feel the resistance.

ENJOY YOUR HAMSTRINGS!

Well done to all of you who ran.

Sarah x

So, this is what goes on after hours in the Sweaty Betty store in Hampstead!  You think the staff go home.. OH NO.. they start their Pilates class!

Last night I went up to the Hampstead store to teach Laura and Mellie pilates.  What fun we had up there working out around the clothes.  As you can see, all we need is a mat and the floor. You can practise Pilates anywhere and here's the great example.

The girls worked really well and I hope they are not huring today.  In the photo above, they are setting up for four part kneeling swimming.  Their position needs to be like a table top.  Able so support my boiling pan of water on their back.  (it's not real - don't try that at home!) Then, they try and keep the imaginary pan still whilst trying to slide one leg away.  Sounds easy doesn't it?  As the girls!  It's definitely not easy.  If you can master that, then add the opposite arm. Don't spill the water!

Good luck.

Hope to see you up at the store when I teach 6 classes to YOU.. If you want to book your place, please speak to the Hampstead store, and they will put you on the list.

See you soon for more.

Sarah x 

Hi Everyone,

A quick update for you all. 

Firstly, I have been busy updating my sarahpilates website.  I would LOVE your comments.  It would really help me if you could do the following...

1. go onto whichever your browser might be - eg. google/ excite/ chrome.. etc...

2. click either pilates nw3, pilates holidays, pilates retreats, sarah london pilates or anything that you might normally think of searching for pilates classes/holidays

3. Try and find my website in your search.

4. Please come back to me on here and comment.  Tell me if you found me ok and what your experience was.  Did you get my sweaty betty link or my sarahpilates link?

5. What do you think of my new website? Would you change it in anyway?  Was it easy?

Secondly, I am going to continue my blogs and linking blogs from sarahpilates to here, so I'm very interested to find out if your search was easy.

Thirdly, I will be up at Sweaty Betty Hampstead on monday evening to teach the lovely girls at the store.  I love doing this.  Once the girls have benefited from the class, they can also share their Pilates knowledge with all of you.  THEN.. at a date coming soon, I will be up at the store giving SOME of you free classes.  I will update you on this as soon as I have dates. 

One thing I love about Sweaty Betty and one of the reasons I love blogging for Sweaty Betty.. is for you and the fact that Sweaty Betty are all about YOU.  Even the clothes are about YOU.  AND.. no, noone pays me to say that!  It really is the truth.

I hope you will start talking to me on here very soon.  I look forward to more feedback.

Please feel free to email me your testimonials for my website too.

Speak to you again very soon.

Sarah x