Sometimes I am a total gym ‘bro’, despite being a girl. You’ll mainly find me in the weights room bench-pressing, or squatting more than my body weight or swilling a protein shake after a big workout. Occasionally, if I’m injured or tired, I might do a Pilates class but, in my gym snobbery, I always think it’s for the girlie girls who don’t like to sweat. You know? A bit too easy.
So, I went along to try Absolute Yoga’s Pilates Reformer ‘Abs and Arms’ foundation class feeling a bit cocky. It’ll be easy I told myself, a nice gentle warm-up before for a proper workout at my gym afterwards.
When I got to the class, though, I was interested to find out that the teacher, RJ, had worked as a personal trainer and was a body builder. That was my first clue that I’d underestimated the power of Pilates. In my experience, body builders don’t seem to waste time dilly dallying about with anything that isn’t effective.
The Pilates studio was packed wall to wall with reformers which, if you’ve never seen one before, look sort of like mediaeval instruments of torture. Of course, they’re not scary at all once you’re shown how to use them (and they’re very simple to use). The purpose is to give the effect of light resistance training but without the stress and strain that’s normally put on the joints with a free weights workout.
As soon as the class began, I saw the importance of Pilates for correcting posture. Easy moves are performed slowly and RJ is careful to descriptively remind you how to move (“Imagine you have a $100 bill tucked under your arm. Keep it close to you!”) so you can pay close attention to keeping your wrist aligned with your arm, keeping your shoulders packed and engaging your core as well as learning what your ‘neutral position’ is etc. Good posture and form is the foundation of all movement and, let’s face it, one glance round most gyms (or offices or anywhere there’s people) shows this is something a lot of people are really lacking.
I really enjoyed using the reformer, I felt a gentle burn in my shoulders as we did some rotations and a few other moves, but no major burn like I get from weight lifting. I began to imagine this would be a lovely light workout for my rest days or for when I’m recovering from an injury.
Then, the ab work kicked in. RJ interspersed a little work on the reformer with fast-moving body weight exercises to get our heart rates up and to make me inwardly apologise to Pilates devotees for ever doubting their strength. My ego wouldn’t let me stop, but a minute or so of planks and mountain climbers, as well as a set of squats alternated with jumping jacks made my core begin to twitch. I can finally understand why so many of my friends swear that nothing honed their bodies quicker than Pilates did. A package of ten classes starts at 6,900baht, so it’s not a cheap hobby but, if I had it my way, I’d sign everyone up for a package of Pilates classes to help straighten their posture, build a strong core and ease them into the world of strength training.
FIND IT:
4th Floor, Amarin Plaza, Ploenchit Rd. Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330
Nearest BTS: Chit Lom Sukhumvit Line, Exit 6
Suitable for: A light workout that includes plenty of postural work and light strength training
Difficulty rating: 2/5
