Putting Yourself First With Pilates
Sep 18, 2022
The idea of putting yourself first probably sounds enormously selfish to most of us but taking care of yourself is not selfish but self-care. Women, in particular, learn from a young age to always put others' needs before their own. Let someone else eat the last piece of cake, take a phone call late at night to support a friend in trouble and sacrifice your own quality sleep. Skip your morning walk because your partner has to go to work early so you have to be there for your sleeping children or grandchildren and the list goes on and on. It's our conditioning from a young age. While taking care of others' needs is essential, it's just as important that we include ourselves in this same level of care. So how do we strike a balance where taking care of others needs doesn't mean we have to neglect our own self-care?
What is Self-Care?
I like to think of self-care as taking care of yourself with the same love and attention as you would when caring for those closest to you. Whenever you neglect your own physical or mental health or compromise your sleep for example ask yourself whether you would let your loved ones compromise their own health like this? Many people start Pilates with me who have been dealing with long-term chronic pain in some cases for several years and are usually too busy to do anything about it. They are battling on either trying to ignore the pain or taking over the counter pain medication which over time has little effect. It's wonderful when they do come to Pilates when they have reached the point where they are finally ready to commit to their own self-care.
You need to ensure your needs are met and that means putting yourself first. After all, if you don't care for yourself you will be unable to work or care for those closest to you anyway. So make your own self-care a priority as much as you can and avoid being a burden on others in the future.
Why Is Making Time For Yourself So Challenging?
Life is not linear and some seasons are easier than others to make self-care a priority. Having been a carer for my Mum when she was unwell for around 7 months, almost a year ago now, I know first hand that self-care can be a challenge. Usually during a crisis taking care of ourselves doesn't make the daily to-do list but it's at these times that we need to ensure we're making time for ourselves more than ever. So many people kindly reminded me that as a carer I was at high risk of buring out if I wasn't careful which wouldn't help my Mum at all either and I was very mindful of this advice. Even during less challenging times, unexpected events occur and once again you find you've missed your exercise session or your dental appointment. Other times it's just a question of motivation. After a tiring day at work or minding the grandchildren, it's tempting to grab an unhealthy takeaway dinner and go to bed when a healthy meal and gentle Pilates stretch session would be so much more beneficial for promoting a good night's sleep. Even though it can be difficult initially, establishing good healthy habits really does provide enormous benefits. My goal is to do 20-30 minutes of Pilates each day but when my Mum was ill, if I managed to fit in 5 minutes of Pilates I considered it a good day. If I managed 10 - 15 minutes I was over the moon. Once you have established your Pilates practice during relatively calm times you will be much more able to adapt when unexpected or challenging times come your way. Every little bit helps so if 5 minutes daily is all you can do, that adds up to 35 minutes of Pilates each week. That will keep you going until the crisis lifts and you can go back to your regular sessions. It's these positive habits that we can fall back on in a crisis or challenging period and if we don't already have them established, it's highly unlikely you will begin good habits during this time.
Pilates Allows You To Put Yourself First
My Online Pilates Studio is ideal for easily incorporating Pilates into your busy week. Your Pilates practice is time out from the busy world to reconnect with your mind and body. It's a time to go within and listen to your body. Many of my clients think of their Pilates practice as "moving meditation" as it helps to calm the mind while you build a strong but flexible body at the same time. Some clients prefer to work independently using the on-demand videos which are around 10 minutes in length. You can choose to do 1 or more videos per session and can tailor your workout to your own needs at a time that suits you. Others prefer to have weekly or twice weekly 1 on 1 virtual sessions with me via Skype. Some use a combination of the two. It all depends on your own individual needs. Pilates provides so many self-care benefits such as becoming pain-free, preventing further injury, managing chronic conditions, improved posture and an overall sense of wellbeing. It really is the ultimate form of self-care!
September Self Care Challenge
In September each year my JS Mind Body Pilates members have the opportunity to participate in a 10 Day self-care challenge. It's free to join and non members are welcome to participate too. It's the ideal opportunity to mentally & physically reset and take time to ensure you are putting yourself first. Practising Pilates is the ideal way to do this by nourishing and nurturing your mind and body. If you would like to start Pilates with me or particapte in the free Septmeber Self-Care Challenge contact me at [email protected] to get started. Alternatively, click here to learn more about my online studio and how you can start working with me. It would be my pleasure to assist you on your Pilates journey to putting yourself first!
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Learn more about what sort of people benefit from Pilates and how it can help you too. I separate the myths from the facts and share actual case studies of my clients who have achieved life-changing results from my unique Pilates program.
