Training Frequency | How much is too much? — any.BODY Pilates & Exercise Physiology

Our next 6 Week Challenge kicks off on October 9th and its going to be a total vibe! This is a great time for us to address a question we often hear- "How often should I do Pilates?" or even "Can I do too much Pilates?"

The current ASCM exercise guidelines for the general population state that we should be aiming to complete:

• 30 min on five days per week, or vigorous intensity aerobic activity for a minimum of 20 min on three days per week.
• Every adult should perform activities that maintain or increase muscular strength and endurance for a minimum of two

These exercise guidelines are provided as a minimum amount of physical activity to meet each week, and we know that many of our members are already achieving this frequency of exercise whether by attending our classes or outside in their own time. However, sometimes our everyday life can make it challenging to move this often. We are living in a society that inhibits natural movement, whether that be from working office jobs and constantly sitting, driving for long periods of time, or spending hours looking at screens- with our natural movement being limited. At any.BODY Studio we want to encourage a consistent healthy habit of regular movement. Our goal is to provide an environment that feels like your second home, so whether you are attending a high intensity reformer or a stretch reformer- you allow yourself to just come in, move, breathe and rest.

Due to the nature of Pilates there is low risk associated with too attending frequently, therefore we encourage our members to attend classes frequently and set up our challenges and memberships to portray that. However we also want to teach our members to build skills to incorporate movement into your life and build a lifestyle of movement to assist with developing consistency and routine. So even though we love our members to move in the studio space, we understand the importance of a sleep in and believe that a short breathing and stretch program at home can have just as much benefit for your mind and body as a 45 minute reformer class.

We encourage rest days

There is lots of evidence to support the importance rest can have on both our physical and mental health. Rest days can look different for everyone, but we know that rest time is recovery time, and recovery leads to growth. If we want to progress in our fitness journey with physical adaptations, we need to allow our body time to heal itself. So how can we maintain an active daily life while still getting that all-important rest?

Activity during leisure time
A great way to build a lifestyle of movement is to to continue moving through the day and introduce movement everyday and not juts rely on classes. Going for a catch up for coffee? Having a family picnic? Why not try walking there? If distance is an issue, maybe you’re going for a walk while you catch up. This seems simple, but its a huge factor in improving quality of life in the long term.

Attend a class with a different focus
There is no form of movement that is better than another. There are just forms of movement that will yield different results. Try not to obsess over hitting 10,000 steps per day, or only attending classes that make you sweat. Some days (especially for women) require more gentle movement with an emphasis on breathing, and other days you might feel like you can attend a stronger class or a higher intensity class.

Stretch and mobility
Incorporating stretches and mobility work into your weekly routine can be a fantastic way to allow your body and mind time to rest, whilst keeping you moving. Incorporating movement into your everyday life also has a massive cumulative impact. It might not seem like a lot, but finding 5-10mins of movement that you normally wouldn't do everyday over the course of a year adds up to a lot!

In summary, attending 5 Pilates classes per week is not going to harm your body, you will feel amazing! It is a great way to get you motivated, feel supported and join a community of like minded people. However, consistency is what is key. Setting long term movement goals and being able to stick to it. Learning ways of moving outside of the studio can have a huge positive impact on your life. We aim to teach, educate, empower our members to learn tools to keep moving not only in the studio space but also outside the studio and to prioritise rest and recovery.

Below are some amazing stretches you can do at home, before a walk, as you wake up, as a break from computer work that will keep you moving even when you can't make it to class!

Hip flexor stretch- We love this stretch to release through the front of your hips. If you are finding it tricky to balance, place a chair next to you so you can hold on with one hand.

Upper back stretch - You may have completed these book openers at the studio with the oov. At home, you can roll up a small towel to place under your waist, and a second towel or a pillow under your head.