Health and Fitness

Alice’s Postnatal Pilates Journey

Alice from @aliceinhealthyland started at Studio Pilates Wellington Point four months after having her third child. Here she describes her journey with Studio Pilates and the difference that these workouts have had on her mental and physical wellbeing. 

I received an email from Studio Pilates on Thursday congratulating me on completing my 50th class. I was quite proud of myself that I had achieved this as, looking back on the last 10 months, it has been quite the journey. I had an Emergency C Section with our third daughter in January and have transitioned to being a mumma to three young children.

Getting to class was sometimes a challenge as the old silly “mum guilt” can creep in, however it is just what I need. The classes are not only supporting my body and helping me to regain strength, but they are also helping my mental health too – [it is] 45 minutes of pure concentration, deep breathing and connecting with my body and seeing what it can achieve in that time. I have really enjoyed the community at my local Studio Pilates [Wellington Point, Brisbane]; every client is so encouraging and I always leave with a smile on my face. The instructors are fun but so professional too. I look forward to my next 50 classes and seeing what I will achieve.

My Post Natal Journey

I started my Studio Pilates journey at four months postpartum. I wasn’t quite ready to return to heavy weights or high-intensity cardio just yet, however I wanted to do something that would not only support my body, but help me to rebuild my strength, slowly and carefully, in my abdomen. I was guided by my Women’s Health Physio to wait to 12 weeks before doing anything too crazy. So when she said I was ready, she suggested Pilates to me. I was so glad to see I had a local one near my house. Once I started, I fell in love with the reformer. I cannot imagine not having it in my life now. You can read about the first part of my postnatal journey (the first 25 classes) with Studio Pilates here, in the first blog I wrote.

Since I last wrote the blog, I have seen some amazing transformations not only in my training at the studio, but in my body as well. My core is getting stronger and so is the rest of my body. I am able to push deeper in the leg workouts in class and have taken away the head pillow in the abdominal section at the beginning of class. This is a huge win for me. I can now wear ankle weights and feel my T-zone is more engaged during certain moves like “circles” or “bicycles”, and I can also hold a plank position on my feet for 1 minute 11 seconds.

I have also seen drastic changes in my posture. My shoulders are back more. When I am performing simple tasks like picking my kids up, I hold in my tummy and switch on my T-Zone. I also do some gentle pelvic exercises with my abdominal workouts (found on  the Studio Pilates blog) too. I am really noticing a huge change within that area.

These are the goals I have for my postpartum body and it is not about weight loss for me. Sure, I fit in my old jeans now but I haven’t weighed myself since I was pregnant and I do not plan to either. This is, of course, my personal journey with Studio Pilates. I would highly recommend giving it a go by trying one of their starter packs (6 classes for $60) to really see how you find it. It took me a few weeks, but like I said, I cannot picture my life without it now. I have loved the new strength it has given me.

[The Wellington Point studio has] Pregnancy and Postnatal Classes twice a week.  They are amazing if you are pregnant or have recently had a bub as they are suited to support your body during this time. You can check the app or call your local studio to see if they offer this.

To read more information about the benefits of Pregnancy classes at Studio Pilates, you can read this blog.

This article was originally published on Alice’s blog and has been republished here with full permission.

Alice is a Brisbane-based nurse and mother of three with a passion for all things wellness and lifestyle. She created Alice in Healthyland as a place to share her journey on health, motherhood and everything in between! Discover more about Alice via her Instagram.