WE ♥ GRANNIES. Well in fact in my Pilates classes we love everyone but someone asked the other day, ‘just how post natal can you be to come to Pilates?’
We have a special term for ladies who are on to their second generation of parenting and that is: VERY POST NATAL. Not because we are shy of the grandparent word but because it’s important to recognise the unique needs of women who are peri-menopausal or who have indeed tipped over the other side of hot flushes.
You see (and here’s me chatting about lady parts again) once women enter a certain time of life, hormonal changes, combined with the effects of giving birth some years previous and the lacklustre reality of ageing muscles can spell lady troubles. Not necessarily big ones but perhaps weaknesses in one’s nether regions that we’d rather weren’t there.
Then you get the whole fat redistribution thing, where your formerly pert buttocks suddenly reappear somewhere around the top of your trousers and your metabolism plummets as your lean muscle mass ebbs off into the ether.
You can do something about all of these things. Pilates isn’t a cure all for everything but it’s a great start. Especially when it comes to strengthening your buttocks, tummies and pelvic floor to help bolster your body against injuries.
Here are a few things Pilates can really help with for those in their golden years:
- Balance and reduced risk of falls
- Reduced risk of prolapse or incontinence
- Better sex and orgasms – I actually have this on good authority from one participant’s husband who shall remain nameless
- Improved posture
- More restful sleep
- Fewer chronic back issues and/or joint related injuries
I should also add that my oldest male participant was 75 and my oldest female, 80. Both were fabulous and kept up with the youngun’s whilst barely breaking a sweat and only occasionally breaking wind. Mr Pilates was nearly 84 when he died, still fighting fit (he died of smoke inhalation from a fire in his New York studio).