Pilates is an exercise style that has truly taken the fitness world by storm in the last decade. It seems that everyone is doing it — from celebrities to dancers to footballers.

Pilates was developed back in the 1940s by Joseph Pilates who first used the yoga-like moves to rehabilitate Second World War soldiers. He then modified the style for injured dancers and so the modern day method was born.

Essentially it’s an exercise style that involves training your muscles to improve posture and alignment. By focusing on your core strength, you enhance the little muscles in the body so you’re better able to support the larger ligaments, tendons and joints.

Having never done Pilates on its own I was very surprised by my sessions with Mary-Claire at Life Personal Fitness in Kingston – a small fitness studio which provides personal training, pilates training and remedial massage.

I thought it would be a simple body balance type gym class, but no, at Life Personal Fitness the focus is on small classes or individual one-on-one training to build on personal strength, toning and goals.

It was clear immediately that Mary-Claire knew her stuff by the directions she gave me during the workout. For example, she would instruct me to do an exercise and immediately correct anything that wasn’t in order. She was able to point out posture and general physique improvements, not just for exercising but for everyday use of my body. And I now think about them all the time and find myself correcting them when I’m in the car or waiting for someone.

Mary-Claire provided the little details that are often missed in large gym classes. She showed me how to do a crunch properly, and when and how my back should be when doing one exercise as opposed to where it should be for another exercise.

We used a pilates machine – I’ve only ever seen them on reality TV shows and geez it was hard! It really surprised me how little control I have over my body and many of my muscles and how much control Mary-Claire had! She talked a lot about how sitting at a desk can have very negative effects on our bodies and I know firsthand how true that is.

I honestly don’t think people understand that we, humans, are built to move. I have learnt this the hard way after my awful injury 18 months ago. It’s so important to maintain a strong, healthy and fit body, not just to fit into swimmers in summer, but to sustain a quality lifestyle.

I was recently taught that our bones and muscles work on force. That does not mean we should bash them around but rather by using them we are keeping them healthy and strong and therefore making life easier for ourselves. This has been used to help treat osteoporosis and arthritis!

Think about a time you were exercising constantly for a couple of weeks and then stopped. Remember that awful sluggish feeling? And then remember the feeling after the first run or walk that followed. It’s like a breath of fresh air. Without it, we literally don’t function.

Women’s Health Magazine recently inspired me with this quote “Pain is temporary; victory is forever’. If you need motivation or help to get back into exercising, read through HerCanberra’s fitness roadtests (just click on the ‘roadtest’ tag on the left of this page) and contact any of the people I have met, they are here to help. Why not utilise the opportunities we have in our own backyard?

And if you want to know more about Pilates, visit the Australian Pilates Method Association website.