Authentic Pilates of Austin

08.08.2018

My initial thoughts of pilates before ever trying a class were Jen Aniston + abs. So clearly good things. I really didn’t know much else about the practice other than people who do it love it (and tend to be really fit). If you’ve been following me for a while, then you know how much I value fitness and mind/body connection.

Now that I’ve had several sessions at Authentic Pilates of Austin, I’ll tell you that pilates does in fact work your core very hard and if you practice routinely, you probably can achieve those Jen Aniston abs ;) When I think of pilates, I think of yoga with movement and neat equipment to help with core building. I didn’t realize how much effort is placed on breathing, all the way from your rib cage to your hip bones to your sitz bones. Or that breathing the right way is essential to sculpting your body correctly. After my first session, I not only felt my abs working the rest of the day, but I felt so refreshed and relaxed. Like my body was aligned and things were all working the way they should be.

I personally have always loved high intensity work outs but have struggled to make time for the really important classes that stretch you out and prepare your entire body for endurance. It’s been a goal of mine to include them in my fitness regime and build a solid core. So I was really excited to try pilates for the first time and see what it was all about.

Lindy Irwin has over 15 years of experience teaching classical pilates and also specializes in prenatal and postnatal strengthening. Added bonus that she is a registered nurse! When I came to my first session, she asked me if I had experienced diastasis recti with my pregnancy. I look at her with confusion- huh? Diastasis recti is the separation of the left and right abdominal muscles that happens most commonly with pregnant women as pressure builds on their growing bellies. I told her I didn’t think it happened to me- wouldn’t I know? But she did a muscle examination and right away discovered that I did have a bit of a gap. But not to worry! With core strengthening and breathing, I could work on strengthening those muscles back together.

Lindy focuses on the classical methods of Joseph Pilates while attending to each client’s individual goals and needs. I haven’t experienced many injuries in my life, but I do struggle with occasional muscle tension and bad posture. With every request (stiff achilles one day, sore back the next), she knew how to address and work on the issue. My favorite stretches were on the barrel (seen above) and leg circles on the cadillac. With each stretch and movement, Lindy would help direct my muscles so that I could feel exactly where I should be extending and flexing and how I should be breathing. Then I would do the exercises on my own. With each session, she would build onto the steps and skills I learned in previous ones. If there’s anything I’ve learned in pilates, it’s that it is a full body work out that takes lots of mental thought in addition to physical strength.

What I loved most about my sessions with Lindy was the the one-on-one attention and her depth of knowledge of each facet of the body. I’ve never worked with any type of trainer before so to have someone guiding me through every exercise and tailoring the session to me and my needs was truly unique. Working with her felt therapeutic and the biggest takeaway I had was learning how to breathe and tighten correctly through my abdominal crunches to get the deepest work out all the way to my core.

Lindy is based in North Austin and offers private sessions, semi private sessions, and groups of three. She has a studio nanny for $8 a class!

If you are pregnant, recently postpartum, trying to work through an injury, or simply just interested in becoming more in tune with your body, I highly recommend trying Authentic Pilates of Austin. You’ll approach exercise in a new way and really dive deep into that mind/body connection.