Do you struggle to touch your toes?

Why is flexibility important? 

Many people tend to think that flexibility is only important for gymnasts or athletes who compete and perform at high level and something to be monitored carefully by sports health professionals.

 Flexibility is important for many of our routine, day-to-day activities: bending down to do up your shoes, reaching up to get something from a shelf or cupboard, picking up children or heavy objects, sitting down in a chair (and standing up again). All of these very basic daily actions rely on your flexibility.

 Not only does improved flexibility help with these types of daily activities, it can also help prevent injuries, reduce muscle soreness, and improve posture and balance. With many of us spending increased amounts of time sitting in one position, physical movement and keeping active is so important to counter-balance our inactive lifestyles. And as we age, what flexibility we do have can, in some older adults, decrease by 50%.

 Pilates is a series of low-impact exercises which aim to strengthen muscles whilst improving postural alignment and flexibility. With regular practice, flexibility can be improved, with often a secondary result of improving mobility.

 In The Pilates Angel mixed ability class, we have class members of varying ages and abilities, and during a recent class survey (Feb 2023), 88% of members said that improving flexibility and mobility was their main goal for coming to the class.

Learn more about how Pilates can improve your flexibility?