PILATES-A PHYSIOTHERAPIST’S STORY
PILATES! MY STORY
From the age of 14 I suffered from intermittent lower back pain.
Pain was worst when I was sitting for extended periods however for a high school and university student this was hard to avoid. I went through my entire Physiotherapy degree suffering pain and saw some of the best Physiotherapists in the country to help reduce my pain.
“Change you posture” was all I had to do, however no matter how hard I tried I could not seem to achieve this new posture that would cure my pain. I was a physio who couldn’t fix myself! In my first job in private practice I was trained in reformer pilates. To help solidify my learning I started doing pilates myself twice a week. Roughly three months after I started this I went on a surf trip up north which included a 14 hour drive. At the end of this drive I got out of the car and realised I hadn’t had any pain for the entire trip…pilates had changed my posture and changed my life!!!
MY NEW LOVE
Since then my passion and love for pilates has only grown. I spent my first three years as a private practice Physiotherapist conducting anywhere between 20-28 hours of clinical pilates classes per week. I have seen hundreds of people between the ages of 10-92 make complete and remarkable recoveries from acute and chronic injuries.
Pilates is not only for lower backs. It can be a tool to rehab any area of the body including knees, necks, hips, shoulders and even calves. Pilates works the entire body so strength, flexibilty and co-ordination improvements will not be isolated to the specific area being rehabbed.
Pilates is not only for women. This is possibly the biggest misconception I encounter. Pilates can be a difficult, fast paced, high intensity work out or a slow and controlled flexibility biased session. It just depends on the needs of the individual and pathology.
Pilates is not for everyone, I understand this. Clinically and personally however I have found pilates to get my clients the best and most long lasting results.
Lindsay Young (APAM)
Physiotherapist
PAIN-FREE | PERFORM | PROLONG
