SUE BAIGENT
Health and fitness have always been personal goals in my life, even as a busy mum bringing up two children. I tried everything from Jane Fonda to Callanetics, moving on to competition level fitness with the British Keep Fit Confederation – which was huge FUN! London living and a stressful job led me to yoga as a form of movement meditation. Then Pilates found me 15 years ago following a couple of debilitating ligament sprains which I now understand were caused by muscles imbalances and overstretching. My Pilates training has helped me discover something quite profound: exercising from an unstable ‘core’ and with poorly aligned joints is a bad idea. Now that I’ve got the message and it makes perfect sense, I listen to my body and engage my mind. Fully!
I do believe that enjoyment is the key to staying motivated and I hope that this is something my students take from our classes. Pilates combines all the elements I enjoyed about my fitness and yoga practice – strength and agility through effort and regular practice. The benefits of Pilates, when performed properly, are unsurpassed and I get the same buzz from watching my students’ progress as I do when I find something new in a familiar exercise.
This is intelligent movement. Pilates! Pilates! So good I did it twice. Firstly with Body Control Pilates Association (BCPA) and more recently with Body Arts and Science Institute (basi).
As well as my training in both mat and studio equipment, I take regular courses and workshops with other Pilates professionals and Master Teachers, so am committed to continuing professional development. You can even catch me online being taught by some of these wonderful teachers. Go to www.yoopod.com for inspiration when you can’t make your regular mat class.