Hello! First of all, I want to wish my mom a Happy Birthday! Hope you have a great day!!

I was absent yesterday because I was sipping juices and rolling around in the sun.  I am back in single digit Chicago and even though I loved being in CA, I think it will be good to hop back into my routine.  I’m not even sure where to start with all the adventures of the past 5 days, so I’ll ease into it with filling you in on my first grown up Pilates class at Ocean Pilates.

By grown up I mean I got to use an actual reformer machine. I have taken mat Pilates classes and loved them, so I knew that this would be right up my alley.  My sister in law goes there regularly, so she signed us up for a one on one (two on one?) session on Saturday.

I knew a little about the workout going in, but was really unfamiliar with the machines. We did our workout on the reformer, but they also have cadillac machines and many other pieces of equipment. I can’t tell you how to use the cadillac, but it looks impressive.  The cadillacs are closest in the picture and the reformers are the machines closer to the window.  That is also our teacher, Kourtney, unknowingly being photographed with my amazing skills.

Since Kourtney knew I was new to the machines, she also made sure to give a lot of cues and background information about Pilates and the machines in general.  There is a lot of concentration that goes into each movement and she was great about correcting form and making sure that we got the best workout we could.

We did a lot of core work (my favorite in Pilates), some back work, and a lot of leg and butt at the end. I could definitely feel my legs shaking and burning! What I liked better about Pilates on a reformer is that you use resistance in the form of bands or different spring tensions in order to get a better workout than you would only relying on body weight on the floor. There are some floor exercises that get me, but I felt like I was better able to feel if my form was breaking down and the exercises were harder in general on the reformer.

The pad that the box in the above picture is resting on slides back and forth and there are so many different exercises that you can do that I wouldn’t even know where to start. This is why I am not a Pilates instructor.  It is attached to one end by 5 springs that you can either add on to increase resistance or take off to decrease.  I have a new found respect for Pilates instructors considering the breadth of knowledge they need to have about all the different exercises and their variations!

I had a great time during this 1 hour class and Kourtney made each movement really easy to understand with her cues and actual manipulations when I was flopping around like a seal.  By the end I felt like this:

(source)

In reality I looked something like this:

This was also the first time that I had such a personalized session.  Most workouts I do are in a group setting or solo in the gym, so it was really nice to have a more individualized time with an instructor. Highly recommend.

In other news, I saw this on my walk home today:

I have always wanted to get something from the website, but I hate ordering things without trying them on.  If you are not familiar with Rent The Runway, it is a service that allows you to rent designer dresses for much less than buying them.  After you wear it, you return it and all is well with the world. I had no idea that they had physical stores, so I am really excited.  Maybe I will rent one just to wear around the house.

I hope you all have a great day and remember to stay warm! I am linking up with Sara today for Tried It Tuesday!

Questions:

• Have you ever done Pilates on a reformer? Do you love it?
• What’s something new you have tried lately?
• Want to rent dresses and have a fashion show in my living room?