Bramhall U3A - Pilates Group

Important News
For those members previously doing Pilates on a Monday with Vikki and on a Thursday with Wendy
As group members know, Wendy retired during lockdown and it was hoped that Vikki would find time to take her classes. This is not now going to be possible
She does however have a few spaces at present for her 11.30am Monday class at the Bramhall Village Club.

The fee for this is £30.00 per calendar month, which gives 4 or 5 face to face lessons and access to unlimited classes to do at home online on her business website. She is willing to take beginners. If you wish to join this class email: groups@bramhallu3a.org.uk
Vikki is hoping that in September, she may be able to offer a Thursday lunchtime class as well, so watch this space!

Lockdown News

Monday Group
I have been amazed and hearted by members that have joined me on our coronacoaster of Fitness and Pilates virtual classes. I am delivering our classes on a Monday morning via a private facebook group using the live facility (you see me but unfortunately I cant see you having a sneaky cup of tea!). This allows me to teach the classes with members following me at those times. I also save the videos for members to catch up on the class at a later date if you cant join at the time of the broadcast or if you want to repeat it multiple times. For those members not using facebook I email a you tube link every Thursday of the same classes. It has been a steep learning curve for us all and sometimes the live videos can experience buffering but on the whole we have soldiered on successfully. Stay well and keep moving!
Vikki Radford

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Pilates, Stretch & Relax

The benefits of Pilates are well acknowledged (see below for full details). Having a strong core, a mobile and strong spine and flexible limbs can make everyday activities so much safer and more enjoyable. This is also why many professional sports people (men as well as women!) include Pilates /Core Training as part of their fitness regime.

All previous participants and those who have attended Pilates classes in the past are welcome to return, subject to the usual Health Questionnaire and the availability of places.

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Each course of 6 structured and progressive sessions aims to provide the following:

Increased Spinal Mobility - a strong healthy back needs to be flexible and strong enough to deal with the strain of everyday living

Stronger Core - strengthening the deep internal abdominal muscles will provide additional support to the back, improve balance thus reducing the risk of falls, and build inner control

Better Posture - raising awareness of good posture can help reduce general wear and tear on the back and may reduce reliance on painkillers for minor back problems

Increased Flexibility - effective and targeted stretching will help lengthen and relax muscles and also provide ideas for improved warm up before, and cool down after, other daily life activities and interests

Relaxation - valuable 'me time' reduces stress and enables evaluation of techniques learned during your workout

If you want to become stronger from the inside, improve posture and flexibility, and generally make yourself better able to deal with daily challenges then book now!

Our Pilates Stretch & Relax sessions continue to be popular and very well attended as people continue to be increasingly aware of the benefits of Pilates and exercise/activity in general due to the numerous positive reports and PR in the media.

Many of our participants have interests, hobbies and activities in their lives that have benefitted from better posture, greater flexibility and stronger muscles and spine due to their hard work in their Pilates sessions. Making the exercises relevant to daily life activities helps to 'keep it all real' and gives a sense of purpose.

We continue to work to improve balance with a focus on strengthening muscles around hips, pelvis and legs to try to prevent falls which can have a devastating impact on mobility and quality of life.

As is inevitable with people in the U3A age group, from time to time members have medical conditions, little niggles and injuries that mean they are not able to attend classes for a while. In most cases the medical professionals and Physiotherapists they consult are delighted that they attend Pilates sessions and encourage that they return once recovered from whatever has ailed them. Even more satisfying is that many of the exercises that the physiotherapists prescribe are already familiar from our sessions!

Sessions ran during 33 weeks during this calendar year - we continue to take it easy over Public Holidays like Easter and Xmas and Bank Holiday (and I do get some time off for good behaviour too) There were 4 sessions in 30 of those weeks and due to people being away on holidays etc. just 3 sessions on 3 weeks, so we managed a total of 129 sessions in 2019.

During the course of the year a couple of participants decided to stop attending but some new members have joined us recently and another participant returned after a break. The current courses, running from early November up to our break for Xmas, have a total of 59 participants, which shows good continuity and support to keep this popular group viable.

As a qualified fitness instructor I continue to attend workshops and training courses in order to keep abreast of developments and research so I can bring the latest ideas to the classes. I recently attended First Aid at Work course to update on latest thinking - I hope not to have to use what I learned of course!

We use equipment like bands and balls to add variety but nothing fancy or expensive so members can easily get the kit and workout at home in between classes.

We work hard but have a laugh or two along the way and have grown into a very welcoming and sociable team who support other group members when things might not be going so well for them.

This document last modified Thursday May 20, 2021
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Email comments to communications@bramhallu3a.org.uk

Summary	There are two Pilates groups run on a Mon and Thurs mornings Each course lasts 6 sessions.
Venue	The Village Club, Lumb Lane, Bramhall - see below for times.
Contact	Vikki Radford (Mon group) or Wendy Litchfield (Thurs group) - Telephone details are in the newsletter
Email	groups@bramhallu3a.org.uk with 'U3A Pilates Enquiry' as the subject