Pilates Imperfect

#pilatesimperfect is the community hashtag I use on Instagram. (Come follow me @balancedtothecore.)  I use it as a reminder to be softer with myself.  To have more grace.  To not be so critical.

It was about 5 years ago when I filmed my first Pilates workout.  All I can say is ”ugh”.  I was completely caught off guard.  In my mind and body, I felt like a gazelle, strong and graceful, supple and fierce.  But oh man, the camera caught something completely different.  In my body I felt aligned and beautiful, but when I saw myself on the screen, I wasn’t even close to looking how I felt.  To say I was disappointed, would be an understatement.  I was deflated.  So deflated that I stopped filming videos.  Hence, a two year hiatus from starting my dream online business.  

Years later, I tried filming again.  (My dream was too big to put on the back-burner).  I decided that this time around, I would not try to be perfect, but instead focus on the feeling of gratitude for my body and all that it can do. Looking for the joy in the movement and focusing on how it made me feel rather than if I was doing it right, felt so freeing.  Pilates is about precision, and we can easily get caught up in the perfection of the movement.  But we all know there's no such thing as perfection. And gosh, trying to strive for it only makes us come up short and feel like we're not enough.

Instead, when I infuse my workouts with a deep gratitude for my body, I meet it with softness, kindness, and gentleness, instead of punishment and trying to change it. These days, when I workout, I look for ways I can let go, release tension, and ease into the movement.  No more bracing, stressing, striving, or holding on for dear life.  When I filter my workouts with this softness, even through the tough movements, my body takes on a whole new level of strength.  This kind of strength feels deeper, more connected, more rejuvenating, and in one word, more kickass. I feel more present and alive in my body.  This feeling makes me crave my workouts, instead of dreading them. 

We can get so caught up in the should’s, and to me “should” is a word filled with way too much guilt and shame.  “Should's” take away our power.  Instead, when we connect with ourselves and honor our own needs when we move with intention, there is great power there.  The inherent strength we each have within us is worth celebrating, not comparing or judging.  Comparing takes away our power and our creativity. Let’s embrace where we are at now and be thankful for all we can do and not think we “should” be anywhere else.  Let’s be #pilatesimperfect. 

This week's workout is an intermediate mat.  Don't try to be perfect, just have some fun!