The Pilates Studio Swansea

30/08/2025

✨ Pilates Community Spotlight ✨
Our amazing client and Fabulous local Ballet teacher is one of the few in Wales offering this opportunity for young adult dancers in our area.

Thank you Isaac-Clarke Academy of Dance for supporting your dancers from toddlers all the way through the career. And

Congratulations to our lovely client Emily and Tallie and Sophie on achieving this award!

So proud of these dancers who over the past academic year, have had the opportunity to practice, develop and demonstrate a range of practical and professional skills and achieve their Royal Academy of Dance 'Assistant Teacher Award' 💖

Isaac-Clarke Academy of Dance is one of only two schools in Wales approved to offer this Award. Please contact us should you be interested in further information about the 'Assistant Teacher Award'.

09/08/2025

Amazing story about a fantastic local business. If you know anyone with young children, Claire is absolutely amazing!

What are the chances of it happening twice

05/08/2025

Fantastic description of Powerhouse engagement.

What if the way you’ve been told to engage your core is limiting your Pilates workout?

If you’ve ever been cued to “pull your navel to your spine” or “imprint your back,” or “just maintain neutral” you might be missing one major thing: LIFT.

These types of cues can lead to compression, gripping, and pushing down or an ability to stabilise our pelvis and lower back when we really need to.

What would be more useful?

Lifted, responsive abdominal engagement that includes axial length (creating space through the spine) and a tensioning of the thoracolumbar fascia (TLF - connective tissue in lower back) to provide a 360° corset-like support that wraps and lifts, rather than flattens and bears down. This enables our Pelvic floor and diaphragm to work together for internal pressure and lift.

So, in your next workout, remember the following: 💭

💡 LENGTH before strength
💡 SPACE not squish
💡 SUPPORT not strain

17/07/2025

In case you weren’t sure…..

Menopause seems to be having a moment, thanks in part to some of the high-profile women—Drew Barrymore, Naomi Watts, and Michelle Obama, to name a few— speaking frankly and openly about their experiences navigating the hormonal transition. Three new books aim to offer essential guidance to women entering and enduring years of disorienting symptoms, which include hot flashes, night sweats, brain fog, heavy periods, weight gain, hair loss, insomnia, anxiety, and depression. This panoply of woes often coincides inconveniently and confusingly with demanding life changes, ranging from the midlife acceleration of a high-pressure career to raising adolescent children or the emptying of the familial nest.

At the heart of each book is a similar story: that of an apparently savvy, professionally successful, abundantly resourced woman blindsided by the onset of an inevitable hormonal change. But menopause has been happening to people with ovaries since the beginning of time. Why does every generation think it’s the first to have hot flashes? Rebecca Mead delves into the history of menopause research, and reviews a slate of books that aim to be a must-have companion for women of a certain age—“a kind of ‘What to Expect When You’re Exploding’ ”: https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/EHx5Oz

15/07/2025

This 👇👇👇

Why Pilates Is the Secret Weapon for Lifting Heavier Weights 💪🧘‍♀️

If you’re working toward lifting heavier in the gym, don’t overlook the power of Classical Pilates. While it may look calm on the surface, Pilates builds deep internal strength that’s essential for safely increasing your load when lifting.

Here’s how Pilates helps prepare your body to go heavier:

✅ Core Stability: Classical Pilates strengthens your deep core muscles which are key during heavy lifts.

✅ Spinal Alignment: Precision in Pilates teaches awareness of spinal positioning—crucial for deadlifts, squats, and overhead presses.

✅ Mobility + Control: You’ll move through greater ranges of motion with control, improving your form and reducing the risk of injury.

✅ Breathwork: Pilates breathing connects breath to movement and helps regulate intra-abdominal pressure when lifting.

✅ Mind-Muscle Connection: Pilates teaches focused, intentional movement—perfect for mastering technique under load.

This isn’t about swapping out strength training—it’s about leveling it up. Whether you’re a lifter hitting a plateau or just want to feel stronger and more in control, Classical Pilates can be the missing link in your program.

🧠 Train smarter. Lift stronger.

-training

30/05/2025

Our amazing Louise showing off one of our favorite apparatuses, The Ladder Barrel. Which is your favorite barrel?

The Ladder Barrel is apparatus of the month 🤩

So, what’s it good for?

🌀Core & Stability: Challenges the core through dynamic movement and stabilisation.

🌀Pelvic Stability & mobility: Helps improve control and awareness of the pelvis, especially in extension and lateral movements.

🌀Spinal Articulation: Promotes segmental movement of the spine, encouraging mobility and control.

🌀Extension & Decompression: Excellent for counteracting forward-flexed postures (e.g., desk work), decompressing the spine and opening the chest.

🌀Postural Correction: Strengthens back extensors and lengthens tight anterior muscles, contributing to better upright posture.

🌀Hamstrings & Hip Flexors: Stretches tight legs and hips while teaching strength through range.

🌀Shoulder Mobility: Facilitates opening of the chest and strengthening of the upper back, improving shoulder mechanics.

🌀Functional Movement Patterns: Trains the body in twisting, bending, and side-bending, which are essential for daily life and sports.

🌀Body Awareness: Increases proprioception and movement control, making it useful for dancers, athletes, and anyone seeking more body awareness.

13/04/2025

This. The effectiveness in the Pilates system is the entire studio, not just the reformer or mat.

If you’ve only heard of, or are only doing “Reformer Pilates”, here’s what you’re missing…

The Reformer is an incredible piece of equipment. No denying it — but Pilates is a system, and each part plays a role.

If you’re only doing Reformer, you’re missing out on:

♥️ Mat work – No springs, just you and your control.
💙 Cadillac/Tower – Unique spinal traction, deep core work, and support for safe mobility.
💚 Chairs – Small but mighty. They challenge balance, strength and real-world movement.
🤍 Barrels – Open the spine, release tension, and build flexibility.
🩷 Foot Corrector & Toe Gizmo – Strengthen your foundation. Footwork isn’t just footwork — it’s full-body alignment.
🧡 Pedi Pole – For posture, shoulder stability, and standing control — deceptively simple, incredibly effective.
💜 Magic Circle & Small Props – For precision, resistance, and refinement.

🌈 THE SYSTEM – Each piece of equipment supports and progresses the others. That’s where the magic happens!

Explore the whole system. Feel the difference.

06/04/2025

Check out our London training centre!!!!✨✨✨

04/04/2025

“Pilates is about improving the movement within the exercise.”

Going Deeper into Pilates: Beyond the Shape of an Exercise…

As a student of Pilates, ask yourself: Can I go deeper into this movement? It’s easy to focus on making an exercise “look right,” but in truth Pilates is about refining how we move, not just the position we make.

Over time, exercises that once felt simple become more challenging—not because they’ve changed, but because you have. You start to notice the subtle details: the engagement of deeper muscles, the precision of your breath, the control in your transitions. A movement that felt easy at first reveals layers of strength, mobility, and awareness you hadn’t yet accessed.

“Pilates is about improving the movement within the exercise.” (Fera Smith ). That’s why Pilates never gets boring—it evolves as you do. Each repetition is an opportunity to go deeper, to refine, and to connect more fully with your body.

So next time you move, don’t just aim to create the shape of the exercise. Feel the movement. Find what’s new within it. That’s where the real work—and the magic—happens. ✨