Pilates by Candlelight 2014

People are already asking me for the date for our special candlelight class!Pilates-by-Candlelight-2014

When we did this class for the first time, we made a little movie:

I hope you can join us, it’s a lovely way to end our Pilates year!

Weds 17th December
Stalybridge Civic Hall 7.30pm
Mon 22nd December
Stalybridge Meths 11:15am
Nicholson’s Droylsden 8pm
Tuesday 23rd December
Nicholson’s Droylsden 11am
Hurst Community Centre 7pm

 

Hoodies with lovely new design, voted by Facebook!

Once or twice a year I order Pilates hoodies for people to wear to class.  To keep things fresh I like to change up the design every now and then. I bought some ‘Pilates People’ from a stock image library and then set to work in photoshop to try and make a design, this was my idea:Tameside Pilates Hoodie design 1

I sent it to Marc my printer to ask if it would work for printing in vinyl, he sent this back:
Tameside Pilates Hoodie design 2

I wasn’t sure which to use, so I asked Facebook and Facebook said that Marc’s was the better design.  I accepted defeat with grace and reminded myself that I am a Pilates teacher and Marc is a graphic artist . . .

So, I am taking orders right now, see me in class or drop me a line here to see the colour options and place your order.

hoodies at Tameside Pilates

Cholesterol Confusion – Eggtastic!

I’ve been keeping a food diary recently.  I had a bit of a shock when I looked at the analysis of my day, the app (MyNetDiary) was giving me a warning to say that I had consumed nearly twice the recommended amount of Cholesterol!

food diary

Yep, it *looked* like my love of a Boily Egg had lead me astray and I was a bit confused because I was sure that Eggs were ok to eat.   Some time ago I qualified for an NVQ in Nutrition and Weight Management but truth is that I haven’t really kept up with things, however I was *sure* that eggs had been given the Thumbs up.  I decided to do some research.

It seems that the UK and US nutritional advisors do not agree.  In the UK all major heart and health advisory bodies have removed the previous limits on egg consumption due to their cholesterol content.  Whilst our friends over the Pond are still suggesting caution. My app is obviously using US data.

Here is some of the  info I found:

  • Over 30 years of prospective epidemiological surveys of CHD risk have consistently found no independent relationship between dietary cholesterol or egg consumption and CHD risk.
  • Dietary cholesterol is only responsible for about 15 percent of total blood cholesterol. The rest is manufactured by the body. Other factors that contribute to blood cholesterol levels include smoking, obesity, physical activity and the consumption of saturated fat.
  • There is a lot of confusion surrounding cholesterol because the amount we eat in our diet does not necessarily translate to the amount in our body.

So, I’m not stressing about the eggs in my diet, I’m going to try and focus more on my evil enemy – sugar – arrrrghh!

Want to know more?  These are the pages I looked at:
http://www.egginfo.co.uk/nutritional-value-eggs
http://www.egginfo.co.uk/cholesterol-eggs
http://www.livestrong.com/article/254182-how-many-milligrams-of-cholesterol-should-i-have-a-day/

 

 

Buying a mat for Pilates

I like my class members to have their own mat for Pilates.  I made a little video to show you the correct sort:

You need a full length, non slip mat.  Usually ones that are described as for Yoga or Pilates are good.  Be aware of the thickness of the mat.  Budget mats tend to be quite thin, probably about 3mm.  A 6mm mat will offer more comfort if that’s what you like.  ‘Fitness’ mats don’t always work, they often move around on the floor and are not full length.

Where to buy a Pilates mat
If you are shopping in person I would suggest TK Maxx as somewhere you can get a nice mat at a nice price.  You might also find mats at supermarkets and the likes of Aldi but their stock tends to be seasonal.

If you prefer to shop on-line then perhaps Amazon or eBay will have a bargain.  I spotted these 6mm mats on Amazon that seem a good buy.

I often have mats for sale.  Let me know if you’d like me to get one for you to collect at class.

Buying a mat for Pilates