Achieving Confidence Through Failure

‘Why can’t I do this?’

‘I should be able to do this!’

‘This shouldn’t be so hard for me.’

‘I didn’t think it was going to be so hard.’

These and more are common things we hear at the pilates studio on a regular basis with new clients as well as seasoned ones. No matter how many times I hear them, I am always a bit surprised. I mean, if you are trying something for the first time, why do you expect it to come naturally or easily to you? Pilates is a very different form of exercise than many people are used to doing. The method itself calls upon you to think about how you move your body and how to better that movement through precise and controlled exercise and specific movement patterning. It is a very mindful exercise that some love immediately and others find extremely frustrating. Like most new activities, you are potentially going to fail at pilates. And that is okay, expected to a certain extent. You may not ‘get it’ at first. Your body may not be accustomed to doing small precise movements or you prefer just to ‘get the work out in and not think about it’. If you stick with it, I can assure you that you will get it and it will carry over to other parts of your life. Breathing differently to keep tension out of your neck and shoulders, feel more connected to your core with all activities, feeling more mobile and limber in your spine, nagging aches and pains begin to disappear. All these are benefits of consistent pilates practice. There is no need to apologize for not ‘doing it right’ and no, you are not my worst client, I have no worst clients. And yes, everyone gets the breathing thing eventually. Everyone is unique and comes to our studio with their own goals, their own fitness level and needs. Our job is to help our clients see the benefits of pilates in their own body at their own unique pace.

Pilates is for every body that moves. You may feel like you fail at first but what would be the fun in doing everything perfectly the first time?

‘Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor’ -Truman Capote

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