To ask if Pilates is only for skinny people

[MrTrebus]

So background, had a baby 5 months ago, got 4 stone to lose but also feel really "stiff" and find it hard to move around too much I.e a long walk feels like I've pulled all the muscles/fat where my c-section scar is! And it then aches for a couple of days too.

I also keep pulling muscles in my neck, shoulders, legs etc and just feel like I can't walk like a normal non-pregnant woman anymore, still doing the pregnant waddle.

So Pilates was recommended to me but I know nothing about it, is it inclusive? Are fat stiff people allowed? Light hearted but seriously am I mad/ AIBU considering this in my current state?

Bizarrely I also manage to be a "gym bunny" and overweight
There seems to be an assumption that all overweight people have knee pain or can't hold downwards dog or need a gentle class. Being normal weight doesn't make you fit and being overweight doesn't make you unfit, it's two completely different things
Pilates and yoga were recommended by my surgeon, however I'm not allowed to run. I do spin class instead

My sister is a pilates instructor and if the people who come to her studio is a guide, then no.

I can still do a downward dog! Used to do yoga pre pregnancy and I can also touch my toes. Ooh get me.

I think you will love pilates. I am not massively overweight - a spare tyre to lose but okay everywhere else - but I am very unfit and not at all flexible.
I find it a good basis for other stuff. Once you strengthen your core and posture then I think it helps with other exercise. It also motivates me to get to the gym. I really enjoy it so it spurs me on to try another class.
Our teacher is brilliant. It's a very mixed class and she usually gives 3 versions of the exercises and tells you you do the one you feel most comfortable with.
I find I am so busy trying to follow the instructor and follow what she is doing that I don't notice anyone else. I am sure everyone else is the same.

I find it crazy that there are people out there who think when u get to a certain weight (whatever that is!) There are certain activites that u just shouldnt do! As long as its legal and ur not hurting anyone why shouldnt u!! Gets me cross , i love ballet and have started doing youtube videos at home of simple ballet moves , i wonder if im "allowed" to do that!

I am going to try pilates.
After horrendous probs which meant I was on crutches for 12 years, I could barely walk/move and gained weight.
I have NO core strength and have been told NOT to go to gym.
So, Pilates it is. Hopefully (live arse end of nowhere and very shy).

OP, go for it! :)

If you have had a c section then I think a must. It literally helps you knit back together. It will also help addresss any other body imbalances (like those developed when lugging a lo on yr hip) I am not skinny and attend an advanced Pilates class (having stuck with it for a number of years). Go for it. There is something very powerful about feeling strong.

Yes - as to gain weight you need a surplus of calories. So yes, weight problems are caused by your diet, because to get fat you must be consuming more calories than you are burning. That's the science behind it and that's the reason people were mentioning diet. We only commented on how to lose weight because you mentioned how overweight you are, which made it look like you wanted advice on that.

@chicken2015 I get by by telling those types of people to fuck off, doing what I want to do anyway (unless I might hurt myself haha) and not giving a flying fuckaduck what they think. Keeps me sane. Maybe because I've been super skinny and super fat throughout life I don't judge based on appearance.

Maybe as at home its "allowed" but hevean forbid other people should share a class with me!

@Nancy91 there is some truth in that BUT if you CANNOT physically exercise then you cannot burn off anything you've eaten, therefore you could be on 1000 calories a day or less and starving and becoming very unhealthy and you may then lose some weight, otherwise you have to eat properly I.e 1500 calories etc a day and then burn off some by exercising. You've clearly never been a position like that hence your opinion which is fine but I can't agree.

You definitely won't be only overweight person there and it's the ideal exercise for someone who is post-natal and planning to lose weight because it strengthens your core (including your abdomen and pelvic floor) and makes you very aware of your body and where you tend to over- and undercompensate physically. Correcting those patterns means you're less likely to be injured if you start doing some cardio and will help you exercise more efficiently. And it's good time out from a busy day.

You do need a properly qualified instructor though.

Just a thought OP, you could possibly have a few 1:1 Pilates sessions before joining a class? Could be expensive I know, but it might help you learn the basics so you can later join a class and fit in immediately.

Absolutely go for it. I do a pregnancy Pilates class currently and if women 39week pregnant can do it (albeit it with some adjustments) then someone overweight can do it again with the right teacher abs adjustments. Pilates is different to yoga in that is focuses on strength and enabling your body to support itself whereas yoga does more stretching. I started years before pregnancy when I was overweight and in massive loads of back pain, fast forward 3 years and my back pain has gone and I lost loads of weight doing it and improved my posture. I rarely do cardio workouts abs when I have in the past the weigh loss hasn't been as good. You must find a good instructor though to make sure you do it properly.

I do Pilates 4x a week and run 4x a week.

I'm afraid I agree with what Holiday has suggested upthread a bit. Unless you are strictly interested in the health-conferring benefits of Pilates and you're fine not actually seeing any results, I'd focus on cardio for now and start with the Pilates when you're within a stone of your target weight.

I'm a size 8-10 now having started at a 12, and it can be very depressing when you can feel but can't see the muscle that you've worked so very hard to build.

I'm terribly pleased with the results on my arms and stomach but my legs are still a work in progress and although they're smaller, they're not any more shapely and that's pretty depressing.

That being said, there are people in my class who are not skinny. I wouldn't worry about what other people think, they're all just focusing on the class which can be pretty difficult.

That's rubbish, I have lost over 6 stone and I have kept it off, I am training as a fitness instructor and I compete in a sport. I would not lose weight eating 1500 a day, I would maintain. That was a random number to come out with. Everyone's BMR is different. Don't make random assumptions about me because you don't like the advice I gave you. If you want to lose weight you need to cut back on the calories, but we have deduced that you don't want to lose weight, just get less stiff. All you need to do to become more flexible is a bit of cardio to warm up and then stretching frequently. Hope that helps.

All sorts of shapes and sizes in my classes, ages and genders too so think you would be fine.

You are being rude though to people who have different opinions to you. You shouldn't really ask the question if you don't like the replies and people have taken the time to answer you honestly so should be respected as such.

I can only come to the conclusion that the posters banging on about "just do cardiovascular, wait until you've lost weight, it won't work" etc aren't actually reading what the OP, and subsequent posters with similar issues are saying.

Post pregnancy
Post section
Injury
Damage
Physio banned them from running
....the list goes on.

The standard advice to go run about doesn't work. It could cause permanent damage.

Many of us were fit and healthy and slim pre pregnancy and have put on weight through stress, lack of sleep, depression, again the list goes on. I personally can't do any of the multiple high impact and endurance sports and activities that I used to, because I run the very real risk of causing myself some serious injury.

So I'm a fat person who will be starting pilates in the hope that my battered and injured body starts to knit itself back together. And I'd say to anyone else in a similar boat to go ahead and mentally stick two fingers up at the, "just go running" brigade, with what I am sure is their well meaning (but completely misguided) advice.

Yes, a few of you touched a nerve.

I went to a specific post natal Pilates class, so the instructor was a Physio and had the additional antenatal and postnatal qualifications. Was brilliant and has rebuilt my abdominal wall and pelvic floor. Babies came too. We had people there from six weeks post delivery to when babies got mobile, all shapes and sizes. It can definitely get you flexible and toned, but the more significant long term benefits of putting your pelvic floor back together properly and safely are massive! Go for it. Your midwife may know of classes or you can speak to the post natal Physio's at the hospital who can often suggest some. Make sure they have the specific post natal qualification though esp if you had a section.

Oh and cardiovascular stuff is great, but you can't run with the baby for the first few months, and after my section I could t run without weeing, and feeing like my guts might fall out of my abdominal wall gap... I needed to do the Pilates before I could contemplate running.

Walking, walking, walking. Agree not running.

For a loooong time after having babies I felt stiff, sore and achy, really sore joints, was awful! Suspect it was hormonal as it stopped with DC1 after I stopped breastfeeding and when DC2 was around one (I was still bfeeding then) . Exercise did help.

@MrTrebus thank you so much for starting this thread. I've been wondering the same thing and I'm as overweight as you. I'm going to give it a try x

@Notlostjustexploring EXACTLY MY POINT! Thank you. It's so patronising to be told HOW to lose weight, I know the specifics but I can't physically do what I would like to right now I.e running etc. Which is why I was asking just about the Pilates. Thank you.

@OhOfCourse my pleasure, hope you feel as motivated as I do now!