Pilates

Stay strong.
Overcome injury.
Feel fit.
Look great.

Pilates

Stay strong.
Overcome injury.
Feel fit.
Look great.

Practising Pilates is like making regular investments in your health.

We can enjoy more years of good health and fitness by taking care of our bodies to make them stronger, more resilient and less prone to injury. Moving well and moving often reduces aches and pains. Pilates will enable you to re-balance and strengthen your muscles, build resilience, overcome injury and feel well. Strong core muscles protect against injuries, help reduce back pain, and for sports enthusiasts, Pilates can help improve your game.

Christine Hardisty is a Stott Certified Pilates Instructor working from a home-based studio on the edge of Old Town in Swindon. She has been teaching Pilates since 2009.

Mat-Classes are 4 – 6 people; the small class size ensures you get specific feedback and exercises can be modified to suit you. You can be confident that you are “doing it right” and getting the most from your Pilates.

We use a wide range of small equipment to keep classes varied and to modify exercises to suit you.

Class Dates and Times

SPRING 2024

Zoom – 6 weeks: Tues 16 April – Tues 21 May  and Thurs 18 April – Thurs 23 May

Face to Face – 6 weeks: Thurs 18 April – Thurs 23 May

 

Costs:

One Zoom class per week: £5.50/class (£33 for 6 classes)
Two Zoom classes per week £4.50/class (£66 for 12 classes) 
Face to Face Classes £12/class (£72 for 6 classes )
Tuesday Zoom Class 10:00-11:00
Thursday Zoom Class 08:30-09:30
Thursday Face to Face 10:00-11:00

HYBRID CLASSES: I am now working some classes as “hybrid” i.e. teaching a Zoom class and also teaching  one or two clients face to face in the teaching room. The cost is £12 per class to join Face to Face..

FREE INDUCTIONS:  As normal, I am offering free face to face inductions for new clients. If you’re brand new to Pilates you can follow this with “hybrid” classes at £12 per class to build confidence before you go on to Zoom.

ONE TO ONE OR TWO: You can book a one to one or a one to two session to work on something specific, to get back into the groove after a break or to check out any queries. It will ensure you get the most out of your Zoom sessions. Prices are £45/hour for a one to one and £50/hour for a one to two or one to three  session.

 

To book your classes please email christine@pilatesfitforlife.co.uk or text on 07968 948459.

ABOUT

CHRISTINE HARDiSTY

I decided to study and teach Pilates for two reasons: firstly, Pilates helped me overcome back pain and become fitter, and secondly, Pilates takes account of the wide variation in individuals’ bodies and helps everyone exercise effectively.

I can modify the exercises so everyone can experience a high level of challenge with a high level of safety. The starting point for tailoring the exercises is a sound understanding of anatomy which is a requirement of the STOTT PILATES® training.

I believe that Pilates helps me maintain my fitness and stay injury-free. In 2008 I started training with a running club and now enjoy distance running. In 2013 I started training for triathlon and I am now an accomplished open water swimmer and regular triathlete.

I have a varied background outside the fitness industry. I was an IT professional in the 80s and 90s and moved into Higher Education through working as a tutor with the Open University Business school. I am a skilled teacher (Fellow of the Higher Education Academy) and I have an MBA and a degree in psychology. I’ve taught a wide range of subjects in different settings; the common factor is I enjoy seeing students develop and grow.

My Pilates Studies:

STOTT PILATES®

2015 -STOTT PILATES® Zen.ga Foundation Course

2014 – Osteoporosis, Scoliosis (Spinal Curvature), Breast Cancer Rehab

2013 – Intensive Stability Chair

2012 – Intensive Reformer

2010 – Injuries and Special Populations

2009 – Essential Matwork – STOTT PILATES® Certified Instructor

INTELLIGENT FITNESS

2008/9 – Foundations of Anatomy

2008/9 – Analysis of Human Movement

2008/9 – Essential Anatomy

back care

In 2010 Christine worked with a local osteopath (Renata Sharp) to design a 6-week back-care programme to enable clients to have more control over their pain.

In March 2011 they worked with the MS Therapy Centre and Swindon Carers Centre to pilot-test the programme by offering it free to carers. The programme is a blend of information e.g. anatomy, pacing daily chores, lifting techniques, as well as Pilates exercise to safely strengthen key muscles and retain mobility. The pilot test results were positive, with all the clients reporting they understood their pain better and planned to continue with the exercises. Before and after questions also showed reduced levels of pain as well as improved understanding and control of pain.

what clients say

Bekki, Office Worker

I started Pilates due to ongoing back and hip pain and have seen a reduction in pain levels and improvement in movement in the 7 months I have been attending classes. I love that the classes are kept small meaning that there is a much more tailored approach and I can ask when I am unsure. Christine takes the time to ensure we are all doing things correctly and provides corrections and alternatives when required. Christine is flexible and patience in her classes and this creates an atmosphere whereby I feel very comfortable, even if I don’t get something the first time around. This along with the health benefits keep me coming back week after week.

Bekki, Office Worker

Liza, Retired JP

Christine is an excellent teacher and her small, friendly classes have become an important part of my week. Many of us seem to have injuries or issues, but her exercises are very much geared towards us each as individuals. My core strength and balance are both much improved and I just feel better for doing it.

Liza, Retired JP

Margaret, Home maker

Pilates Fit for Life is a friendlyclass with exercises tailored to my needs. It helps me to maintain corestability and a regular class keeps a lower back problem under control.

Margaret, Home maker

Claire, Professional Gardener and Marathon Runner

As a professional gardener who enjoys running, my fitness is important to me. Pilates has strengthened my abdominal muscles so my back is better protected when I’m working, and when I’m running longer distances I can retain my form so I don’t “fade” towards the end. Because of my active lifestyle I have regular sports massage and my massage therapist has noticed a marked improvement in my muscle tone since I’ve been doing Pilates.”

Claire, Professional Gardener and Marathon Runner

Terry, Retired Head Teacher

I like the varied activities & individual approach to ‘problems’. I appreciate the helpful & constructive guidance given both collectively and individually. Pilates has helped me to understand the way my body moves & why – greater awareness all round. I enjoy the social aspect of small group work – the camaraderie.

Terry, Retired Head Teacher

Adele, University Careers Consultant

I did Yoga for three years in the hope my back problemwould improve [but it didn’t] and felt bored doing the same thing week in and out. However after 5 sessions of Pilates my back felt so much better and I really enjoy the variety of the activities/exercises, using quite a range of different equipment which keeps things interesting and motivating.

Adele, University Careers Consultant

Pilates

History

The Pilates Method was developed by Joseph Pilates. He was born in Germany in 1880 and suffered from asthma, rickets and rheumatic fever.  He successfully overcame his illnesses by developing exercise techniques based on the latest knowledge of the time combined with traditional methods like yoga and tai chi. The power of his method was widely recognised when he emigrated to New York in the 1920s and worked with dancers to overcome injuries.

The Pilates method has continued to evolve and integrate the latest medical and biomechanical knowledge. STOTT PILATES® is a contemporary approach to the original exercise method which has been developed by a team of physical therapists, sports medicine and fitness professionals, over two decades and incorporates modern principles of exercise science and spinal rehabilitation, making it one of the safest and effective methods available. It is used by rehab and prenatal clients, athletes, celebrities and everyone in between.

Joseph Pilates

Joseph Pilates’ drive to overcome his childhood ailments led him to become a competent gymnast, diver and skier. In 1912 he lived in England and worked as a circus performer, boxer and self-defence instructor. During the First World War, he was interned with other German nationals and developed his technique of physical fitness further, by teaching his fellow internees. Serving as an orderly in a hospital on the Isle of Man he worked with patients who were unable to walk and started to experiment with items that were to hand to develop exercise machines. He attached bed springs to the hospital beds to help support the patients’ limbs, developing the prototypes of the exercise machines still in use today.

Pilates emigrated to the USA in the early 1920s and opened a ‘body-conditioning studio’ in New York. The studio soon became very popular with the dance community, as it offered a chance to improve technique or recover from injury. Pilates published two books: ‘Your Health’ and ‘Return to Life Through Contrology’. Through his books and his students, his method was passed on after his death in 1967 at the age of 87. After his death it became known as Pilates or the Pilates method.