Pilates vs. Yoga?
Written by Kathryn Savage
What to look for when picking a yoga and pilates studio? What’s the difference anyway? Allow me to break it down.
Yoga
In India yoga is mostly a spiritual practice, a way to help people understand their purpose and existence. Most yoga studios in America focus on asanas (postures) as a way to enlighten and lighten your load. Hatha Yoga is a popular form of yoga but there are a lot of varieties to choose from.
Picking a Yoga Studio
If you are just getting started, you want a studio that offers a variety of classes and styles so you can try different yoga practices and see what works best for you.
Ask the studio manager or front desk coordinator what styles the studio offers, what the classes cost, if you have to sign up in advance, if you can try a class for free, if you need to bring your own mat etc.
Most yoga studios have a lot of great information on their websites. Teacher bios, fees and schedules are usually available online.
Hatha
A Hatha class is usually going to be slow paced and gentle.
Vinyasa
Vinyasa tends to be more quick paced and challenging. The term, like Hatha can refer to a wide variety of postures, but in general, Vinyasa classes are based around a series of Sun Salutations.
Ashtanga
Get ready to sweat! Ashtanga classes are quick and aggressive. You flow from posture to posture quickly. Ashtanga classes are great workouts.
Iyengar
Iyengar is a yoga practice similar to pilates because it focuses on body alignment and posture. This practice uses props (also found in a mat pilates classes) and instead of moving from one posture to other, you hold postures for maximum benefit.
Bikram
Bikram yoga is often called hot yoga. You move through 26 postures in a room that is heated between 95 and 100 degrees! It is a great way to beat cabin fever. If you want to fantasize about spring break, or well, spring, bikram yoga is a pleasant reminder!
There are other styles of yoga to explore, the above styles I find to be the most readily available in most cities across America.
Me?
I like yoga because there is dual focus on relaxation techniques like deep breathing and killer postures sure to tone up arm jello, thighs and abs.
Final say? Yoga delivers, it is great for body and soul and you can find a yoga studio or class at most gyms and in most towns.
Downside?
An inexperienced teacher can get you twisted up like a pretzel and leave muscles sore for weeks (in a bad way). I strained my shoulder pretty bad taking an advanced class, packed to the gills with students, from a teacher who couldn't keep an eye on all of us. Wasn't so much her fault, but she didn't recognize my inability to do a posture or correct me and I got hurt. Don’t take an advanced class of you are just getting started. Don't take the most popular class if it is you first session. You don't want to be another face in the crowd. Find a studio with smaller class sizes (less than fifty). Do your homework, research the studio and see how experienced the teachers they hire are, what their class sizes are. It can vary, a lot.
Pilates
Less spiritual, more time on your back. Joseph Pilates developed the popular exercise back in the early 20th Century. Pilates is a great way to create strength, length and balance by strengthening core muscles and supporting the spine. If you have a back injury pilates is a great way to remedy your pain and it can speed recovery and prevent future injury by building strength and flexibility.
Mat, Reformer and Cadillac
Say what? A good pilates studio usually offers mat classes, reformer classes and cadillac classes. A mat class takes place on a cushiony mat not unlike a yoga mat. It is a great way to familiarize yourself with pilates because mat classes are offered at most gyms. Reformer machine classes (despite sounding sadomasochistic) are classes where you are on a device that looks like a massage table complete with straps and strings and An instructor guides you through postures engaging the machine. Think the Middle Ages, think lever pulleys. The plus side? The Reformer is a great way to focus on alignment and core strength and to build core muscles. The cadillac is a trapeze like table that can support and encourage a wide variety of pilates exercises. It is not unlike the reformer.
My Two Cents?
One-on-one or small group classes on the reformer and the cadillac are expensive. Some are upwards of fifty to one hundred dollars a pop. Why spend all that money when most the pilates postures you can do in a mat class will get the job done? And you don't need to learn how to use a weird, contraption? Most the pilates postures you will find in a mat class provide a great amount of strength training. You are engaging your core muscles and using your arms and legs as tools to strengthen and tone (instead of the reformer and the cadillac). In my experience, mat classes are just as effective as reformer and cadillac classes.
Picking A Pilates Studio
Take a class at our local gym or drop by a neighborhood studio to get a feel. A great pilates studio should offer a variety of classes with trained, experienced instructors.
Look online or use a resource like Citysearch (www.citysearch) to see individual reviews of studios written by people in your area.
Happy hunting!
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