Move with Pilates

Meet Matilde, a pilates coach and founder of HEALTH BY M a holistic membership platform for health. In addition to her work with Pilates, Matilde practice reiki, hypnosis and yoga on her platform. Matilde is also a freelance writer for Vouge Scandinavia and Hip & Healthy.

Instagram @healthbym

Photo cred: Matilde Wergeland

In todays post we have the privilege to interview Matilde about Pilates as a workout method. She also shares her top three favorite health habits, her favorites movement practices and much more!

When did you start doing Pilates? 

I started practicing Pilates around 4,5 years ago and have done it almost every day since then.

What are the perks of doing Pilates regularly?

First of all, I think it is such a fun workout that is easy to do whenever and wherever. It strengthens the body and you get to work a lot of small muscles you necessarily wouldn’t challenge if you’re e.g. running. It helps with your posture, it helps you develop a really strong core, you get mobility, flexibility, improved balance and body awareness, and much more.

What is the difference between Pilates and yoga? 

There are some similarities, like the body-mind connection, the focus on the breathing, and being able to do it on the mat, but there are actually many differences as well. There are different poses and exercises, different philosophies, and backgrounds. Pilates was developed by Joseph Pilates about 100 years ago whereas yoga is thousands of years old.

What do you love about teaching Pilates? 

I love that you get to challenge the body in so many ways, and work on both mobility, balance, strength, flexibility, etc. I love how tough the workout actually is, even though it can appear to be quite soft and easy at times. Both on the contrary, the slow movements makes it harder and this low-impact workout will really make your muscles burn. 

I also love to teach it since it’s so fun and there are many different modifications and ways to do the exercises, e.g. with or without props, on the mat or on apparatus. I cue a lot and love to tell my clients tips and tricks when it comes to the technique behind the workout - that is KEY in order to see results and avoid injuries.

I also think it’s great fun to pair the workout with good music - I focus on that a lot in my classes.

I combine classical and contemporary Pilates in my own classes, which means that I mix the “original” exercises with different variations of modifications and use of props. I think that makes the classes fun and dynamic, as well as quite challenging. My philosophy is that if you’ve made it to the mat, you don’t want to waste your time. I always encourage my clients to give their all, but of course also listen to the body. While Pilates is a very good form of workout for injuries and rehab, we don’t want any exercises to hurt.

What does your workout routine look like atm? What is your favorite practice? 

I am in the middle of an intense teaching period at the moment, and am teaching at least one class pretty much every day. If not, I love to attend other teachers’ classes as I think that is very important as well. If you want to become a good instructor, you have to take other teachers’ classes in order to get inspiration and increase your knowledge.

I love regular mat Pilates as well as reformer classes (which I am taking a new course in this spring). I also love yoga and barre, so I usually mix barre, yoga, and Pilates with walks and runs.

What is your top three feel good habits? 

Apart from working out, I love infrared saunas and try to do that at least once a week. And when I do it, I put on a face mask, use a good hair mask, and maybe a body scrub. I also put on a meditation and drink my favorite sparkling coconut water called Hydrate. 

Another favorite habit is drinking my morning matcha and a glass of water with my Sakara water drops. I also take my supplements when I drink these, and I love this little ritual I try to do every morning.

Last but not least, I have a similar ritual in the evening, but I have swapped the matcha and water for tea and dark chocolate. I am obsessed with dark chocolate (especially chocolate covered goji berries), and this little routine makes my evenings so cozy.