I had never been an athletic kid in high school. Running the mile in gym class gave me such anxiety, and although I would TRULY try my hardest to finish that mile without stopping, I found myself running half a lap around the track, losing steam, and walking the rest of it.

Last year was the first time I ever really started looking at my health seriously, and I became an avid gym-goer. I even started working there! But lately I've started something new at the gym: a hybrid yoga and pilates class.

Now a few classes in, I really am starting to enjoy it, and I'm memorizing the moves and routines so I'm no longer falling all over the place trying to keep up. I wanted to share this with yinz because it's a super fun way to get into shape and work on your endurance and strength. And the class is only an hour long, so it's not incredibly time-consuming!

So without further ado, here are five reasons why you should start pilates!

1. It's a great class for beginners

My friend and I went into class with absolutely no experience with pilates (I've been to a bodypump class before, but it's definitely not the same). The teachers are super easy-going and offer different moves for you to do if you aren't comfortable with the ones that the rest of the class is doing. Afraid that everyone will stare? Trust me, in this class, everyone is WAY too focused on themselves! Some of these moves are tricky, and are a lot harder to perfect when you're looking around the room to see what everyone else is doing!

2. It teaches you endurance and balance

I never realized how much my balance sucked. Some of these poses are actually pretty hard! We do a bunch of moves side by side that focuses all your weight and balance on one leg, and the amount of times I fall over is definitely laughable. I'm only a few classes in, but already it's easier to balance on one leg, balance on my arms, and my core strength seems to be a lot better. Also, an hour really does by fast once you realize your body has the endurance to make it through without stopping!

3. It really gets you sweating

I didn't realize it until about halfway through the class that I was sweating way more than I normally do when I'm running a few miles. When your body gets used to doing a similar cardio exercise over and over, it doesn't do much to raise your heart rate and get you sweating more. I'm sure everyone has heard of the phrase "sweat is fat crying" or something similar, right? A little disgusting, but at least I know that my heart rate is going up and up, which is what cardio is supposed to do!

4. You really start to get better after just one class

The morning after my first class, my legs were KILLING ME. It was hard to walk up stairs, to kick my legs up on the coffee table, and even to just roll over in bed. I was angry with myself at first, because my legs are the strongest muscles I have and I work them super hard in the gym, and this class put me out for a few days! It almost made me not want to go back the following week, but I persisted, and I'm so glad I did! Even though it was only my second class, the next morning showed that I was already getting used to the rigourous routine! My legs were dying during the class, but after they were barely sore at all!

5. It's actually FUN

On cardio days (which is nearly everyday), I find myself dreading the treadmill. I think it is absolutely positively BORING to run and not get anywhere. So when I have an option to do something that is different, I love to jump at the chance! I think I speak for everyone when I say that time goes by super fast when you're having fun, especially at the gym!

Now that I've gained muscle and overall feel better about myself (I can actually run a mile now without stopping, who knew?!), I've begun to feel as if I have fallen into a rut. I still love going to the gym and feeling good after, but getting there takes a lot of effort. I have had the same fitness routine for a year now, with a few alterations, and it was starting to get boring.

Thankfully, my best friend asked if I would be willing to go to this class with her. I now am really starting to enjoy it, and every one of the reasons I listed are true to me! If you're looking to find a fun way to get into shape, I highly recommend heart-racing pilates.

xoxo, Madison