the ladies of paarl pilates invited the MOVEPRETTY team to attend the launch night of their new studio, situated at spice route destination.
ladies, do yourselves a favor and pop in for a quick demo or even the full monty ;)
‘pilates for life’ is located just outside the beautiful town of paarl. it is the first and also the only fully equipped pilates studio in paarl. pilates for life offers a complete health and wellness platform. their beauty salon, beautiforlife takes care of your beauty needs, and the pilates classes helps you to unwind, relieve stress and focus on your mind and body.
colette started ‘pilates for life’ in 2004 and never looked back. expanding in 2017 to open 3 more studios, colette is definitely the best of the best!
how did the whole concept start?
colette: 'i initially found out about pilates when i had to undergo rehab for my knee, which i injured while doing ballet. it made a drastic difference to my body and i fell in love it. it was not long before i started working as an ‘intern’ with my mentor and friend, gerda miller in melkbos. i opened my first studio in 2004 in durbanville and moved to paarl in 2006 where my husband is a teacher. i had built a new client base and slowly but surely my company started growing. in 2016 my middle son, dante, was accepted into a university in england. i had sleepless nights about how many pilates classes i would have to add to be able to pay for him. it was not only this financial worry that kept me awake. i had dreams to expand my business and to be able to offer more for my clients, but i had to build up courage to take that step. with the help of sarah arnot (a ‘business coach’ and friend) i learnt not to see it as something impossible, but to rather see it as a challenge. it feels unreal to have such a massive business in my name and i feel so grateful for it.
what is the heart behind the business?
there is no better feeling than to make a positive influence in someone’s life. i want to create a safe space where people can work on their physical and emotional wellbeing. when people exercise they often feel exposed and become aware of all of their insecurities. at pilates for life i want my clients to feel accepted ‘warts and all’ and that we can walk this journey together.
how do you empower women?
women are empowered through pilates, because it does not only focus on your body (although it definitely makes a dramatic change to your physical strength, tone and mobility). we focus on three things at the same time: mind, body and soul. in the class you get time to focus on yourself for the entire hour without thinking about your ‘to-do-list’ and your daily worries. the end result of the class leaves you feeling fresh, full of energy and empowered for the day. often at the end of the class, we say that our clients are ‘pilatified’- which comes down to the same thing – you feel centred and in control of anything that lies ahead for you.
what does paarl pilates entail? what can you expect from joining a class?
at pilates for life you can expect the pilates method (the original way created by joseph h. pilates), as well as different versions to cater for each of our client’s needs. we like to give each of our client’s individual attention – even in a group class, because we believe that it is the small difference that delivers better results. we are the first and only studio in the winelands that not only offers mat work but are also equipped with reformers, wunda chairs, cadillac and barrels.
how do the sessions work? (do you have to pay monthly or can one do once-off/drop in’s?
we have different packages available. one can choose between mat work, a class using the available equipment or a combination class. people can attend monthly, but we also have a ‘drop-in’ fee available.
are you open over weekends?
at the moment we are not. we are open from mondays to friday, but we close on public holidays. over the school holidays it is business as usual.
why reformers?
joseph pilates was a very smart man. he invented the reformer to offer resistance for the body. the resistance means that you not only get stronger and learn to work with more control, but it helps you stretch deeper, which gives you more mobility on a daily basis. the end result is to not only look better, but to function and cope with ones daily requirements in life.
“free your body. free your mind. free your soul.” pilates for life is definitely a must! for more information you can visit their website: www.paarlpilates.co.za
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