We all do it. I do it but then I know what I’m doing 
I’m talking about video sharing sites of course. I use the video sharing sites to get ideas for my Pilates classes. I’m always on the look out for new exercises and more importantly new teaching points to help my clients get the best from my classes.
But do you know what you’re doing? Would you know whether a particular Pilates Workout was safe for you to do? The likelihood is you don’t and that’s a problem. Some of the videos I’ve seen would be perfectly safe for most people but some in my opinion are lethal particularly if you have an existing injury, weak core or postural problem.
In my classes not only would I have screened you for injuries but I would modify (make safer) any exercise that would be contraindicated for you (risk of injury). But the Pilates you see on the Internet gives no such modifications and in most cases you are not even asked to get cleared for exercise by your health professional.
Call me paranoid but I think it’s a recipe for disaster and I’m sure a lot of people are going to injure themselves trying to do an exercise that isn’t appropriate or safe for their level. What’s worse is that Pilates could get a bad name because of it. After all in the general public’s mind Pilates is therapeutic it’s supposed to make you better not worse isn’t it?
Watch the following video and you’ll see what I mean.
Robert Bartram
(Pilates Instructor)