Pilates, keeping you fit and sane...

Hi! I’m Francine McCaughan, a lawyer turned Pilates Professional, who went through the wedding planning process just recently. As yours will be, my wedding day was hands down THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE. I got to marry my prince and best friend in the most beautiful dress and in the presence of God and people that I love and cherish. Safe to say, if Groundhog Day were a thing, I would hope to live my wedding day over and over and over again every. single. day. Til Kingdom come. ALL.THE.FEELS.

Now, that being said, and to make this post more relatable to what you are going through right now, which is presumably wedding-planning, I would like to communicate the exact opposite sentiment regarding that aspect of the whole wedding thing. Not to rub it in, but I would not want to go through wedding planning ever again. Even with my full-time wonderful wedding planner who made my wedding day dreamier than I could ever have imagined, I wouldn’t want to relive it and certainly wouldn’t wish the task of planning a wedding even on my worst enemy. There, I said it.🤷‍♀️ Crickets? I’m the only one? Lies. Every single bride-to-be and bride there was that I spoke to agreed. Vehemently.

So the million dollar question is: how do we deal with the inevitable stress that comes with planning, researching, and tasking the biggest most wonderful event of your life? Enter PILATES 📷📷🏻

Pilates is a form of exercise that allows you to work all of the muscles in your body, even supporting ones that you didn’t know you had, while working your core with little to no impact on your body. It incorporates principles like intentional breathing, core control, lengthening of the spine, posture and alignment, precision, and awareness to churn out a long and lean ballerina-type toned body. Helllooooo wedding gown ✔️📷🏻📷 Because Pilates movements are so low impact and rely so much on deep breathing, the result is a toned calm and stress-free body and mind. I don’t know about you but that sounds like something that is good for the soul, too! Which makes sense as to why the founder of Pilates, Joseph Pilates, marketed Pilates as an exercise that connects the body, mind, and spirit.

Pilates is the fitness plan you’ve been looking for to keep you fit and sane during your entire wedding planning process. An effective exercise you can do while lying down after all those non-stop wedding emails, texts, and calls?! Count me in! Of course, any exercise can help keep you fit, but, as aforementioned, Pilates incorporates intentional breathing, which augments stress-reduction. Breathing is one of the core principles of Pilates. Joseph Pilates, the founder of Pilates, called the deep breathing used in Pilates the “Internal Shower.” Why? Because he said that by inhaling deeply we take in Oxygen that is carried through our bloodstream to all the cells of our body providing them with energy and by exhaling we get rid of Carbon Dioxide eliminating “toxins” and stale air from our bodies, leaving our bodies feeling refreshed and invigorated after class. Check out this quote from verywellfit.com that tells us basically the same thing: “...if you want to have energy at all, you've got to have oxygen. Conversely, carbon dioxide is a waste product and deep breathing helps you get rid of it. Not only that, but deep breathing stimulates the internal organs, including the heart. When the heart gets going, thereby increasing circulation, you get fresh blood coursing through the body, carrying oxygen and nutrients to every cell, as well as removing waste products.” “Breathing fully, with attention and intention, centers us. It clarifies and calms the mind, reduces stress, and paves the way for a greater, holistic experience.” http://bit.ly/2VDRBE9 Stress-eliminated ✔️

If you want to feel like a princess on your wedding day, there is nothing like taking a tip from a real princess herself on how to accomplish that. According to EntertainmentTonight.com, Pilates was Meghan’s go-to exercise regimen to get herself princess-ready for her wedding day. Back when I lived in LA, I used to do Pilates at the same studio that Meghan Markle did. Because of that, and the fact that I am now a Pilates professional, I was fortunate enough to be interviewed on the topic by EntertainmentTonight.com. In the article, I go into detail on exactly how Pilates sculpts your body and calms your mind in as little as 10 sessions and why it is an exercise fit for a princess.📷 Check out my interview with EntertainmentTonight.com.

here: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.etonline.com/inside-meghan-markles-favorite-pilates-class-96436%3famp

If you are interested in learning more, I invite you to visit my Instagram page @perfectlypilates (“because you are perfect the way you are”) and DM me with any questions you have at any time of day. I am available there for you 24/7 and am happy to make recommendations or help you find a good Pilates studio in your area. I also provide healthy quick recipes that you can make while wedding planning. Stay fit, eat healthy, feel great! Good luck and congratulations! Marriage is the absolute BEST! 📷📷️📷🏻

About the Author:

Francine, a lawyer turned Pilates teacher, began her Pilates training in Atlanta, Georgia, while she was a Georgia Tech NCAA Varsity Cheerleader. Originally seeking mental respite from the scholastic and physical rigors of student-athlete life, she found that Pilates not only soothed and calmed her mind, but also invigorated her body, lengthening and leaning it out. After noticing the results, she was hooked. Francine honed her Pilates practice by taking classes regularly in Atlanta and Augusta, Georgia, Washington DC, Los Angeles, California, and finally in Cádiz, Spain. She attended her teacher training courses in Miami, Florida, through Pilates Pro Works and Polestar Pilates. She teaches Pilates and Barre group and private classes. She also hosts Pilates masterclasses in French, Spanish, and English in order to share her passion and teach others about the benefits of Pilates. To date, she has hosted events in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, and Paris, France. When you do what you love, the sky's the limit! Francine is a firm believer in doing what you love and loving what you do and trying everything in between until you find out what that is. She has found this life process to be analogous to Pilates itself, where every exercise takes trial and error to achieve, but persistence and determination help you to achieve your goal. She feels she has finally married her passions and strengths and encourages her clients every day to strive to do the same.