The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

When your
flabby bits are starting to annoy you but you hate the concept of sweaty,
crowded gyms; it’s time to give your body an alternative experience and try pilates.
Although it’s quite new to Cairo, pilates has been steadily gaining followers
in recent years for its simple yet extremely effective toning exercises. Pilates focuses on strengthening your core muscles through a series
of  exercises that coordinate breathing with muscle control.
This is every cardio-phobe’s ideal workout; as most of the exercises take place
lying on a mat or standing up, with absolutely no cardio involved.

Don’t be
fooled, though; you will sweat and tone enough to feel that tell-tale muscle
burn. Stott Pilates is a method of the exercise first developed by the Stott
Pilates company in Canada. The method focuses on restoring the natural curves
of the spine and regaining muscle balance around the joints through breathing,
pelvic placement, ribcage placement, scapular movement, and head and cervical spine
placement. The company also produced the Reformer, a piece of pilates equipment
used to tone and push the body to extreme fitness levels.

Located in
Zamalek, Reform Pilates is a new pilates studio run by the very warm and
professional Milla, a certified and experienced instructor from Italy
who practices the Stott method and uses all quality Stott equipment. Milla
offers beginner, intermediate and advanced classes depending on your fitness
level, in addition to private classes using the Reformer.

The cool
thing about Reform Pilates is that the classes are small: Milla keeps her
sessions limited to a maximum of eight people; so that she can focus her
attention on each student. The result is a class that feels like a
one-on-one session, where she introduces each exercise, then gives you pointers
and helps you correct the moves while you train.

The intimate
classes are also relaxed and enjoyable; she never follows the same routine
twice, and mixes up the different tools and equipment each session. This means some
sessions may revolve around the Bosu, a half-ball that tones your calf muscles
and challenges your balance,or the fitness circle, the flex bands, or the
toning balls.

At the time
of this review, Milla offered three levels of pilates: pilates essential,
pilates essential power and pilates intermediate. Classes last for one hour and
are either in the mornings or in the evenings starting at 6PM. For more
information, check out the Facebook group.

Single mat classes cost 100LE, with ten
classes reaching 850LE. Individual sessions on the reformer cost 180LE per
class or 1500LE for ten classes.

If you’re
serious about toning and improving your pilates, Stott Pilates is highly
recommended; results can be visible in a matter of weeks. However, the
method requires dedication; it’s not worth trying if you only have time once
every few weeks.