You may wish to consider exercise as a means of rehabilitation or prevention of injuries, or just to have fun and burn some calories in a friendly well supervised exercise class. Either way it is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. For a Chartered Physiotherapist it is certainly one of the most powerful treatments at our disposal and our depth of knowledge in this area makes us unique amongst Health Care Professionals.

Most of our classes are run by Chartered Physiotherapists with all the necessary training. They will guide you through the movements and advise you throughout the class. Our classes have a maximum of twelve participants this will ensure that you receive some individual attention and feedback whilst still gaining the benefits of working in a group. Other exercise classes are run by registered Personal Trainers who will offer you their support, motivation and humour!

An exercise form developed by Josef Pilates in the early 1900’s in New York. Pilates was renowned for his visionary insight into human movement, postural control and alignment having participated in and studied a number of classical sports. He developed the exercise form popularly used today.

The benefits of Pilates include:

• Improved flexibility
• A more efficient breathing pattern
• Improved posture and postural awareness
• Heightened neuromuscular control
• Prevention of soft tissue injuries such as back pain
• Increased bone density
• Lower stress levels
• Weight loss

Our combined knowledge of managing soft tissue problems, Pilates’ principles and use of exercise in rehabilitation will be used in developing the classes.

This class will suit people of all ages and fitness; it is low impact and low intensity with focus on controlled movements to guide you into better postural habits. Anyone new to Pilates should start at the beginner’s class, regardless of fitness levels. As you become more experienced in the techniques you may progress into an advanced class. There is a women’s only class and a mixed class.

Research into the relationship between injury and movement patterns has been one of the most important advances in Physiotherapy in the past ten years. We now know much more about the roles certain deep stabilising muscles play in movement and when they fail to work the direct effect it has in causing pain and problems. Most long standing conditions can be managed by use of stabilising exercise.

Possibly the most widely recognised muscles in this category are the deep abdominals. Unfortunately, stability management is not as simple as commonly interpreted (deep abdominal contractions) and a thorough understanding is required to teach these exercises. Core stability is frequently misinterpreted for core strength, which although equally desirable, will not necessarily result in the same benefits.

Our depth of knowledge of the contemporary literature, our active research and vast experience in dealing with movement dysfunction are used in developing our core stability classes.

This class will again suit people of all ages and fitness, it is low impact and low intensity with an emphasis on control it would be particularly beneficial for those with a history of low back pain or related movement problems.

Circuit training is a way to enhance muscle and heart condition, which will result in physical and psychological well-being, (although you may feel a bit stiff after the first class).
Our circuit classes will aim to achieve all of the above along with being fun. Classes will be run on demand and will include

• Senior circuits (run at a more leisurely pace) aimed at maintaining a healthy heart, muscle strength and flexibility. Suitable in treating the ‘wear and tear’ effects of osteoarthritis and osteoporosis.
• Fighting-4-fitness a mixture of conventional circuit training, interspersed with performing self-defence manoeuvres run by a Registered Personal Trainer who also works with Greater Manchester Police. Suitable for those who want to do some exercise to work on all round fitness and learn a few nifty moves!
• Conventional circuits (at a less leisurely pace) aimed at either amateur sportsman or people who just want to get a bit fitter. A Chartered Physiotherapist, who is also a Registered Personal Trainer, will run these classes.

Other classes may be run according to demand – let us know what you want! We will be able to cater for your sports’ club’s specific requirements, contact us to discuss this further.