Why I Love My Pilates Side Hustle

Find out why physiotherapist and APPI Pilates Presenter Veronica loves her part-time Pilates gig (and no, it’s not just because she gets to wear activewear all day).

Movement

Having worked as a clinical Physiotherapist for over a decade, I have seen more than my fair share of ‘chair-shaped’ people. You know the type: rounded shoulders, a hunched back, and no glutes. Unfortunately for many of us, our day-to-day routines involve an awful lot of sitting. Fast forward a few decades and voila, chair shaped!

Our bodies weren’t designed to be in one position all day and working as a Pilates instructor gives me an opportunity to move. I demonstrate exercises, sneak in a few reps and dash between my clients. Constant movement and changing of my position allows me to incidentally stretch and strengthen while I teach and helps to ward off any unwelcomed aches and pains that come hand-in-hand with being stationary.

Flexibility

I’m not talking about the stretchy kind of flexibility (though it helps with that too!), but rather the lifestyle kind. Pilates classes run all day, every day. It’s not hard to find people that want to do classes at 6am or 6pm (or even 8pm), and every time in between. Likewise, who isn’t keen for a weekend class?

Or, if you prefer more daytime teaching, then you won’t have trouble finding participants either (think stay at home parents who come after school drop off, shift workers or retirees). With a huge surge in people working from home, you’ll also get a lot of sneaky clients keen to work-out during their, ahem, lunch breaks. Whether you’re trying to fit Pilates teaching around a full-time job or busy family commitments, there’re very few restrictions when it comes to class scheduling and picking up classes. No matter your availability, there will always be people keen to attend.

Satisfaction

Ever had that warm, fuzzy feeling from doing something good for someone else? Well, that’s what I get all day long when I teach Pilates. It might sound selfish, but who doesn’t love praise? I adore when my clients tell me that since attending my classes their back pain has disappeared, they can finally touch their toes, or that they feel much more confident in their own bodies.

Seeing the glowing faces of my clients as they leave a session always makes me feel like I’m doing something worthwhile. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to get out of bed in the mornings and come to a job like that?