Skip to content
Facebook Twitter
Millstream Pilates
Skip to content
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Meet Claire
    • Qualifications and Courses
    • Meet the Movement Team
    • Testimonials
    • Live Q+A Health Webinars
      • An Evening with Dr Hannah Short
    • Retreats
      • February 23rd 2019 – Pilates and Pause
      • Cycle Yoga and Pilates in the Pyrenees
  • Pilates
    • What is Pilates?
    • Body Control Pilates
    • Reformer Pilates
    • BCP Student Training
    • FAQ’s
  • Classes
    • Locations
      • Pilates in Benson
      • Radley
      • Dorchester
      • Livestream Classes
    • Class Schedule
    • Sessions Types
      • Beginners or Mixed Ability Healthy Bones
      • Chair Based Pilates
      • Remedial Healthy Backs
      • Mixed Ability
      • Advanced
      • Osteoporosis and bone health work shop
      • Parkinsons Disease
      • Pre and Post Natal
      • Cycling/Running Specific Pilates
      • Private Sessions
    • Book a Course
      • Privacy Policy
  • Livestream Classes
    • Class Schedule
  • Back4Good Practitioner ®
  • Gallery
  • Client Zone
  • Book a Course
    • Privacy Policy
Home Archive by category "Blog" (Page 3)

Category: Blog

Blog Display

Great Article from the Oxford Times on Pilates in your office chair – No more excuses!

Continue reading

‹12345›»
  • Millstream Pilates Claire W

    millstream_pilates

    🧘🏻Body Control Pilates teacher
    🦴Low Back Pain Practitioner
    🫶🏻Menopause Coach at @menopause_couch
    🚵🏻‍♀️ Cyclist
    ❤️’s mountains, cats & life

    When the reformer snake meets the Year of the Snak When the reformer snake meets the Year of the Snake…

In Pilates, the Snake isn’t just a shape — it’s a shedding.

A long, spiralling, wringing movement (especially with my wobbles!) that asks you to release what’s stuck, soften what’s rigid, and move with intelligence instead of force.

And isn’t that exactly what this Year of the Snake has been teaching us?

Slow burns. Emotional moulting. Old skins peeling off whether we liked it or not.

It has been an extraordinary year for many of my clients  experiencing  and moving into new challenges - more than any other year I’ve been teaching (13 years!) 

So this week on the reformer we’re not just doing Snake…

We’re seeing it out.

Twisting out the stories that no longer fit.

Lengthening into the version of you that’s been quietly forming underneath the struggle.

Reclaiming your spine, your breath, your centre.

Snakes don’t push — they glide.
They don’t cling — they shed.
And they always make space for what’s next.

If this year has wrung you out a little, come and do it consciously with me on the reformer 🖤

Let’s close this cycle the Pilates way — strong, supple, and ready for your next skin.

#PilatesReformer #SnakeExercise #YearOfTheSnake #SheddingSeason #WildWomanMoves #SpinalAlchemy #pilatesteacher #somaticexperiencing
    Yes, it might look big… but we’re very nearly Yes, it might look big… but we’re very nearly full 👀

Welcome to our jazz-cool Pilates home at The Snug Barn, Bishop’s Court Farm, Dorchester-on-Thames 🎶✨

Spaces are disappearing fast.

How well do you really know your body?

Would you like to:
• Gain control and confidence in how you move
• Manage long-term back pain
• Strengthen from the inside out
• Work towards exciting, meaningful goals
• Or simply slow down and reconnect mindfully
. Swing from the chandeliers! 🤣 

Pilates here is intelligent, prescriptive, and empowering — designed to help you use your body to its best advantage.

If this resonates, get in touch to book your induction 🤍

#dorchesteronthames #pilatesoxfordshire #pilates #prescriptivepilates #dynamicpilates #lowbackpainpractitioner #lowbackpain #pilatesforeverybody
    Mid-70s. Osteoporosis. Daily Pilates. And still wi Mid-70s. Osteoporosis. Daily Pilates.
And still winning the prosecco plank challenge 🥂💪

This is my amazing Mum — and I’m incredibly proud to be both her daughter and her teacher 🤍

Her strength is built on consistency, intelligent movement, and a little joy along the way.

While my qualifications and experience mean most Millstream Pilates classes are clinical, considered, and prescriptive, there’s always space for laughter — because movement should feel empowering and fun.

✨ New term starts next week
• 1 space left in each Dorchester Snug Barn class
• Benson is full
👉DM me to book

#PilatesForLife #StrongBonesStrongWomen #OsteoporosisSupport
#ClinicalPilates #PilatesTeacherLife #MidlifeStrength
#HealthyAgeing #PilatesCommunity #PilatesWithPurpose
#DorchesterPilates #SnugBarn #MovementIsMedicine #pilates #pilatesteacher #oxfordshire #dorchesteronthames #bishopscourtfarm
    When your husband turns into your client ….😬 When your husband turns into your client ….😬

The aftermath of the annual MTB Christmas ride 🍻 🙈 with 10 very painful days waiting for surgery 😔

Post surgery rehab day 1 ….👌

Luckily he’s married to a movement specialist ….😁

He was made to smile for this photo! 

#clinicalpilates #pilates #physio #collarbones #postsurgeryrehab #happychristmas
    Today!! Thankfully I didn’t need to get my rubb Today!!

Thankfully I didn’t need to get my rubber gloves on 🤣

Always such an honour to follow my clients pregnancy journeys and get them in the best possible shape physically ready for the endurance of labour, hours of feeding and pelvic floor release ready for birth. 

We realised that another client in the same class was also with me past her  due date, 10 years ago! 

As a pre and post natal qualified Pilates teacher and a Hypopressives teacher, there’s something for every stage to nurse you through 👶 ☺️❤️ Hypopressives are strictly post natal though and the prefect antidote to 9 months of pregnancy.

#prenatalpilates #hypopressives #pilatesforpregnancy #pilates #pilatesteacher #pelvicfloor #pelvicfloorhealth
    This week was international mens day…. And what This week was international mens day…. And what a poignant week to introduce you to the amazing Eric ⭐️ 

Eric is 94 years old! I met him on a hike in the South Downs this week. When I stopped to chat to him he was on a 150m climb at 25% and smashing it! He walks 4 miles a week and is truly invested in himself with these consistent actions. 

Eric is the essence of everything that I base the advice to my clients on.

He stays fit and stays sociable which is what we need for long term health. Eric has taken control of his muscle strength, mental health , endurance and inflammation management. 

Be more Eric!!! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 

#internationalmensday #musclestrength #inflammationmanagement #bonehealth #pilates #pilatesteacher #fitforlife #mentalwellness
    Real strength isn’t just physical — it’s cho Real strength isn’t just physical — it’s choosing to show up and do the work and not just with me as no one practitioner can save the world… you need a team! 

Both of these incredible clients are working on the Cadillac Reformer:
✨ One rebuilding movement and coordination after a stroke.
✨The other achieving great movement with more stability to support her joints while living with a hyper-mobility connective tissue disorder — a condition that can create significant biomechanical challenges and pain throughout the body.

Both have been on a long journey so to watch them grow and be a part of that journey is a joy. 

I can’t fix anyone — that’s never been my role. What I can do is share knowledge, guide, and create space for their bodies to remember what they’re capable of. They’re the ones doing the real work.

Their progress comes from trust — trust in their own body, trust in the process, and trust in the collaborative care between myself and the other practitioners supporting them.

I refer on to a team of amazing practitioners - Amanda from Physioability, Tom from Tom Morgan Osteopathy. Caz Kinash women’s health photo @caroline_kinash_physio and Dave from @the_cotswold_pt for bespoke strength training.

It’s a privilege to witness what’s possible when dedication meets belief. 💫

#pilatesteacher #menopausecoach #cadillacpilates #reformer #clinicalpilates #movementspecialist #teamwork #physio #strengthtraining #rehab #prehab
    Very proud of Andy! I’ve been lucky enough to h Very proud of Andy!

I’ve been lucky enough to have him on board for 6 years. 

His mentally, motivation , drive and trust in me ( he calls it nagging 🤣) means his recovery from a partial knee replacement has been classed by his surgeon as being  in the upper percentile.

Prehab is as important,  if not more important than rehabilitation - both are essential for the best outcome.
And a good sense of humour!

I’ve never seen some post surgery with such good range and that’s because most people come to me post surgery ☺️ Andy put the hard work in pre….

#prehab #rehab #kneereplacement #clinicalpilates #pilatesteacher #pilates #reformer #kneesurgery
    It’s not often Team Millstream Pilates all end u It’s not often Team Millstream Pilates all end up in the same room together! We did today! 

Meet my gorgeous girls!!

Megan on vocals! 🤣 
Megan teachers the Monday 11:50 class at the @snug_bcf 
And Fridays 10:00  at Benson.

Kathryn on drums 🤩
Kathryn teachers Wednesdays at the Snug Barn 17:30 and 18:40

And me, Claire, on the piano 😍
Mondays Snug Barn 13:00
Tuesdays - Benson 10:00 and 11:05 
Tuesdays Snug Barn 18:00
Wednesdays Benson 18.15 and 19:25
Thursdays Benson 09:30, 10:35 and 18:30

Healthy backs, Beginners, Mixed ability, Advanced and Sports performance and Private 121’s for specialist back care or neuro conditions. Reformer and Cadillac ❤️

#pilates #pilatesteacher #sportsperformancetraining #lowbackpainexercises #lowbackpain #lowbackpainrelief
    Dordogne 2025- being a tourist Rock houses & 25,0 Dordogne 2025- being a tourist 
Rock houses & 25,000 year old cave drawings 
Canooning and cheese
Massive meals and black Madonna’s! 

And the fabulous @djmdrummond ❤️

#dordogne #france #summer #pilatesteacher #toomuchfood
    They pretend they don’t like each other and then They pretend they don’t like each other and then you get up at 1am and find them in their bunk beds very happy together 😻😻

#catsofinstagram #bunkbedbuddies #britishshorthair #supercute
    Our feisty but very loving little lady has made it Our feisty but very loving little lady has made it to 13! 

Not sure how with all the fights and injuries she’s encountered … she’s promised me she’s in retirement now 😻

#catsofinstagram #britishshorthair #smoke #birthdaygirl
    Meet Liz 😍 I’ve been honoured to work Liz thr Meet Liz 😍 I’ve been honoured to work Liz through some of the toughest periods of her life. Not something I ever take for granted. 

She teaches me something every time we work together. 😍

This year Liz made it to the Dolomites for hiking … it’s been on her bucket list for years! 

Liz reminded me yesterday that women are stronger together - thank you Liz 🫶🏻

👍 permission to use 👍 from your 65 year old triple cancer survivor client with vertebrae fracture history…rather proud and grateful…with thanks xx

#cadillacpilates #reformer #clinicalpilates #osteoporosis #cancer #free #pilatesteacher #strongwomen #thisgirlcan
    🤣 what can I say that’s not already been said 🤣 what can I say that’s not already been said! 

#pilateslovers💕 #pilateslovers #pilates #reformerpilatesinstructor #pilatesteacher
    A stunning restorative week in the Lake District. A stunning restorative week in the Lake District.

Mountains and lakes … always my happy place ❤️🌄🏔️

Rest comes in many formats… mine always needs some form of movement… whether it’s watching the water moving whilst I sit still in nature or I’m moving within nature … it’s the best anecdote to modern chaotic life.

#rest #restore #pilatesteacher #burnout #prematureovarianinsufficiency #lakedistrictnationalpark
    You know you’re on for a fun session when your c You know you’re on for a fun session when your client turns up wearing this! 🤣 actually, she thinks I need one too 🤣🤔😍

#121pilates #funclients #lovemyclients❤️❤️❤️ #pilatesteacherlife #pilatesteacher #reformerpilates #rehabpilates #clinicalpilates #difficultwomen
    Changes … some times we choose them and sometime Changes … some times we choose them and sometimes they are forced. 

This one was forced - after 13 years of teaching in Radley and 11 years in this venue. It is no longer fit for practise. No heating and lack of funding and no alternative venue close enough. 

Then there’s the teacher who is rubbish at reducing her late night teaching schedules because she shares so much joy from these incredible humans and has to be forced into it due to her own body complaining.

It was the last time they’ll see each other too… so we went out with a bang. The usual inappropriate but very appropriate jokes! 

Ignoring the groans and embracing the laughter and then letting the tears flow a little at the end… oh ok, a lot! 🤣 I had no chance.

Radley- I will miss you so much. Thank you for  trusting me with your precious bodies and sense of humour for all this time.

Tuesday nights will not ever be the same.

#pilates #pilatesteacher #myofascialrelease #grateful #amazinghumans #gratitude
    A couple of weekend ago I had the absolute joy and A couple of weekend ago I had the absolute joy and privilege of being a part of a group of amazing women, learning from each other and sharing as the amazing @lisabpilates took us through the complete Cadillac course.

One of the best learning experiences I’ve had ❤️ thank you ladies!

Can’t wait to share the Tower joy with all my clients!! 

Never tried it!?! Only ever tried the reformer ?? I’ll let you into a little secret…. I think it’s better than the reformer!! 

More freedom of planes, more creativity, more control required… more range more stretch! 

Come and have a play! 

#pilates #pilatesteachertraining #pilatesteachers #pilatescadillac #pilatestower #stretch #control #joy
    The sliders are out this week! 🥵😍 With kind The sliders are out this week! 🥵😍

With kind permission, meet one of my total inspirations!! 

Mary travels, hangs out with the girls, doesn’t accept diagnoses and works on herself to be her best version! 

Mary rocks!! We all need a bit of Mary inspiration! ❤️❤️

#inspiration #ageisjustanumber #pilatesqueen #pilates #corestability #planks #thisgirlcan #sliders #upperbodystrength
    Today was a play day and definitely intensive! F Today was a play day and definitely intensive! 

Flexors extending, extensors flexing!
Flexing and extending

Hamstrings intensifying! 

#pilatesteacherfun #reformerteacher #strongspine #advancedreformer #pilatesteacher #menopausecoach #poiwarrior
    Load More Follow on Instagram

  • Body Control Pilates is a registered trademark used under licence

Website Design: Top Marks CMS
Powered by Nirvana & WordPress.
Facebook Twitter