I know a personal trainer...she and I have become close over the years. She- out of the blue, offered to give me private lessons in her brand new pilates studio. Usually 85 per hour, don't know what she's expecting me to pay (but that is beside the point).

Here is my question. I am completely out of shape. I mean..really bad. I don't know much about pilates but is it really for fat and flabby people? No offense. I'm speaking for myself only. I am fat and flabby!

Pilates is for everyone but for some (unfortunate) reason you do tend to only see slim people in the studios. Good god though, if you are being offered privates, do it do it do it! Pilates machines (reformers, cadillacs) are SO MUCH FUN and also durned effective.

Judy is a huge pilates fan. You should visit her journal and she can fill you in!

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=420537

Judy Here! Pilates fan too!!
Now, if someone offered me privates, I'd jump at it...depending on cost of course.
I take 2 machine classes per week..reformer and cadillac. I love the way it works all my muscles and my core! I am usually sore for days but the good kind of sore.
I see plenty of bigger girls doing too. Go for it!!

Bookish, Lisa, Judy - Good enough for me. This trainer is fantastic. She's well versed in yoga, pilates, dance, weight training and general cardio. I love her! Come to think of it, I guess she wouldn't have asked me if she didn't think it would benefit me. :-) Looking forward to it. Thanks so much for input.

I lift weights at a gym three times a week, and do a shortened version of the Pilates mat stomach series after every training session. Between that and activating my core to fight gravity with a 55 kg bar across my shoulders, my stomach muscles are really starting to respond.

I still have a thick layer of fat and lots of extra skin over them, I'm one of the ones who will eventually have to have surgery, but now I actually have rock. hard. abs. If I tense up my belly muscles I can feel the building sixpack in there like granite.

Pilates works. Just don't expect it to spot reduce your belly fat, that's a pipe dream. Don't you just wish, though...