Charlotte Grace Pilates

17/02/2026

✨WHY IS OUR SPINE CURVED?✨

We have worked with many clients over the 9 years of teaching and still today one of the facts that surprises people is that our spine isn’t straight. Educating clients on neutral spine and its importance runs through all our teachers classes.

Your spine isn’t straight like a rod - it has natural curves that make it stronger, more flexible and better at absorbing shock. Think of it like a spring rather than a stick.

The human spine has four main curves when viewed from the side:
✨ Cervical curve (neck) - curves slightly inward
✨Thoracic curve (upper back) - curves slightly outward
✨Lumbar curve (lower back) - curves inward
✨ Sacral curve (base of spine) - curves outward

Together, they create an S-shape or also known as your ‘neutral spine’ as referred to in Pilates.

These curves help the spine to absorb shock, distribute weight more easily, increase flexibility and moment and help promote balance/correct posture. Plus many more things!

Every day life, bad habits and wear and tear can cause changes to these curves which over time will cause pain and discomfort not just in the spine but surrounding structures and joints. Remember, the body works like a chain.

Before clients even begin to move, their bodies are scanned to make sure they are in their neutral spine. Strength and stability is then built upon this foundation.

22/08/2025

🩰HELLO NEW BARRE CLASS🩰

Due to popular demand and success of our already running Thursday lunch time class, I am pleased to announce we will be offering another Barre at the studio from next term with Lizzie - The perfect fusion of ballet and matwork Pilates to the beat of music.

Please let me know if you wish to have a place - they will go quick!

Starting Wednesday 10th September
12.00pm - 12.45pm
With the brilliant

07/08/2025

✨CHARLOTTE IS BACK✨

Charlotte is making a return to teaching after having her baby last year.

Continuing our new Pop Up Saturday theme - she will be putting on two back to back matwork classes on Saturday 23rd August.

9.30am - 10.30am & 10.45am - 11.45am

These classes will be mixed ability using a combination of small equipment. It has been over a year since she has worked with some of our CGP clients and she cannot wait to teach you again and get her grippy socks back on!

Please get in touch if you wish to book a place. Spaces are selling fast 👏🏻

27/03/2025

✨INTERMEDIATE RESISTANCE BAND WORKSHOP✨

We are pleased to announce our first equipment workshop. If you love working with resistance bands, this workshop is for you.

Take your Pilates practice to the next level in our Intermediate Pilates Resistance Band Workshop with Amy. This workshop is designed for those with prior Pilates experience who are looking to deepen their practice.

Throughout the workshop, we’ll incorporate targeted resistance band exercises to build muscle strength and enhance stability. The added resistance will intensify your Pilates movements, helping you engage muscles in new ways for a full-body workout that improves both mobility and endurance.

Prior Pilates experience is required as we’ll be building upon foundational principles and techniques. Resistance bands will be provided and 1 Sissel band will also be included in the workshop to take home with you.

Mat spaces are now limited. Please get in touch if you wish to enrol.

06/02/2025

We are pleased to be able to offer two Mumma & Me Pilates classes at the studio. Taken by our pre and post natal specialist and

This is a great chance to bring your little one to a Pilates class, move your body in a safe and functional way and meet a group of other mums. This class provides a safe environment to share experiences and create new friendships whilst under the professional movement guidance of Amy.

There are huge physical benefits of practicing Pilates postnatally

- It helps strengthen weak postural muscles caused by pregnancy.
- It helps restore neutral alignment
- It strengthens your pelvic floor post birth
- It can help abdominal separation
- It helps develop your proprioception which can decrease during your pregnancy

Please note, you will need to have your post birth medical clearance and your baby will need to be below crawling age.

03/02/2025

05/12/2022

✨WORKSHOPS IN JANUARY 2023✨

With our 2022 teaching year coming to a close, we are busy in the studio getting our January workshop dates in the diary - they are not to be missed! Whatever Pilates experience you have, we have something for you.

✨CLASSICAL MAT WORKSHOP

The ever popular advanced workshop, taken by Charlotte. January will see our 11th Classical Mat Workshop in the CGP studio. The 1.5 hour workshop focuses on the original Joseph Pilates sequence - This is Pilates in its purity.

✨BEGINNERS WORKSHOP

Our ongoing beginners workshop, headed by the fantastic Amy Day. Amy will be introducing beginner clients to the Pilates repertoire and covering all of the Body Control Pilates ABC’s. This workshop will allow clients priority booking into our next beginners term.

✨HEALTHY SPINES

Our in house physiotherapist teacher and spinal specialist Emma, will be taking her second Healthy Spines workshop in the studio. The interactive class of theory and practical will see Emma covering the common causes of back pain, spinal anatomy and movement and how Pilates can help future episodes of back pain.

Bookings for 2023 weekly classes will be taken over the next couple of weeks - there is still time to get yourself on the studio mailing list for all things Pilates in Dorset!

05/12/2022

✨CLASS LAST WEEK WITH EMMA✨

Our other beginner teacher Emma, and our in house physiotherapist is in her second term with her beginners and she is loving every second!

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I had some fabulous sessions with my beginner classes classes this week. It’s difficult to class them as beginners any more as they are beautifully taking on some really challenging exercises from the Joseph Pilates Classical repertoire.

We have been laying in some preparation work over the last weeks and it is all coming together into coordinated, controlled and flowing movements.

We have been using the small balls to challenge stability and build awareness of isolated movements and this week there was an emphasis on really focusing movements by stabilising one part of the body and moving another - this is key to functional movement.

It’s a pleasure to teach my clients, they are fantastic movers and I am so looking forward to taking them into 2023 classes.

04/12/2022

✨BEGINNER CLASSES THIS WEEK WITH AMY✨

Our beginner teacher Amy is 4 classes into her first term and here is what she has to say about the progress of her beginner clients.

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What a fantastic bunch of movers we have! I am thoroughly enjoying my Friday evening class and challenging my clients week to week with new exercises and progressions.

Throughout the first term we will be covering all start positions and educating them on the ABC’s but mainly getting them all moving and see what they are individually capable of/areas we need to work on.

In week 4 we are adding in some gentle hand weights to add load to the arm levers which will challenge spinal stability and shoulder strength.

As a teacher, I am a huge fan of the Classical Mat and I feel everyone should experience it (or elements of it) through their Pilates journey. I am introducing some Classical prep exercises to my beginners to challenge co ordination, stamina and increase awareness to our centring.

From the 4 hours completed in their beginners course, I have already had clients say they can feel the difference and that their back pain/posture is improving.

I am so looking forward to taking these clients into term 2 and adding more beginner classes to my timetable in the new year.

03/12/2022

✨CLASSES WITH SALLY THIS WEEK✨

Our intermediate teacher Sally takes 2 Tuesday morning classes and here’s what she had to say about her week 4 - it sounded like a technical one!

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For our week 4 of the Christmas term, we worked with hand weights focussing on scapular placement and stability plus strengthening through wrists, arms and shoulders.

Although I didn’t mention throughout the classes, I like the way the hand weights counterbalance longer and heavier leg weight in long lever movements, helping with stability.

Our main exercise focus was on curl ups with the weights which help with rhythm and range of movement in thoracic flexion.

Having heavier arm leavers which the weights provide, helps you focus on the correct technique and precision of movement which over time will promote shoulder strength, reduce any shoulder, neck or back pain and strengthen your shoulder stabilisers.

It has been clinically proven that adding small amounts of weight/load to your movements as you get older helps to increase your bone density and therefore reduce the risk of bone density related issues, such as osteoporosis.

Not only this, adding weights even onto the smallest matwork exercise will challenge any client on the mat - advanced or beginner!

03/12/2022

✨CLASSES WITH CHARLOTTE THIS WEEK✨

Charlotte teaches 12 classes across the weekly timetable, filling both morning and evening slots. Below is her feedback for the class in week 4.

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Classes have been wonderful for week 4 in the studio. We have had the challenge of working with the foam rollers.

Rollers are a fantastic way to challenge stability of the spine by moving levers on a moving surface.

My clients have worked with foam rollers for over 5 years now, so lesson planning is always great fun having to think outside the box.

As always, we balanced the spine and surrounding joints by moving them in all directions. We did a lot of functional linear work, mirroring daily movement patterns but with the benefit of increased joint range of movement which the foam rollers provide.

Rollers are fantastic for opening up the shoulders, hips and thoracic spine. We took extra care in working through thoracic extension with our postural work - my clients absolutely love this after a long day at work, holding children or just the general effects of gravity on their joints all day!

I always try and throw in some soft tissue release which is something only the prop of rollers can provide - love it or hate it, I promise you, it does you good…

These are without a doubt one of the most challenging props to work with but they have quickly become clients favourites. We always have laugh with them and 10 press ups to the first one to come off!