20 Core Minutes is designed to strengthen your core muscles: the deep abdominal, back, and pelvic floor muscles. One of the best ways to challenge these muscles is to make them stabilize the trunk under unstable conditions. In this workout, we do that by reducing stabilizing contact with the floor, and by using the exercise ball (non-ball options are given too).

Some exercises in this workout are intermediate level but modifications are given in the instructions for those of you who want to go through at a slightly less challenging level.

Do 20 Core Minutes of Pilates

Have the Exercise of the Week, along with other great Pilates info., sent directly to you each week in the Free Pilates Newsletter.

"In 10 sessions you'll feel the difference, in 20 sessions you'll see the difference, and in 30 sessions you'll have a whole new body"."
Joseph Pilates

We usually use the Pilates Power Animal of the Month to look at what we can learn about movement from different animals. There is certainly much to be learned from the butterfly. Its bright presence and grace in flight are truly inspiring. But it is the butterfly as a symbol of change and metamorphosis over time that I want to focus on this month.

We could see the butterfly's journey from caterpillar to magnificent avian as symbolic of our potential go through dramatic transformations in our Pilates practice. It's not just that we get out of the gate with fast changes in the beginning, as Joseph Pilates describes above. We can also make huge transformations throughout the life of our practice. The catch is that those changes are sometimes preceded by uncomfortable caterpillar and cocoon stages!

What I've noticed in myself, and many other people, is that I go along improving, which feels great; then I level out, still feeling pretty good and thinking I know what I'm doing. Then, something new enters the picture. It might be an insight from an instructor, a movement concept I read about, a new physical challenge, or just the inner push for the next level; and all of a sudden I feel like I don't know anything and I'm going backward in my Pilates practice.

The opportunity that comes with these disorienting phases is, of course, to stick with it. To have faith in the transformative process. If your Pilates practice is strong -- you have a good instructor and you practice at home and/or at the studio -- you will emerge on a new level of integration.

I'm in an "Pilates caterpillar" stage now. What's keeping me going is trust in my "butterfly process" (I've been through this before). What about you? Do you experienced similar transformations in your own practice?

See past Pilates Power Animals

Never mind exercise names like spine twist and neck pull, or equipment that look like medieval torture devices sporting ominous names like, the reformer; for some people, even thinking about starting a Pilates exercise program is scary.

Since it's Halloween weekend, I got to thinking about how Pilates might be scary for beginners. Then I started thinking about how even now certain Pilates situations can be scary for me, like starting a new class at a new studio.

So let's talk about it. Is there anything about Pilates that makes you nervous? If you are a beginner or just thinking about starting Pilates, what's holding you back? And for those of you who have been doing Pilates a while, maybe you could think back to when you started. Was it a little scary? Why? Readers are sharing their experiences in Scary Pilates Stories.

Courage Boosters:

Overcome Fears About Starting Pilates

Top Myths About Pilates

I was just cleaning up my workout area at home when I dug down into a container I keep balls, bands, and rings in. At the bottom I found a set of small, pink toning balls from Stott Pilates that I got last year. I was like, wow, where did these come from? This is just what I need.

I've been using the hand held toning balls a little more lately. I just grab them during my mat workouts at home -- holding them during exercises like roll up, saw, spine stretch, and spine twist. The trouble has been that the ones I have been using are a little too big. They are hard to hold. These little pinkies are just right.

So when I found them, I wondered if Stott had a special on them this month since they are pink and it is breast cancer awareness month. I quickly jumped on their site, and the answer is Yes. The pink toning balls are 20% off in October, and Stott is donating to the Pink Tulip Foundation. But only for October... sorry I didn't think of it sooner. Not that you can't get the balls later. They are handy (sorry for the pun, I can't help myself).

Compare prices on other breast cancer awareness fitness products.