Decided I'd better begin a new thread rather than divert the "Waist matters.." one.

I fractured T7 & T8 late last year - supposedly healed, but nowhere near perfect. (This is evident while going about my daily activities and unfortunately I've discovered that it's uncomfortable to cycle any great distance due to jarring through the handlebars-arms-to spine.) I recently purchased the book "Pilates Anatomy - A Comprehensive Guide" as I need to strengthen my core muscles and protect my spine from further injury and have embarked on my Pilates adventure by going through the basics section and am up to the stretches section.

Before beginning these I had the opinion that I was fairly flexible for my 51 years - not so it seems. The hamstring stretch was the first in the stretch section and seemed fairly straight forward, however I discovered that I could hardly straighten my knee and certainly couldn't flex any further than at a right angle to my other leg (while prone on the floor)! That was day 1. Five days of practice has improved my flexibility and I'm finding it easier and can stretch further and it feels good after I've done them! Each day I have introduced another stretch. There are 13 stretches in all. At this rate it's going to take a couple of weeks to get to the beginner exercise section of the book, however I feel I should prepare my body slowly before trying more adventurous exercises.

It's winter time here in Australia and I do my exercises in front of a log fire - so it's quite nice really. I'm hoping that there will be some body sculpting benefits to these exercises in the long term, but my main goal is muscle tone and development of a stronger body.

I've done some research re pilates instructors and there aren't any listed within a reasonable distance from where I live. I've also visited some Pilates forums as a visitor.

PS I've looked up "mulabandha" on the yoga sites and have found it quite easy to do several times a day - it is said that improvement may take 8 weeks or so. (Dr. suggested future surgery may be needed for sagging pelvic floor - no alternatives given and I'm not keen to go under the knife!)