A woman recovered from a serious car accident to run a thriving fitness group.
Jen Pickering, a 38 year-old from Liverpool city centre, runs LV Pilates. The studio runs Pilates classes, a form of exercise which aims to strengthen muscles while improving flexibility and posture.
LV Pilates focuses specifically on Reformer Pilates, which instead of a mat utilises a reformer machine to create resistance as you move through different exercises. Jen properly discovered Pilates after a serious car accident, after which she began rehabilitation for her injuries at The Walton Centre.
READ MORE: Scouse band's 'surreal' journey from back gardens gigs to playing sell-out shows
Jen said: “It was originally a spine injury that caused a hip injury. I used to run, I was that person that would go to the gym and do HIIT classes or kettlebells, high intensity stuff.
“After my accident, I couldn’t walk very well. I had quite bad nerve damage to my left leg in particular. The Walton Centre was adamant that I should do Pilates.”
Jen was initially very sceptical, believing that it was more suitable for older women. However, four months into her rehabilitation, she had a “light bulb” moment.
Jen said: “I was like, 'oh my gosh, this is making a real difference to my recovery'. It really changed my perception of exercise. It doesn’t always need to be hard and fast and sweaty. You can still get a lot out of a different type of exercise.”
She soon embarked on a mission to help other people through Pilates. She quit her job as a support worker, and by 2017 was teaching Pilates classes as a qualified personal trainer.
The business wasn’t all plain sailing however. After she moved from a studio in Formby to the city centre in between lockdowns, she was left wondering if she had made the right call.
Jen said: “The biggest challenge was coming to the city. The bills are higher, the insurance is higher, the tax is higher. I had so many moments of, ‘what the hell am I doing?’”
Only a small number of clients from her Formby studio came with her to town. Jen said that there was “certainly nowhere near enough to pay the bills. The biggest challenge was, how on earth do I start over completely again? That was quite terrifying.”
Thankfully, the business has thrived since. People from all different backgrounds attend the classes, including many men and younger people who are not traditionally seen as the target audience for pilates.
Jen estimates that she sees women from at least 30 different nationalities alone at the studio across a typical week. She feels that she can use her experiences to help her clients become happier and healthier, particularly those who are in a similar position to where she was.
Jen said: “It definitely hits quite hard when people come with quite serious health issues because I can relate to it. I'm very passionate about the business for that reason and I care about clients a lot.”
She added: “I often say to clients, I wish I had a video of my first six months of doing pilates and now. I had to use a walking stick at times, it was that bad. I couldn't even go from standing to lying down on the floor on my own.”
Pilates has made a huge difference to her, and she is keen to help others in a similar position She said: “I don't have any of these issues now. It’s saved me from major spinal injury too. It's completely changed my life.”
Jen also tells her clients of the importance of doing exercise for enjoyment. She said: "Find something that you get some happiness out of. I look back now and think I didn’t really like running.
“Some people try reformer and they’re like, ‘I prefer the relaxation in yoga’, and that's cool.”
LV Pilates is located at 12 Cheapside in Liverpool city centre.
WO newsletter : Get the top stories straight to your inbox by signing up to our what's on newsletter
Life through a new lens. We are Curiously. Follow us on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
