My One Year Journey of Pilates with V Health & Fitness

My One Year Journey of Pilates with V Health & Fitness

By Liam Hanlon

A year ago, I found myself in a place I never expected. Following a significant elbow injury in July 2024, which eventually required surgery, I was at a psychological low.

Despite my best efforts to keep training, I was watching my upper body strength gradually wither away due to the limited resistance I could manage. I felt frustrated, stuck, and genuinely feared I would never return to full strength or mobility.

It was out of a sense of pure desperation that I finally listened to my wife, Debbie. She had been training with V for months before, and recommended I join her. With our daughter Kiera’s wedding only seven weeks away, I agreed to a seven-week booking: a 07:00 Wednesday Pilates class and an 08:00 Thursday Strength & Conditioning session. The goal was simple: get in shape for the big day together.

A Humbling Start

Walking into that first Pilates session was a massive culture shock. My entire fitness identity had been forged in the worlds of Boxing, the Royal Marines, Circuit Training, and Ironman triathlons. Suddenly, I was standing on a foam mat in a silent room with zen music, being coached by V on breathing patterns and tiny, controlled Pilates movements.

It was incredibly grounding and humbling. As the only man in a room full of capable, strong women, I felt a deep sense of embarrassment at my own lack of flexibility. I spent most of those early classes with my eyes closed, trying to settle my thoughts and my breathing.

The Turning Point: From the Wedding to the Mountains

By the time Kiera’s wedding arrived, I began to feel subtle improvements in my strength and mobility. I felt good for the wedding, but more importantly, I felt a shift in my mindset. Debbie and I decided to keep the sessions going as our version of a "date night," just in the early morning.

We shared our next big goals with V, and for me it was to summit Mount Aconcagua in Argentina, the highest mountain in the Southern Hemisphere. As a seasoned climber who already had Everest under my belt, I knew I needed a specific kind of resilience for this three-week expedition starting in January 2026.

The Six-Month Transformation

V designed a program that featured a steady, incremental increase in resistance. This discipline taught me how to slow movement down and synchronise it with my breath, allowing me to truly understand my body’s mechanics.

During this time, I successfully re-developed the strength to perform:

Full press-ups

Full planks and side planks

Full-body pull-ups with controlled, symmetrical form

V’s approach really leaned into the slower pace, focusing on posture and efficiency, and this proved to be the perfect preparation I needed.

Summiting Aconcagua

On January 17th, 2026, that balance of strength and breath-work paid off. At extreme altitudes, where every movement is a struggle, the efficiency and alignment I learned in Pilates were invaluable during 10-hour climbing days.

In incredibly tough conditions, my teammate Steve and I reached the 6962m summit.

Reflections One Year On

Today, Debbie and I still enjoy our three weekly "date night" sessions on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. A year later, I will admit I still feel that flicker of discomfort when I first step onto the mat. But now, I just close my eyes and follow the class, knowing that those small, incremental gains are building the foundation for whatever challenges we will face next.

Whether you are recovering from surgery or preparing for the highest peaks on Earth, I cannot recommend the support from V, and the balance of physical and emotional benefits found at V Health & Fitness enough.

A year on, these sessions have become an essential part of our lifestyle. By learning to engage the breath and embrace a slower, more intentional pace, I have discovered a sense of physical and psychological balance that I never knew I was missing. Deb and I continue to look forward to our three morning sessions each week, confident that the efficiency and resilience we build here on the mat will support us through every challenge and summit yet to come.