Sinyongsan pilates studio for turtle neck and adductors: Lu Pilates

Lately I've just been eating without exercising at all, and I could feel my body falling apart in every way.

I decided I couldn't neglect it any longer, so I went to Lu Pilates near Sinyongsan Station to get a proper body analysis and learn a customized workout!

Where is Lu Pilates and how do you get there from Sinyongsan Station?

Lu Pilates is on the 3rd floor of the Yongsan Prugio Summit building near Sinyongsan Station. I went up to the 3rd floor of the Summit building, but since it was my first time, I got a little lost at first. Luckily I spotted a signboard in the hallway and was able to find the studio safely.

If you're heading there for the first time like me, make sure to check the signboard on the wall, and I'd recommend leaving a bit early to give yourself some buffer time!

Inside the pink studio at Lu Pilates

When I finally arrived at Lu Pilates, the moment the door opened I was greeted by a lovely pink-toned interior that caught my eye right away.

The whole space was bright and nicely decorated, so from the moment I stepped in I felt naturally motivated to work out and my expectations shot up haha!

As soon as I entered, the director warmly greeted me. She looked so youthful and lovely in person that I was secretly quite surprised lol.

As we talked, it turned out the director not only has a very long career but has even traveled to Japan to give lectures directly to local pilates instructors — a real expert!

She mentioned having many long-term members who've been with her for over 10 years, which gave me even deeper trust in her.

Inside the studio, everything was well equipped, from a Gyrotonic machine to a barrel, reformer, cadillac, and various small props.

What did the Motion Physio body analysis show?

After changing into workout clothes in the changing room, the first thing I did was a precise body analysis using the Motion Physio machine.

Checking the results, as expected, my body was in pretty rough shape ㅠㅠ

Not only did I have turtle neck and round shoulders, but there was also deformity in my knee flexion ㅠㅠ

Honestly, even though it's not scoliosis, I had vaguely felt in everyday life that my spine was slightly curved.

I'd felt the discomfort clearly while sleeping or sitting, but seeing the machine's results confirm it so plainly was honestly a bit shocking and upsetting ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

But the director explained the results step by step in a way that was really easy to understand, which put my mind at ease.

Straight neck, the wrong pillow, and why calves get thicker

She checked my muscles and bones directly with her hands and told me I had a straight neck along with turtle neck, then asked what kind of pillow I usually sleep on. I told her I have both a high and a low cervical pillow — the high one is comfortable when I sleep on my side, but makes my turtle neck worse when I sleep on my back, so I usually use the low one. She kindly recommended the tip of placing a folded towel under my neck instead.

Also, compared to a few years ago, my calves had gotten noticeably thicker without me realizing it. Through this test I finally found out exactly why! According to the results, my calf tension was very high. Because my glute and thigh muscles weren't doing their job properly, my calves were taking over all the work instead, which kept making them thicker — pretty shocking!

On top of that, my center of gravity was shifted forward, which meant my calves were always overloaded! I do tend to lean forward when walking or standing because I'm impatient by nature. I was amazed at how she instantly picked up on my walking habits and even my personality just from this. Hearing how that personality and behavior pattern got reflected in my movement to create my current body shape made total sense haha;;

When I mentioned I usually do weight training alone at the gym, she pointed out that now isn't the time to just work out on my own without guidance, and generously shared stretching tips I should always do when doing adductor strengthening or back exercises on gym machines. Her anatomical knowledge was so rich that every explanation felt professional and trustworthy!

After that, she used her hands to release the tension in my neck and shoulder line, which felt so refreshing. She also carefully taught me a self-massage method for the sternocleidomastoid muscle, saying I should loosen it often, and even guided me through stretches I could do at home with a foam roller.

What a 1:1 customized session at Lu Pilates covers

Once we got into the actual workout, after the essential stretches before back exercises, I learned lower body strengthening moves targeting my weakest area.

First I practiced eccentric contraction exercises to lengthen and then contract the thigh muscles, followed by movements using a ball and circling motions to strengthen the inner thigh adductors.

Honestly, whenever I did adductor exercises on gym machines, I always felt slight pain in my kneecap, which was uncomfortable.

But at Lu Pilates, doing slow circling motions while lying down, my knee didn't hurt at all and I only felt the correct muscle engagement — really satisfying!

Since I have a slight scoliosis, we also worked on strengthening the muscles around my spine using the domestic spine corrector.

My front-body muscles are usually very tight, so along with a refreshing stretch, I learned a movement that rotates the spine to expand mobility, and I could feel my stiff body loosening up noticeably!

Also, since my entire back side was relatively weak, we did a customized exercise on the barrel, lying face down to strengthen the whole back line, and I could really feel the targeted stimulation!

Results report and facilities after class

After the workout, the Motion Physio body analysis results from the beginning were neatly sent to the email I'd provided, which was convenient since I can check it anytime.

And right outside the studio there's a clean restroom, so I thought it was excellent in terms of both location and convenience. This experience made me determined to keep up body correction and exercise consistently for my own health!!

If you've maintained bad posture for a long time like me and your body shape has fallen apart, or if turtle neck or round shoulders have thrown off your back and lower body balance, I highly recommend getting an accurate diagnosis and customized workout at Lu Pilates near Sinyongsan Station :-)