moodmat Try today's check-in
Today's mood, today's move

Home Pilates for the day you're actually having

I built Moodmat for myself, to feel good and look after myself on every kind of day. A minute of questions, and you get a session that fits: gentle when you're running low, strong when you've got energy to spare.

Try today's check-inYour first day is free, and the check-in takes about a minute.

Why I made it

I kept starting plans and stopping them, because they were written for my best day and fell apart in the first tired week. So I built myself a system that starts with how I feel.

On a tired day it gives me ten slow minutes on the floor, and on a good day a proper strong session. Either way I've looked after myself, and that's what keeps me coming back.

  • It starts with how you feelYour mood, your energy and your time set the session.
  • Every kind of day countsThree gentle minutes count as much as forty-five strong ones.
  • It's made to keepNo streaks and nothing to catch up on, so coming back is easy.
  • The moves are ordinary, well-known mat exercises, each with an easier option.

“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

James Clear, Atomic Habits

Moodmat is the system I wanted: one that bends with my days, so it still works on the hard ones.

A plan that bends with you

Most plans are written for your best day. Moodmat starts from the day you're actually having, so a hard week changes the plan and you simply carry on.

Turns downRunning low? You get something gentle, and it still counts.
Turns upEnergy to spare? You get the strong session, with the harder moves.
Carries onMiss a day or a week, and you pick up from where you are.

How it works

Four small steps each day, and a system that gets to know you.

  1. 1Check inHow you feel, your energy and your time.
  2. 2MoveA session built for today, from 3 to 45 minutes.
  3. 3Say how it feltToo much, just right, or you could do more.
  4. 4It learnsThe next day like this one fits a little better.
It nudges you on, gentlyWhen a length keeps feeling right, it offers five minutes more. Tired days still get short sessions, and they still count.
Gentle, steady and strongMoodmat is built to mix all three. On strong days you get two strength blocks, a finisher and the harder moves, the kind of training that builds strength and supports weight loss alongside good food.

Words worth keeping

Four lines I come back to, about moving, habits, stillness and rest.

“Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness.”

Joseph Pilates, Return to Life Through Contrology (1945)Moving is how I look after my mood as well as my body.

“We are what we repeatedly do.”

Will Durant, The Story of Philosophy (1926), writing about AristotleA short session on most days adds up to more than a big plan I can't keep.

“The body benefits from movement, and the mind benefits from stillness.”

Sakyong Mipham, Running with the Mind of Meditation (2012)It's why every session ends with a slow landing.

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.”

Anne Lamott, 12 truths I learned from life and writing (TED, 2017)On a tired day, rest is the session.

Free fridge prints

Simple printables for the everyday side of looking after yourself: what to buy, how to put a plate together, when to move and when to rest. They're made to live on the fridge, where you'll actually see them.

The Weekly Grocery List, first page The Lazy Plate Builder, first page The 3-2-1 Week, first page The Sunday Reset

Turn one good day into a habit

A single day shows you how it feels. Keeping it going is where it starts to change things.

The Moodmat Week

Seven days to find your rhythm

Choose one of six programmes, from gentle to strong, and each day's check-in bends it to fit how you are.

Moodmat 365

A whole year, built one day at a time

Every day made for you, a progress page that learns what suits you, and a gentle push when you're ready for more.

Questions

Is it a subscription?

No. Your first day and the prints are free, and the Week and Moodmat 365 are each a single payment. Nothing renews by itself.

Do I need to be fit or flexible?

Not at all. Every move has an easier option, and the gentle sessions are mostly lying down.

Can it help me lose weight?

It can be part of it. Weight loss mostly comes from food, sleep and how much you move across the whole day, and Moodmat looks after the moving: strong sessions on good days, a long walk in the week and a simple plate for each day. I can't promise a result, and if you're losing weight for a health reason, please talk to your doctor too.

Will I build muscle?

On the strong days, that's what they're for. The main moves have ladders of harder steps, small dumbbells make them harder still, and when a move keeps feeling easy, Moodmat offers you the next step. Muscle comes from regular strength work, enough protein and enough rest.

What do I need?

A mat or a towel and a bit of floor. A wall, a chair and a pair of small dumbbells are useful for some strength moves, and two filled water bottles work just as well.

How long are the sessions?

As long as feels right that day, anywhere from three minutes to forty-five. If it's been a hard day, just say so, and you'll get something easy.

What if I miss a day?

There's nothing to catch up on and no streak to keep, because what matters is checking in whenever you come back. And checking in doesn't always mean a workout, because on some days the right answer is rest.

If today is a tired day, that's a perfectly good day to start.

Try today's check-in