Paola Di Lanzo

The Strength to Keep Evolving

For more than thirty years, Paola Di Lanzo has worked in an industry obsessed with changing bodies.

Her own interest has gradually become something different.

How do we keep the body capable of change?

Paola has lived through almost every modern fitness movement, from the aerobics era of the 1980s to Pilates, barre, functional training and today’s growing interest in longevity. Rather than attaching herself rigidly to one method, she has continued to learn, adapt and evolve.

That instinct eventually led her to create Paola’s BodyBarre and the PBB Method, an energising fusion of Pilates, barre, yoga and functional training.

But beneath the methods and movements sits a much simpler philosophy.

The body is designed to move.

And Paola believes we should keep giving it reasons to do so.

Her relationship with Pilates began with an appreciation of the strength, control and precision at the heart of the original method. She was captivated by the way it could develop deep core strength while encouraging graceful, controlled movement.

But she also saw possibilities beyond it.

Some Pilates purists regarded the evolution of the discipline as dilution. Paola saw it differently.

Joseph Pilates developed his method more than a century ago. Why shouldn’t the ideas continue developing alongside the bodies and lives of the people using them?

Rather than remaining rigidly tied to tradition, Paola began combining the elements she valued in Pilates with barre, yoga and functional training.

The result was PBB.

What emerged was not simply another exercise programme, but an approach built around strength, mobility, endurance and control while remaining low-impact and sustainable.

Paola has described it as a “soft strength revolution”.

Soft does not mean easy.

It means recognising that strength doesn’t always have to announce itself through punishment.

Today, Paola’s approach combines mindful sequencing with strength, alignment and fluidity. The objective is not simply to make people work harder, but to help them feel stronger, more connected and more confident in their bodies.

That distinction becomes increasingly important when the conversation turns to ageing.

Paola has worked extensively with women over 40, postnatal clients and people looking for effective exercise without unnecessary impact. Over the years, she has become less interested in quick fixes and increasingly interested in something much more valuable.

Longevity.

Not simply living longer.

Remaining capable for longer.

For Paola, fitness is not just about appearance. It is about having the strength, mobility and confidence to continue participating in life.

That belief has also shaped the next stage of her career.

Paola now brings her distinctive approach to movement to Sæl Spa at Fulham Pier, where the emphasis on progression, movement, recovery and long-term wellbeing closely reflects ideas she has spent years developing.

Her work there combines mindful sequencing with strength, alignment and fluidity, helping members feel stronger, more connected and more confident in their bodies.

There is something fitting about that progression.

Paola’s career has never really been about finding the perfect method and preserving it.

It has been about continuing to adjust.

That is also how she thinks about ageing.

When Paola was first introduced to the Meta-Age philosophy—that our age should not simply be defined by a number, but by how we continue to live—it immediately resonated with her.

“Age is NOT a limitation,” she said. “Movement is the key to youthfulness, resilience and confidence.”

But perhaps the more interesting part of Paola’s philosophy is not the desire to remain young.

It is the refusal to become fixed.

Bodies change.

Lives change.

What worked at 30 may not be what the body needs at 50 or 60. Strength may begin to mean something different. Mobility may become more valuable. Recovery may demand greater attention. Balance, alignment and confidence in movement may matter in ways we barely considered when we were younger.

The answer, Paola believes, is not withdrawal.

It is adaptation.

Keep moving. Keep learning. Keep responding to the body you have now rather than mourning the one you had twenty years ago.

That is why the four words on Paola’s Meta-Age cover feel particularly appropriate.

Wiser. Older. Leaner. Fitter.

Older is inevitable.

The others require participation.

Paola has spent more than thirty years helping people understand that fitness is not simply about looking good. It is about feeling strong, capable and empowered at every stage of life.

Her own career demonstrates the same principle.

From aerobics to Pilates. From Pilates to PBB. From individual disciplines to an integrated approach to strength, mobility, alignment and longevity.

She has never stopped moving because the world of fitness changed.

She moved with it.

Paola Di Lanzo embodies what it means to be a Meta-Ager. Not because she has discovered a way to resist getting older, but because she refuses to allow getting older to become an argument for standing still.

The body changes.

The method adapts.

And Paola keeps evolving.

I’m IN

Instagram: @paolasbodybarre