Our semi-regular rundown of Pilates (and Pilates-related) news from around the web. Enjoy!

• Last week, a big number was released for the Pilates industry: 8.6 million, as in people who practiced Pilates in the U.S. in 2009 per the results of The Sporting Goods Manufacturer’s Association annual survey, CNBC reports. The survey also showed that Pilates is the nation’s fastest-growing activity; in the past decade, the popularity of Pilates has exploded and then some. According to the SGMA, the number of Americans doing Pilates has risen by an astronomical 456 percent since the year 2000. For more on SGMA survey findings on other sports and activities, read the full article here.

• New York and Virginia both passed measures mid-March that exempted yoga from state regulation, ending a nearly yearlong fight.

• In case you missed these on our Facebook page or Twitter feed: In the Wall Street Journal’s Why Core Strength Workouts Work, a fitness buff was humbled by the difficulty of “girly” exercise. And there were several mentions of Pilates in At-Home Personal Trainers Become More Affordable, from the New York Times, a report on the economy’s effects on that segment of the fitness industry.

• Exercise-related injuries are on the rise among baby boomers, according to the Mayo Clinic, which provides seven tips to avoid this phenomenon, which they’ve dubbed Boomeritis.

• Here’s a bit on the CoreAlign, the new machine that Balanced Body is introducing to the Pilates market. Montana’s The Missoulian reports on a visit from CoreAlign inventor Jonathan Hoffman to show physical therapists how to use the machine, which is so effective, it just might “exceed” Pilates, he told the paper.

• We really liked this Five Ways to Give Back to Yourself post from Psychology Today. It reminds us of lessons our own Pilates mentor instilled in our training program. The tagline reads: The more you give of yourself, the more you need to give to yourself. A little self-care is never a bad thing!