pilates

[Colette]

hello, does anyone do pilates (either class or video) as part of their fitness program? Do you feel like it's helping? I've never tried pilates, but I've been taking a power yoga class for about six months (along with running and strength training) and would like to try something new. Also, could anyone recommend a good pilates video. I'll be moving to Tacoma,WA soon and wanted to take a class at a real pilates studio that they have there, but $150 for five lessons is more than I'm willing to pay!

 

[kimroberts]

Colette,

Try to talk to Cinza. She knows a lot about Pilates.

I got my matwork training this summer to be ready to do classes this fall. Some helpful videos were put out by Stott and by Living Arts. Get the Stott ones if you are learning to teach a class. Get the Living Arts ones if they are for your own personal enjoyment.

However, there is absolutely no substitute for a live class with a trained instructor. I thought I was doing pretty good with my videos until I had a real class. Even a slight form break can make an enormous difference in the difficulty level. It should NEVER be easy.

Pilates has definitely helped my posture and my low back problems. I'm still waiting for my dancer's body, though!

Kim

 

[cinza]

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Jul-25-01 AT 04:34PM (Est)[/font][p]i do alot of pilates...
i do yoga, tai chi, weights and pilates as a whole set of balanced work.

Keep checking into classes....sometimes you can split a private with someone else
A class is fine... just make sure you have a qualified teacher....one with extensive training..

Stott tapes available at Borders and B&N... or look up Stott pilates on the net to see their whole site.

there are good books too.

"The pilates body" by brooke siler.

The problem with tapes and books is...YOu wont have a clue what you are not doing that you should be doing unless someone can observe your movement..
Lots of people think its easy... thats because they are missing the subltelies...... a good teacher is nec... I bet you might have some in Washington..
they have a Pilates training center in Seattle.

its great stuff ... I am 3/4 of an inch taller after doing it awhile..! and i have taken a curve out of my back that i thought was naturaly there..

it strenghtens the underlying abs...the things that really hold you up..... making your body feel better and work better and assisting you in everything you do...
..... very different from yoga in an aspect of how you hold your "core"

check into core conditioning classes...... another way to describe pilates without using the name... a teacher who really knows their stuff would give you the same kind of training.

Pilates works deep... it articulates the spine..
if you contact Starlight6 on Cathe. she might have a page of instructions i wrote up for her on the site..for some very basic but important pilates moves..... maybe i can find it in a search...
Here it is...I will post several of the pilates posts i wrote for Starlight... exuse the personal conversation in it!

 

[cinza]

a tiny Pilates experience for you.

Jun-29-01, 12:29 PM (Est)
9. "A kinder gentler Cinza."
LAST EDITED ON Jun-29-01 AT 12:47 PM (Est)


ok i will start with a very pleasant, thoughtful, enlightening and
gentle exercise for you.
its the most basic of basics for pilates...but
The great part is this exercise is that it is such good information; you
can make it the basic strategy for almost any move you make dealing
with abs or standing.... lower back work too ..Its going to totally
support you from front to back....make your spine straighter and
make it easier to stand tall.


disclaimer:
i am not a pilates instructor... but i think i can share some Pilates
competently.

lets begin.
lie down on the floor, knees up, feet on the floor, be comfortable.
... lay your arms by your side and breath normally... think about filling
the abdomen and exhaling it all out...

(see Ruth, its easy!)

after you are settled , take a breath and then exhale completely all
the way down to your pubic bone.
NOTICE the muscles around your torso when you exhale. See how
they contract pressing your naval towards the spine and the spine
towards the floor as you exhale.. your spine flatten out, your abs
flatten ..
IMPORTANT:
Understanding this feeling of the muscles pressing navel to spine and
spine towards the floor...


There is a second part to doing this once you understand that
engagement:

Keep breathing, feeling the exhale contraction and begin to notice
where your ribs are ...
We are going to engage the ribs into that contraction so they dont
stick up.. so there is no arch in the spine..
(I hope i explain ribs well enough)
When you exhale and your navel is pressing towards the spine
think of sliding your ribs down toward the abs and pelvis...Knitting
them into the abs...think of making less distance between the rib
cage and pelvis...this should bring your ribs down flatter in line with
tummy.... your whole spine should be pressing towards the floor..
pretty straight..

(the flatness of the spine pressing to the floor is a point of discussion
between different schools of pilates... a little curve in lower back that
is Totally Supported by the muscles all the way around probably is
the smartest...traditional schools might take the curve out.)

Anyhow
practice engaging the ribs to the ab contraction on the exhale....

After this makes sense we learn to inhale while holding this
contraction of abs and ribs.


Its going to be like breathing out of the SIDES of your ribs instead of
the front ... everything that engaged when you exhaled HOLDS when
you inhale ....
Thinking of the navel and ribs is going to be on your mind alot in your
future!


By the way this selection of muscles is called the Pilates
"powerhouse" They are all the muscles that hold us up and support
the lower back.

So
Lesson one... is engaging the powerhouse.
Lesson two .... is breathing while keeping the powerhouse engaged...
'navel to spine' and 'ribs down' might be your mantra..

once you know how to engage "the powerhouse" .. it will be the
anchor of any ab work you do... pilates or not..
..
practice sitting in a chair .. navel to spine, ribs engaged.. it
straightens the back, holds you upright.
apply it to standing,
to walking.. anything.... it will strenghen everything you do.

and anytime you are doing this you will be doing ab work!
and one day standing or sitting straight is going to feel better than
slouching!
This is the real stuff on abs... it holds the organs in...and the body
straight...

But..
this contraction of the powerhouse is not a total lifestyle..just an
exercise to strengthen the muscles that hold us up and anchor
anything we do.
... breathing into the abdomen and stretching everything from the
inside out is important too..

(ok Ruth, do i get a halo yet?)

If you do this... tell me how its going in case i did not give good
enough instruction.. I think finding the right move comes from that
exhale.
I have read plenty of books that try to teach the feeling without
saying that...and its tricky finding it... but the exhale really does the
trick for me.

Good luck... when you get this you will have found a treasure for your
good health and well being...abs wont be about 6 packs any more but
solid strength thats going to make you feel very good about yourself
from the inside out!

By the way... this is just step one..... but the rest is cake!!
Remove | Alert

 

[murph]

Pilates is very valuable

I like Stott: she is dry, but as Cinza said: you Must have proper form or else you're just doing semi-effective ab work, or no work at all, or destructive work.

What Pilates has done for me is : 1. eliminate low back pain --which I especially notice on long airplane flights (which I must take in my job alot.)
2. My abs stay in "naturally"--I have a leaner line without effort.

It's worth the time. It does not replace Yoga (IMHO), but it certainly complements it. It gives a foundation for other aspects of fitness.

 

[cinza]

RE: Pilates is very valuable

right Murph...
doesnt replace yoga!
very different in my opinion.
yoga keeps the lower abdomen open and breathing.. pilates locks the transverse muscles...

i think the stretching value of pilates is pretty minimal compared to yoga too... Look, its already working!ilates mostly about holding the core stable while doing other things.. the other things you do are mostly like levers on the midsection.

I just have fallen in love with yoga! if i had to give everything up i would just do yoga! but Pilates definately takes a concentrated focus on the midsection like noboday else does.

Murph.
i love to stick a downward dog into the pilates push up... try that if you do it sometime... right before rounding and rolling up.