You have probably heard the term “Pilates” mentioned over and over again in fitness gyms or amongst friends and perhaps you wonder what it is they are talking about. I wondered myself and so I took a course and did some research to find out what it was all about. The name “Pilates” comes from a man named Joseph Pilates who was determined to overcome his bodily aches and pains, as he was plagued with arthritis and asthma. He developed a technique, combining several elements of different types of exercises, such as yoga and army regime training, to come up with the “Pilates method.” The Pilates method is made up over a hundred different exercises ranging in difficulty and the main focus is building and maintaining “core strength.”
What exactly is “core strength?” When people talk about their “core,” they are referring to their stomach, pelvic region and lower back areas of the body, which are essential for balance and coordination. In these areas, there are many deep layers of muscles, which help us perform anything from the simplest tasks of walking up stairs to more difficult tasks such as moving furniture. A strong core will enable us to perform these movements with more ease and grace.
Gyms, with their hand weights and machines, tend to encourage work on the muscle groups that are already strong. Consequently, the strong muscles remain strong and the weaker ones remain weak. Pilates works from within the body toward the surface, unlike the gym regime that works from the outside to the inside. As you might have experienced, with gym routines, once you stop, your hard earned results do not last long and the body becomes out of shape fairly quickly. With Pilates exercises, results may not be immediate, but in the long run, the benefits will become obvious. Even if you stop practicing the Pilates method for a time, the results still stay with you even after a two-year break!
For most people, when they think of developing core strength, they do most of their stomach work by performing crunches with the knees bent. When you stand up, your abdominal muscles are longer and have less strength than they did in the bent over position in which they were worked. As a result, there is no strength from the center to perform a particular activity efficiently and effectively. The main problem with crunches is that they are not sport specific. How would crunches simulate any sport that you do?
To demonstrate the effects of a strong core, I’ll use the example of a skier. If a skier has a weak core, his body position will not be stable causing his upper body to jerk and his arms to flail out to the sides. Had he done some sport specific core strengthening exercises, his upper body would be solid and the bulk of his power when initiating turns would be coming from the center, rather than from the flailing limbs. After a day of skiing, he would not be as tired and wouldn’t have the common sore back problems that he would normally complain of. This scenario applies for all sports -- from rugby to ballet to tennis to fishing!
The Pilates method focuses on finding your center of balance. When we think of core, we think of our stomach muscles. But if we only work our stomach, we will create a muscle imbalance. Working the corresponding lower back muscles is just as important as working the stomach. Numerous studies have shown that muscle imbalances in the stomach, back and pelvic region can lead to serious back problems. Strengthening and stretching these specific areas correctly can help one avoid chronic back pain.
By practicing some form of Pilates, you can prevent injuries and also gain more precision with all of your movements by mastering your grace and balance skills. Pilates will also help to tone your physique because it works to keep your muscles toned continuously so fatty deposits have less chance of accumulating in certain areas.