pilates

Pilates Breathing Correctly and Other Basic Instructions

When you enter the world of Pilates, you quickly become indoctrinated with the basic principals of Pilates as outlined by Pilates founder, Joseph Pilates. A quote of his, well-worth remembering is, "if you follow no other instructions, learn to breathe correctly". Did you know that most individuals’ breath using only half of their lung capacity and that they breathe using only the upper part of their chest?

The goal of Pilates breathing is to use every bit of lung space. When exercising using Pilates breathing techniques the individual should feel as if they are expanding their ribs sideways in order to accommodate the increased air intake. Pilate’s teachers will instruct this of their students by telling them to, "expand laterally". Teaching your body to take in and fill the lungs full of air allows the individual to participate fully in all of the Pilates exercises especially the ones that require your body to be in a deep C curve or contraction. Breathing properly gives you the ability to complete the exercises correctly.

There are many purposes behind the techniques found in the exercises taught by Pilates instructors including the purpose of improving your blood circulation, reducing the strain on your heart, developing lung capacity, stretching your muscles and increasing your flexibility, and also the purpose of developing minor muscles in order to strengthen the major muscle groups, developing perfect posture, the perfection of "companion" or "reciprocal" movements, to gain a sturdy body and a sound mind, as well as the purpose of coordinating the mind, body and spirit of the individual, to realize happiness and true relaxation, and to experience a mental vigor and spiritual enhancement that comes with patience and persistence.

While practicing Pilates you will discover both mind and body principals. The mind principals focus on being able to concentrate on the purpose of each exercise by realizing each correct movement, and the coordination between body and mind as you complete each exercise; centering your mind and your body; controlling movement with purpose and engagement; using your imagination to increase the connection between body and mind; the ability to listen to our body; and lastly, to make Pilates a daily integral part of your life. The body principals focus on breathing correctly during the exercises, pelvic placement, rib cage placement, proper scapular or shoulder girdle positioning, head and cervical placement, lengthening the individual’s spine from the top of the head to the end of the spine, controlling your core, moving one vertebrae at a time while moving your back, and also moving with agility, balance, and grace in a purposeful way all while coordinating body and mind.

The world of Pilates is not just about getting your body fit, it encompasses your body and your mind in fluid movements with purpose that strengthen all parts of the body and sharpens the mind.

Tags: pilates breathing, pilates, practicing pilates, health

Comparing Yoga vs. Pilates – Which is the Winner?

When you want to lose weight or your doctor tells you to exercise, you probably tend to focus on the fitness programs that build strength, boost endurance and melt fat for a more slimming appearance. These fitness programs probably incorporate weight lifting and aerobic activity to increase cardiovascular stamina and burn calories. However, there is another element to exercise that complements the higher impact weightlifting and aerobic activity. This added element focuses on relieving tension in the body, increasing flexibility and coordination and improving posture and sculpting the body.

This added element can be filled in your fitness regiment by yoga or Pilates. Both are great stress relievers and are low-impact. Yoga has thousand year old roots and filled with New Age, Asian mystique while Pilates is a relatively new invention from the 1920’s by Joseph Pilates, a fitness trainer. The problem in this 21st century is that some people cannot differentiate between the two fitness disciplines or they cannot decide between the two.

Both yoga and Pilates are very similar in certain aspects. They both incorporate exercises which build flexibility, strength and stamina. However, it is the mindset that is different, sort of different philosophies that come into play. Yoga is obviously an Eastern fitness regime while Pilates is definitely Western.

Comparing the Two

The main idea of yoga is the ability to interpret or feel the energy fields running through your body. The freer the energy is, the more likely you are to feel and appear energetic and healthy. If you are tense and hold stress in your body, this hinders energy flow and your muscles stiffen up and tighten. Yoga’s goal is maintaining a sinuous body through special movements and stretching. Yoga is also holistic, with a foundation of meditation. While the poses your put your body in requires physicality, it is your mind that really must be engaged. The overall of yoga is creating a sense of peace, composure and balance in life.

Pilates is grounded in the western world and focuses primarily on the physical condition of the body. Joseph Pilates founded this exercise movement as a way to provide physical rehabilitation for injured soldiers from the war. He created a variety of machines with bars, cables, trolleys and more that put the body in various unusual positions. The goal Pilates was shooting for and succeeded with was using the core muscles to strengthen the body as well as create better flexibility and coordination through controlled, low impact movement.

Pilates created a workout regiment that was so effective; it became a staple in ballet and other genre dancers’ repertoire. They found the exercises in Pilates created more supple bodies that produced graceful, fluid movements. The Pilates you see today has a few elements in common with weight lifting in that both use movements against a resistant force.

The bottom line is that while both yoga and Pilates produce similar physical results in regards to flexibility and coordination of movement, your decision will be based on whether you want to focus on the physical or spiritual. Pilates brings you totally in tune with yourself on a physical plane while yoga uses the physical to bring you to a higher emotional and spiritual plane. The choices is yours – both are great for the body! 

Tags: yoga vs pilates, joseph pilates, fitness, pilates, stamina, yoga