I think there’s many of us who hate lunges (me being one of them!)

Thank you for the great post =)

Pilates is not just about core strengthening. What most people know of are the Mat exercises, which focus primarily on the “core” 85%-90% of the time. However, there is so much more to it than that.

In contemporary methods of Pilates instruction we generally start people on the mat in order to teach participants how to activate and use their core muscles (spinal stabilizers) appropriately. Once core activation becomes relatively competent we begin work on the apparatus. Work on various pieces of specialized apparatus is done against spring resistance, so it is strength training. It is whole-body strength training that requires activation of spinal stabilizers throughout the entirety of each peripherally focused exercise. We work global movers (biceps, triceps, glutes, quads, hamstrings…) and deep stabilizers (multifidus, rotator cuff, scapular stabilizers, deep hip muscles) No muscle is left untouched.

David is correct in stating Pilates is an excellent compliment to other work outs. The reason is that every move in the Pilates studio is done precicely and with intention. So, we are training our bodies to use the target muscles specifically and not allowing other muscles to help out (or cheat).

With a well trained Pilates instructor, you can learn how to substantially intensify your workout in the gym or any group fitness class. I can not say how often I see people working out in the gym doing lat pulls, for example, and they’ve got the upper traps letting go in between each rep as the bar raises and the full weight of their bodies doing 50% of the work on the pull down. What is the point of doing 20 lat pulls if only the first 10 are working your lats and the final 10 are really targeting various other muscles in your body?

Sometimes, “feeling the burn” is easy. Doing 6-10 reps of an exercise with light weight, and in proper form, is the harder option. Our goal is to ingrain correct movement patterns; to correct patterns that have, over time, resulted in muscle imbalances and faulty posture. (this is where overuse syndrome, injury and back problems begin)

There is a misconception that Pilates is all about “core training”. You will certainly aquire “abs of steel” doing Pilates, but you can also get complete strength training workout in the Pilates studio without ever setting foot on the gym floor. Having said that, if what you want is hypertrophy (muscle mass), then Pilates is a great option “in addition” to the gym. It will speed your results as you are better able to target your workouts. In any case, I enjoy the gym and working with a personal trainer. It is always more fun to mix it up.

One final note, Pilates will NOT satisfy requirements for cardiovascular fitness that is needed for weight loss. David suggests mixing Pilates with “cardio sculpting, plyometrics training, and interval training”. All of these offer significant cardiovascular benefits.

Absolutely!!! And to preface this, I will say that for the first eight and a half months that I practiced pilates, I was flapping my arms thinking, “I don’t get it, I don’t get it, I don’t get it.” Then one day…I got it. And the next day I couldn’t walk:) I am not a natural born athlete, I had to work hard to get the body awareness I have, and now that I have it, I really can attribute most of it to pilates.

I’ll focus on what I think are the harder parts of pilates to really get. Overall, you want to:

Breathe
Focus
Rib placement
Shoulder stabilization
Engage your pelvic floor

1.) Breathing
Pilates uses a forced exhale to try to help engage your abs. Put your hand right below your belly button and breathe normally. You probably won’t feel very much. Now cough. Did you feel the tightening up? THAT is what a forced exhale (pretend you are blowing out birthday candles) should help you achieve: engagement of a muscle called your transverse abdominis.

You also want to try to keep your abdominals engaged the whole time by breathing into the sides of your ribcage and your back instead of your belly. Again…this took me months to learn, so don’t feel bad if you don’t get it right away!

2.) Mental Focus
One of the hardest parts about pilates is that you really need to be thinking about what every part of your body is doing at every moment – it is like ballet. Your feet should be doing something, and so should your fingers.

I know the above sounds extreme…and for the most part, when I train people, I just care about what they are doing from shoulders to hips. But to practice pilates to the fullest, everything is working. Some of the best videos out there are the ones that are primarily geared toward instructors; I like Stott’s videos the best (www.stott.com). If you watch them, you can see their models have very intentional placement of every part of their bodies.

3.)Ribs
This is one of the harder things for people to get – you want to pretend that you are buttoning your ribs up. It involves muscle activation that takes practice. The forced exhale in your breathing pattern should also help with this.

4.)Shoulder Stabilization
Basically, this just means pulling your shoulders down away from your ears….but with meaning!:) It also involves keeping your chest open by drawing your shoulder blades slightly together. Where your shoulders should be exactly depends on the exercise, but the above is a good general rule. If you don’t have strength in this area, you probably won’t be able to control your ribs for very long. If you can’t control your ribs, you can’t control your abs. If you can’t control your abs, you can’t control your back. And then…well…you might as well be on the treadmill:)

5.)Pelvic Floor
One word: Kegels.
Believe it or not, this is a big part of pilates that a lot of people don’t talk about because in a group mat class of 45 people, unless you are truly confident about your ability to teach and be professional, it can be scary to talk to people about engaging their pelvic floor.

As I read all of the above, I am reminded again about how scary pilates can be!!!!! I teach both mat and equipment pilates. Everyone likes something different. But I will say that if mat pilates is not your bag, try a reformer class. Sometimes the support of the equipment can help you feel things that you can’t feel on the mat.

Boy am I long-winded. It’s a good thing I’m a teacher:)