Pilates is an exercise method that builds on progress. It trains the body to optimize the breath, maintain good alignment, and use muscles efficiently. People of all ages, physiques, and strength levels can benefit from this method of exercise.
Have you ever seen the Spread Eagle? It is one of the most common pilates images on social media. It is an exercise where you use your hands and feet to hang from horizontal bars, drawing strength from the core to stabilize the body into a long, neutral line.
As impressive as the Spread Eagle and other advanced pilates exercises may look, social media can make pilates seem inaccessible to people who are not athletic, agile, youthful, or adventurous. In reality, no one progresses in pilates without a solid foundation in the basics.
The Origins of Contrology
Joseph Pilates, the creator of what has become modern-day pilates, was weak and sickly in his youth. He was determined to overcome poor health, so he taught himself anatomy, yoga, gymnastics, bodybuilding, and martial arts.
During World War I, Joseph was confined in a camp in England with other Germans. Health conditions were subpar, but by then he had already been developing his method of exercise for physical and mental well-being, which he called Contrology.
He encouraged everyone to exercise with him daily and improvised resistance equipment onto sickbeds to rehabilitate injured and weakened soldiers. Those who exercised with him were said to have remained among the healthiest in the camp.
Who Pilates Is For
Today, people do pilates for fitness, rehabilitation, and post-rehabilitation. You will find a wide range of people in a pilates studio: athletes, beginners, college students who spend most of their time at computers, older adults who need to mobilize more, and people recovering from injury or illness.
Others do pilates to cross-train for running, high-intensity interval training, or other physical activities.
What Happens in a Pilates Class
A typical pilates class is done one-on-one with a trained instructor. The exercises are unique to each person because every body is unique, and each body has different needs.
Pilates aims to bring the body as close as possible to good alignment, known in anatomy as neutral. A body in neutral alignment is at its most stable and strongest position.
Breath, Alignment, and Core Strength
Every pilates exercise teaches you to use the breath and develop core strength. The core, those deep muscles forming a supportive corset inside the torso, is the body’s powerhouse.
Even the most basic exercise trains you to recruit the core and isolate the correct muscles involved in that movement. With consistent pilates practice, the entire body grows stronger, moves more intelligently, and breathes more fully.
Grow stronger and stronger with All Core Pilates, located at Upper Ground Floor, Alabang Town Center. Call or text 0917 187 2207 for more information.
