#TuesdayTips: 6 Pilates Principles (1st half)
- maybellelek
- Feb 23, 2021
- 3 min read
I am slowly resuming my #TuesdayTips where i share some answers to your questions with regards to movement & the body!
Today's Question: What are the 6 Guiding Principles of Pilates?
Answer: Breath, Concentration, Control, Precision, Centre and Flow
In this article, let's expand on 3 Pilates Principles & the reasons why they're considered fundamentals.
1. Breath
Steady, focused breathing aids in several different ways. A deep, slow inhale can send signals to our brains to relax and calm (meditation, savasana & various other breathing techniques). Additionally, breathing deeply and fully into your diaphragm can help achieve the following goals:
Engage the muscles of the core to support you in movement
Help you relax and connect you to your body
Coordinate your movements with care
Centre our minds --> improve breathing patterns --> improve posture
Gradient to create challenge or ease (progression or regression)
Ultimate Goal: To coordinate your use of breath with the movements in a way that feels natural and unforced.
Exercise Examples: Hundreds, Single Toe Taps, and pretty much every single Pilates exercise is rooted in our use of breath.
Tip! Breathing Exercise
Lie in supine position on your back with the legs in a 90 degree. Place your hands beside the ribs (refer to picture below)
Inhale through the nose and direct your breath to the side of your ribs. Literally feel your ribcage expanding sideways.
Exhale through the mouth, closing the ribcage down and in.
“Breathing is the first act of life, and the last… above all, learn how to breathe correctly.”
Joseph Pilates
2. Flow (and Creativity)
Flow and Creativity aims to move the body in all planes of movement (coronal, transverse & sagittal) in a fun and intuitive way. The quality of flow comes from the instructor's way of sequencing, transitioning and connecting the exercises together in a fluid and seamless way.
Creativity can be expressed and played with the use of props such as a band, yoga block, straps, towel, literally anything in your house.
Fun Fact: Some of Joseph Pilates's early students were Ballet students, talk about gracefulness and elegance...
In Pilates, we are not so concerned with how beautiful you look, but instead focusing on making your body work in a optimal way biomechnically! Hence why flow is important. Over time, through consistent practice and remembering of cues/feedback, your body will be able to remember, apply and understand effort more efficiently!
3. Alignment (Centre)
Definition/What It Means: The way in which the body is aligned before, during and after movement to place the joints and surrounding structures in the least amount of stress.
Dynamic Alignment is what we focus on, and are interested in. It refers to the effortless organisation of your structure and form as it moves from one position to the next, creating biomechanical efficiency. Through this, the process of improving alignment through movement aims to create efficient, coordinated and healthy movement along with a balanced muscle tone!
What you might hear from your instructor to help reinforce the use of Dynamic Alignment:
"Draw your navel to your spine"
Pull up your abdominals
Sit tall
Lengthen your neck and spine
Stretch...
Reach...
You get the idea. Heh.
Pilates is highly adaptable to suit most clients including pregnant clients, the elderly, teenagers going through puberty, professional athletes & the working adults too! In my next post, I will be expanding on the other 3 Pilates Principles: Concentration, Precision (Language) & Centre #TuesdayTips
P.S If you have a curiosity that you want satisfied, drop me a message in my CONTACT page.
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