Knowing Pilates

By Angela Winter


A type of exercise developed by Joseph Pilates of Germany, Pilates is being practiced by a lot of people already. It is also known as one of the most widely-practiced type of exercise. The main focus of this type of exercise is balanced development of the body that can be attained through core strength, awareness and flexibility and body conditioning. If done appropriately and regularly, Pilates can give a lot of benefits to the body.

What can Pilates do to your body?

1. Despite the fact that one of the effect of Pilates on the body is toning and enhancing its overall flexibility, people who practice Pilates do not make use of weight lifting exercises to achieve this effect. There are other kinds of equipment that are used by people who practice Pilates to achieve a well-toned and enhanced overall flexibility.

2. Pilates also helps in developing agility and muscle strength which is important for a person to perform the activities that are expected for them to do.

3. Another benefit that one can get in doing Pilates is the prevention of injuries and opportunity to properly use correct body mechanics and appropriate posture.

4. Doing Pilates will not only make your heart and lungs healthier, it may also help you to improve your breathing efficiency.

5. Rehabilitation and recovery from injuries is also one of the benefits an individual can get from doing Pilates.

6. For people that is suffering from chronic pains, practicing may help alleviate their experience of pain in effect they experience improved quality of life.

Same with any other kind of exercise, doing Pilates accurately and appropriately is vital to achieve the benefits that you want from the exercise. Proper body discipline also plays a major role in doing the Pilates exercise. When planning to engage in Pilates exercise, you might want to consult Pilates experts first especially for beginners just to make sure that you will be properly guided in doing the exercise and making use of the different materials used in Pilates. Another good thing about Pilates exercise is that pregnant women can also perform this kind of exercise but before doing the exercise, pregnant women should first inform and ask for their doctor's approval and should do this exercise with the guidance of a trainer.

Two students, Gail Eisen and Phillip Friedman outlined the important principles of Pilates. Here are those principles:

1. Centering is the first principle of Pilates that is mainly focused to achieve control over the body with the use of a starting point.

2. Control-Pilates method of exercise also emphasizes the importance of gaining control over your own body, mainly muscle control. A person wanting to do Pilates should be focused in doing it properly to achieve the goal of having control in every aspects of the exercise.

3. The third principle of Pilates is Flow which is also known as moving with efficiency. This principle of the Pilates exercise is focused on attaining a well-coordinated movement of the body which may be attained if a person has proper flow of exercises. In effect, the body will have increased stamina and become stronger because of the body precision that you have gained by doing the Pilates exercises making the principle of flow as your guideline.

4. Breathing-this is one of the most important principle in Pilates. Once a person is practicing Pilates appropriately, breathing pattern is expected to improve and will improve oxygenation on the body.

5.The fifth principle of Pilates is Precision. This is mainly defined as having people who perform Pilates do the exercises with 100 accuracy to ensure that the benefits of doing the exercise will be maximized.

6. Concentration is the last principle of Pilates. This principle is emphasized since doing Pilates involves understanding your own body by concentrating and focusing on what part of the body needs more improvement.

Same with the different kinds of exercises, practicing Pilates appropriately is very essential for a person to achieve the goals that they have set for themselves. Other than that, these principles of Pilates are important guidelines for individuals doing Pilates for them to attain the benefits that the exercise has to offer. Aside from doing the exercise and making these principles as guidelines, it is also advisable to seek help of a Pilates expert especially if you are a beginner.




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