Pilates Articles

Article / Updated 02-27-2023

If you've ever watched a cat, be it a house cat or a jaguar, you may have been intrigued by the cat's incredible agility and resilience. How does a cat jump from high places and land with little impact? How can a cat fit into spaces that seem way too small for it? How does a cat balance on the slimmest edge with the greatest of ease? Pilates might not give you the answer to these questions, but if you want to be more like a cat and gain the flexibility, grace, balance, and strength of a cat, Pilates is the way to go. Myth has it that Joe Pilates was obsessed with the movement of animals and used them as models when developing exercises. The following exercises use the cat as a model and are meant to stretch the spine. You may notice that the word sexy comes up in this article. Face it — having a flexible spine is sexy, and certain movements of the spine are downright sexy! These stretching exercises are not considered part of classic Pilates, but they're great for everyone. This is where you can get a little creative. Add in these exercises at any point during your day or during your workout when you feel you need to stretch out your spine. If you wake up in the morning with a stiff back or neck, spend a couple minutes doing one or two of the cat stretches. Basic Cat (beginning level) The Basic Cat is one of the gentlest and simplest ways to stretch out the back. You see cats making this movement in the morning when they wake, and you can do it too! Getting set To begin, get on all fours. Align your hands beneath your shoulders and your knees beneath your hips. Allow your back to assume its natural position, in Neutral Spine (See image a below). The exercise Inhale: Arch your back slightly, allowing your head to rise and your butt to stick up and out (See image b below). Exhale: Pull your navel in toward your spine and squeeze your butt. You begin with a Lumbar C Curve, meaning that your lower back is curved like a C, then continue rounding into the upper back. Finally, allow the head to slowly drop forward. At this point, your whole spine should be making a C shape (See image c below). Your back should be rounded to the greatest extent possible. Push your arms into the mat for extra resistance while stretching the upper back. Keep your abdominals and rib cage pulled in. Think of using this pulling action to stretch through your whole spine. Think of pulling your tail between your legs and rounding your back into a Halloween kitty pose. Inhale: Return to Neutral Spine, then go further into the arch, sticking your tail and head upward. Complete four repetitions. Dos and don'ts Do go for the fullest stretch in each direction. Don't hunch your shoulders. Let them relax down away from your ears. Sexy Cat The Sexy Cat is a modification of the Basic Cat and requires a bit more coordination. Because you spiral the hips and spine, this stretch is three-dimensional and loosens up more areas of tightness than the Basic Cat. Start by doing one Basic Cat to get the flow of the spine arching and contracting. Then add a spiral in one direction with your hips, and in the opposite direction with your head and neck. Imagine the tailbone inscribing a full circle on the wall behind you in one direction, and the crown of your head inscribing a full circle on the wall in front of you in the other direction Complete four repetitions and then reverse the direction of the spiral for four more repetitions.

Article / Updated 02-27-2023

Most of the Pilates mat exercises strengthen the muscles necessary to properly support the spine and bring an awareness about what proper posture actually is. It's not enough just to do Pilates mat exercises; if you want to improve your posture and heal your back pain, you must incorporate Pilates into your daily life. You must translate the Neutral Spine, the feeling of length, and the Abdominal Scoop into your desk job. If you can incorporate the deeper Pilates concepts into your daily life, you'll notice changes immediately — in your back pain, in your posture, and in your sense of well-being. Most back pain is due to faulty posture — the posture in which you probably spend most of your days. Do you sit at a desk and stare straight ahead? Unfortunately, most people do, and they find it very difficult to sit up with proper posture for eight hours at a time. It becomes a vicious cycle: First you sit for long periods of time in a way that doesn't properly support the spine (generally, in a slightly hunched-over position). Then you lose strength in your postural muscles by not using them day after day, and then you can't sit up properly even if you wanted to because you've lost strength! What to do? Well, guess what? Pilates! Understanding the common causes of lower back pain Again, most back pain is a result of bad posture when sitting, standing, or walking. The main things to remember to prevent bad posture are to sit and stand up tall, keep your belly pulled in, and keep your shoulder blades pulling down your back. When you find your correct posture, you should feel the ease it creates in your whole back. You may need to slowly work up to sitting properly for long periods of time. Even your postural muscles need to get in shape. But the more awareness you have, the better you will feel. If you stand a lot, think of keeping your knees soft; don't lock them. Try to keep even weight on both legs. Keep your belly pulled in. But bad posture isn't the only culprit. A sedentary lifestyle is also often to blame. Let's face it: People just weren't meant to sit at a computer monitor for eight hours a day — or to sit on a chair at all, for that matter. Sitting isn't easy on your back. If you think about it, when you sit in a chair, the back muscles have to work all the time to keep you upright. Your legs are not able to help out at all. Furthermore, staying in one position doesn't promote good circulation and muscle tone. Break up your work day by getting up regularly from your chair and stretching out, going for a walk, or doing a Pilates series, if you can. Avoiding loaded flexion Most construction workers have terrible backs by the time they're 40, because they spend much of their day bending over and lifting up heavy objects. Even if you maintain perfect alignment when lifting, you can't avoid loading the spine in flexion if you're installing a floor, say, or doing much of anything below the waist. Flexion is the rounding forward of the spine when standing or sitting, or what your spine does when rolling up in a sit up. Loaded means . . . well, loaded. An example of loading the spine in flexion is the Rolling Down the Wall exercise if you have free weights in your hands. As you roll forward, the weight of your head, body, and the free weights is dropping down. The muscles and ligaments of the back are supporting that weight. Another example of loaded flexion is the Hip-Up exercise. As you lift your hips, the weight of the butt and legs is now on your back. If you roll back too far, the weight of your whole body will be on your neck. The neck is especially vulnerable to having too much load because it is made up of small, fragile vertebrae that are not meant to hold up anything but your head when standing. When you get very strong in your core, your spine can support more weight without being traumatized. Flexion is the movement of the spine that most damages the structures of the spine; especially the intervertebral discs and the ligaments of the back. If you feel uncomfortable when doing flexion exercises; don't do them! Instead, do all the exercises that don't bother your back, and come back to the others when you have more strength. To avoid loaded flexion, use proper body mechanics when bending over and lifting: Keep a Neutral Spine. You can just think of keeping the spine straight. Don't round the back forward (flexion) Bend your knees; and if you're lifting something, use your leg muscles not your back! Keep your Abdominal Scoop by pulling your navel in toward your spine. Doing so helps support the back. Being your own guide A well-known doctor named Robin McKenzie wrote a book called Treat Your Own Back, which revolutionized the way the rehabilitation profession viewed back pain. Basically, the book describes a program where you experiment and find out what movements exacerbate your back pain, and what movements and positions alleviate your back pain. Then you do the things that make you feel better. It sounds so fabulously simple and it works. You can follow the same principles when doing Pilates. When trying a new exercise, see if the movement makes your back pain worse or better. Use this information to heal yourself. For instance, if you find that flexion (rounding the spine forward), like in Spine Stretch Forward, makes your back feel great, then you can proceed with all the flexion exercises with a fair bit of confidence. In that case, exercises that do the opposite movement, extension (arching the back), as in the Rising Swan, may make your back hurt. If this is so, avoid all exercises that extend the back. The act of twisting may be the source of the problem, or it could be twisting in just one direction. Take note of what hurts and apply this information to your workout. When you're in pain, you must be very mindful when trying out new exercises. Talk to your doctor first to make sure you don't have any serious injury, and then go to a trained Pilates instructor if you are worried about hurting yourself.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 12-19-2022

Pilates has become one of the most popular fitness systems in the world. The Pilates method works to strengthen the center, lengthen the spine, build muscle tone and increase body awareness and flexibility. This Cheat Sheet summarizes what you need to get started in Pilates and includes lists of exercises, from fundamental to advanced.

Article / Updated 03-23-2017

Balance Point is both a position and a fundamental exercise in Pilates. Here, you see how to form the Balance Point position, which is a basic movement that is used in many different Pilates exercises. This position teaches you that to balance with ease, you must engage your deep center. Follow these steps to form the Balance Point position in Pilates: Sit up with your knees bent and hold on to the backs of your thighs. Roll back slightly behind your tailbone, pull your belly in (your Abdominal Scoop), and lift your feet off the mat. In order to maintain your balance and stop yourself from rolling backward, you must engage and pull in your deep abdominal muscles. The Balance Point position in Pilates.

Article / Updated 02-16-2017

When you combine a Hip-Up position in Pilates with a little low butt squeeze, you get the Levitation position. The Levitation position is a basic movement that is used in many different exercises. Lie on your back and lift up your hips with your Abdominal Scoop. At the top of the Hip-Up, squeeze your butt. You’ll feel your hips levitate, rising perceptively higher as if the hand of a goddess came down and lifted you from the heavens. The Levitation position in Pilates. Levitation is a key concept in Pilates, but don’t feel intimidated by this position. You won’t have to do anything like this until you get into the more advanced Pilates exercises.

Video / Updated 03-28-2016

Upper-abdominal curls help strengthen and tone your tummy. This video shows you proper positioning and form for floor crunches, as well an upper-abdominal workout on an exercise ball.

Video / Updated 03-28-2016

Relax and stretch your body with the basic Pilates bridge pose. The bridge position increases your flexibility, exercises your butt, and stabilizes your core. All you need is a mat.

Video / Updated 03-28-2016

The cat position relaxes and stretches your body, specifically your back. The basic Pilates cat stretch, usually done on a mat, is one of the gentlest ways to stretch your back.

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016

Stacking the Spine — a basic movement in Pilates — is a finishing position to several exercises. It teaches articulation of the spine (full movement throughout all the vertebrae) as well as how to sit up vertically. It’s a fluid way to sit up or stand erect from a hunched-over position. Also, Stacking the Spine is a wonderful stretch for your back.

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016

The Basic Cat exercise in Pilates is one of the gentlest and simplest ways to stretch out the back. You see cats making this movement in the morning when they wake, and you can do it too!