I just recently returned from a skiing trip in Colorado and have been thinking a lot about how great Pilates is for skiers. Think about it, all the things that are central to Pilates–a strong core, great balance and posture, general strength and agility–sounds like the perfect recipe for great skiing to me. One of the things that skiers typically need to focus on when they are skiing is a great stance, or the way they hold themselves evenly on their skis. Pilates strengthens the core as well as the rest of your muscular structure, but it also just simply makes you more aware of how your body and its muscles function together–and how it all interacts with your breathing. Honestly, I can’t think of a better exercise program for skiers.
Think about it, when you are skiing, your arms and legs work independently and your core, or torso area, which needs to stay strong in order to support all of that dynamic movement. Think about how much pressure is on your feet this entire time too. By strengthening and adjusting your core muscles as well as all of your leg and arm muscles, you are hitting all the high points you need in skiing. By getting your balance perfected and your alignment in order, you will not be put an undue amount of stress on those feet (or your back and knees for that matter).
I have clients who are skiers and have told me how quickly their skiing began to improve since starting Pilates (not to mention their stamina). Participating in any form of Pilates regimen from classes, to private training session to simply doing my videos and home could go a long way towards improving anyone’s love of skiing.
One of the things that makes Pilates practice so different from a lot of traditional exercise methods is the mind-body connection. In some ways, this connection makes Pilates more similar to yoga than traditional weight training. Pilates requires very precise movements targeting deep muscles- your mind needs to be in it to make it most effective. There is also very specific breathing techniques that go along with each exercise to not only focus on your core, but to center your mind as well.
Pilates does not put an emphasis on endless repetitions of exercises, but on fewer, more precise movements and deep breathing that is guided by one of our professionally trained instructors. Our instructors and videos can guide you not only through the exercises, but the breathing techniques as well. We are trained to make sure that our clients keep their breathing in sync with the exercises.
I truly believe that working in the moment and focusing on your breath can not only help your physical body, but your mental health as well. You hear a lot these days about living in the moment, living in the now, what a perfect way to combine your physical exercise regimen with that philosophy.
“The acquirement and enjoyment of physical well-being, mental calm, and spiritual peace are priceless to their possessors if there be any such so fortunate living among us today. However, it is the ideal to strive for, and in our opinion, it is only through [the Pilates method] that this unique trinity of a balanced body, mind, and spirit can ever be attained.” -Joseph Pilates (1945).
Have you been wondering why you just can’t get that Mommy belly to flatten out? Have you ever heard of a diastasis? Diastasis technically means “the separation of parts of the body that are normally joined together, such as the separation of certain abdominal muscles during pregnancy, or of adjacent bones without fracture.” (Thank you Wikipedia).
The type of diastasis I deal with regularly in my practice is the first example given above–he separation of muscles in the abs that occurs during pregnancy. When a woman is pregnant, and her pregnancy continues to grow, the rectus abdominus muscles often split apart (think of that “6 pack ab” area of your body) in order to make way for your increasing belly. You can feel this condition if you know where to look, or “feel,” as the case may be. If you lay on your back and put your fingers just below your belly button and lift your head, you can sometimes feel a ridge sticking out of the middle of the abs. This is the diastasis I am talking about.
A lot of women I have trained have developed this condition during pregnancy, and sometimes it can heal on its own, but there are many exercises that can be done in order help it heal. Further, one of the keys is that you have to know how to do the right exercises to do in order to not make it worse. I think this is one of the reasons some women feel they can never get rid of that “pregnancy paunch” because they are not doing the right exercises to get rid of it, and they are doing in fact the exact wrong exercises to exacerbate it. For instance, in order to heal a diastasis, you should not be doing crunches, which is probably the first thing a lot of people think of when they are worried about a protruding belly. Exercises that focus on the internal obliques and the transversus abdominus are great options both before and after pregnancy to help with a diastasis problem. You also need a trainer who knows how to look for this problem, and most importantly, knows how to avoid certain exercises that intuitively, might seem like a good idea, but will only make the condition worse.
Pilates can be a great option to help with a diastasis problem because exercises can be tailored to the individual and to that individual’s body. There is no one size fits all in Pilates in general, or at Indianapolis Pilates by 15 to Fit. Check out our website if you are in Indianapolis for great info on classes (www.15tofit.com ) or check out my great workout videos for expecting Moms and post partum Moms (www.gomomfitness.com). There is hope!
I have been thinking a lot about self esteem and positive self image lately. Of course, as someone who has spent a great deal of my life focused on being fit and helping others get and stay fit, I believe that exercise can be a key component to increasing one’s positive body image and self esteem. My tagline, “Adore your body” comes from the heart. I really want to encourage my customers, regardless of age or gender or physical fitness to adore and appreciate the body they have and to love it just a little bit more by giving it a bit of exercise.
I also realize that many people associate Pilates with women who are young, and fit to begin with. People often think of ballet dancers when they think about Pilates. I am here to tell you that Pilates can be so much more for so many more people! For instance, Pilates can be a great workout for teenagers as well as senior citizens! I currently have clients who range in age from 15 years old up to 80 years old. I find Pilates can be great for my younger clients because while they may have a young body, they often don’t take the time to focus on their breathing and its correlation to exercise. Also, learning good posture habits at this age can make a world of difference for the rest of their lives. As for my older clients, it helps keep them from feeling frail and one of my oldest clients often tells me how much it has benefitted her and how strong she feels. In fact, she is on her way to visit her adult Grandchildren and tour Washington D.C. by foot. One of my 40 year old clients recently told me that she plans on maintaining her strength and balance with Pilates for the rest of her life to prevent those broken hips and falls that seem to happen so often as people get older.
Finally, don’t be discouraged to try Pilates because you feel you are overweight. A lot of people hear about dancers or actresses who practice Pilates and assume you have to be already somewhat physically fit to start Pilates. This is not true. My clients come in all sizes and fitness levels. No matter what your size, you can benefit from the strength and flexibility training of Pilates.
My videos are a great way to add a Pilates component into your life and to do it in the privacy of your own home (of course, you should check with your doctor first). I have made my DVDs so that you can get a quick 15 minute workout or can extend it into a longer one if you have extra time. They are great for new Moms but also for anyone who wants a great quick fun workout. In fact, I still have customers who continue to do the post partum workout even after having their kids because they enjoy it so much. Check them all out at http://www.gomomfitness.com/fitness-for-moms-dvds.html .
Pilates is such a great way for a new mom to get herself back into shape, whether she had a vaginal delivery or a C-section. Any mom out there knows the toll a pregnancy takes on your abs (not to mention the rest of you!).
Pilates targets those core muscles in your abdomen and focuses on getting them back to where they were before becoming pregnant (and even better in most cases).
As a Mom myself, and as someone who has designed workouts (including my DVDs on the subject) specifically aimed at mothers, I take great pride in working with new moms. I have studied what exercises work to mend the diastasis (or separation) of the abdominal muscles that occurs in every pregnancy. There are certain exercises new moms should focus on to get these muscles back together, and there are certain exercises that a new mom should absolutely not do until the muscles are healed. Some exercises can actually do further damage to the diastasis. That is why I am so passionate about helping new Moms get their figures back in the right way.
Pilates is also awesome for helping your upper body and arm strength, which of course we find ourselves using so much more carrying car seats, diaper bags and babies around with us everywhere we go. When we constantly carry things on one side (which most people tend to do) we can harm our posture as well. Pilates well help keep your body evened out and strong. It will also help your posture tremendously.
Finally, I truly believe that Pilates is beneficial for the mental health of a new mom as well. Not only do you take the time to focus on your breath and its connection to your body, but you are just taking time for you. As a new mom it is so easy to get overwhelmed and overtired when caring for a new baby that many forget to care for themselves. By spending a little time on yourself, I believe mental outlook is greatly improved. And a healthy mama means a happier baby.
Of course, all new moms should check with their doctors before starting any exercise program, but once you do, and you feel ready, order one of our amazing videos aimed at moms to do at home here at www.gomomfitness.com or if you are in the Indianapolis area, contact my studio to set an appointment or join a class at www.15tofit.com. We would love to have you.
I’m off to St. Louis this afternoon to appear on Great Day St. Louis tomorrow morning. My 6 year old son Seth is helping me demonstrate some fitness activities that families can do together. We will be showing an obstacle course and his favorite, hitting mom with boxing gloves. Look for it on the Great Day St. Louis web-site or check out the post to this site in the next week. I’m looking forward to some mommy-son time. Happy Mother’s Day!
I have read over many months of the philosophies and training methods of Tracy Anderson. To her and her followers I have to ask, “What is wrong with being a strong, fit woman that looks the part?” Why is she trying to promote being super tiny and small even to people that may not be built like that? I find it odd that taking up less space as a woman makes you more powerful while men are encouraged to take up more and look like an action hero. It’s hard for me not to find this insulting. As my nicknames over the years accrued, from “Macho legs” dubbed by my gymnastics teammates when I was nine years old to “Earl Campell” by some boys I attended high school with in Clinton, Iowa, my appreciation for my legs increased. For those that don’t know, I guess Earl Campell was some kind of famous pro football player in the 80s. The boys meant it as a compliment and I took it that way. Shout out to Eric Bartels:) I admit that in my younger years I wish I had teeny-tiny legs but at 19, I made a concerted effort to mentally pursue being positive about my strong wheels. I figured if I couldn’t change them i might as well learn to love them. Genetically I have muscular, long legs. I don’t train with heavy weights but do pilates and recently, began jogging. Which, BTW Tracy does NOT make your legs “bulk up”. Have you ever seen a Cross country runner, marathoner or Kenyan runner with big legs? They usually have long, lean legs but no one would consider them “big” unless they have some kind of wierd hollywood body-image distorted syndrome. Until two months ago, I had never run more than 5 miles consecutively. Because I’m having a big birthday coming up in July (I’m registered at our local jewelry store Reis-Nicols for gifts- I’m KIDDING!) I committed in January to run the Indianapolis Mini-Marathon. It’s the biggest Half Marathon in the country and included in the course is a loop around the historic and famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 35,000 people from all across the country ran and completed the race this past Saturday, May 2nd. I happily, for the first time in my life ran 13.1 miles in a row! As I was running to the finish I thought of how grateful I was for my big strong legs that carried me this far. It doesn’t help my running or my pursuit of water skiing to train to have skinny, weak little teeny-tiny legs as I starve myself to less than 1,000 calories a day and workout 12 hours per week. As I stated before, my legs weren’t meant to be scrawny. My children have the same buffed legs that I do. If your goal is to be healthy, strong and a good fitness example for your children, keep looking on this blog for more posts. If your goal is to be teeny-tiny and scrawny ask yourself why? It doesn’t sound like that much fun. Why not be healthy, able to pursue athletic endeavors and have great balance created from training legs on your feet not just doggy hydrant lifts from recycled Jane Fonda.
