The popularity of Pilates is due to celebrities as they have lean, long and sculpted aesthetic body. Seriously, that really makes one to indulge in such exercise and make it a household name.
Pilates is more than the oversimplified marketing strategy, one that promotes the long and lean figure. More than that, it is the misconception that it is only meant for women. Not many people know that Pilates is for everybody and that is regardless of age, gender, race, size, fitness level and ability.
Pilates Is a Great Exercise
Concerning the Pilates repertoire, here it would contain the mat and some of the specialized equipment-based exercises. These would be rounder about to more than 100 exercises and their variations. When it concerns Pilates, there is always something. If it is sedentary lifestyle, or if you are a weekend warrior, pregnant, or any person that is on rehab, or athlete, Pilates is a great exercise.
Studies clearly show that Pilates would improve the quality of life and have a great positive effect on pain and depression. Some people even clearly say that many of the Pilates exercises would reduce back pain. These would be commonly used as a cross-training workout. Also, it is recommended by most doctors as it is beneficial for injury prevention, health, and rehabilitative needs.
What Is Pilates and How Can It Be Great?
Some way around the 1920s, Joseph Pilates was a physical trainer. He was one that introduced Pilates to the American people, and it was the mostly used by the injured dancers and athletes. That helped them to safely return to exercising and even maintain their fitness. Nowadays, Pilates has been adapted for suiting the general needs of people especially the ones present in the general community.
Keep in mind that Pilates can be non-aerobic and aerobic form of exercising. For such kind of exercise, it would need extreme focus as well as concentration. Here the body would be moving through many precise ranges of motions.
Well, Pilates would stretch and lengthen all the major muscle groups present of your body and that too in the balanced fashion. The Pilates exercise would require extreme concentration in finding the centre point. This is to control your body through movement. Now each of the exercise can have a prescribed placement, rhythm, and breathing pattern.
When it concerns Pilates, the muscles of your body never get worked to exhaustion. That means there would be no sweating or straining. All there would be intense amount of concentration. The workout will have a variety of exercise sequences. These need to be done in low repetitions. That would be five to ten times, and sometimes over a session of 45 to 90 minutes. Some people use mat and specialized equipment. Well, these are commonly for resistance.
Do you know Pilates method is taught to suit each person? These exercises are regularly done for re-evaluating and making sure that they are appropriate for that person. Due to the individual attention, this method would be easily suitable for everyone. And these can be from elite athletes to people suffering from limited mobility. Even it is great for pregnant women and people suffering from low fitness levels.
All over Singapore and other countries, classes are held for specialized Pilates studios. Even there would physiotherapy clinics and even at your local leisure facilities and some of the community centres. One would get the optimal strength through the consistent Pilates practice. Here these types of Pilates would be non-rigid, balancing strength along with flexibility and mobility. Now these can help one to move and breathe through the daily activities, bringing more freedom and power along with less pain.
Best Benefits of Pilates
Of course, like most of the exercises, Pilates is indeed beneficial. The major benefits are –
1. Improving One’s Posture
Are you aware of the constant snit that your parents told you regarding not slouching and sitting up straight? Keep in mind that improved posture would be completely different among imbalanced muscles, weak, shoulders, headaches, back pain and even standing tall with good ease.
Through Pilates, one would be able to concentrate on the full body’s alignment. Well, this exercise has the ideal range of motion especially at the joints. It would balance all the opposing muscles. Not only that it can improve posture. This is done by bringing out awareness of your alignment and strengthening the neglected postural muscles.
2. Easily Promotes Good Amount of Weight Loss
Regular practice of Pilates would easily change your body. Like most exercises, Pilates is commonly known for creating long and even the strongest muscles. Besides that, Pilates would improve your muscle tone, and easily balances the musculature. Also, it can teach one to move with ease and grace. Now these things would easily make one to look and feel very much fit.
Keep in mind that the formula for weight loss needs constant burning of more calories than one can take. Of course, Pilates is a full-body fitness method.
When combined with any of the aerobic activities and the best healthy eating plan, Pilates would be the major prime weight loss and body toning tool. For getting started, you can check out in a group Pilates class. Sometimes you can read up on how to add Pilates into your workout routine. The best part is that you can meet the physical trainer for designing your Pilates workout for weight loss.
3. Increasing Ones’ Core Strength
Unlike other exercises, Pilates is commonly the best exercise that emphasis on the core. Here it refers to the centre of the body, especially from which all movement stems. For instance, the core would be all about of the surrounding muscles related to the trunk. That would be one when strengthened and pliable. Here these would be related to the support and stabilize the body.
Now Pilates can easily improve the core strength as well as the functions. Regarding the core strength, the key factor would be related to the decrease of the hip and back pain. Also, it is all about reducing the pelvic floor dysfunction. Here it concerns the area from where the explosive movements come from. No wonder it gets the nickname as the powerhouse.
4. Increases One’s Energy
One important aspect that you cannot ignore about Pilates is that it can get your circulation and breath moving. Also, it would stimulate the spine, muscles, etc. Even it makes the body feel good and that too from exercising the whole body.
Frankly, the more you exercise, the more energy you would get. The more energized you are, the more you will feel like doing your exercise routine. Pilates is simply the greatest low-impact form of exercise. It can be added to your daily routine. Make sure to consult with your physician before starting any kind of new workout program.
5. Avoiding All Kinds of Injuries
Doing Pilates Would Help One to Balance the Muscles of the Body. Hence, They Would neither Be Loose and Weak, Well Even Tight, and Rigid. If You Check Out Muscles That Are Too Loose and Weak or Even Tight and Rigid Can Easily Make the Body More Susceptible to Many Kinds of Injuries.
Pilates Focuses on Developing Dynamic Strength. That Means You Can Better Support and Stabilize the Joints While Moving. Multiple Research Work Show That Pilates Would Be One of the Effective Methods That Reduces Injury Risk in Many Kinds of Sports.
6. Developing All Kinds of Core Strength
Sometimes the Core Muscles of the Body Are the Ones That Are the Deep Muscles of the Back, Abdomen, and Pelvic Floor. Well, These Muscles Can Easily Support the Strong, Supple Back, Good Posture, and Efficient Movement Patterns.
That Means When the Core Is Very Much Strong, the Frames of the Body Get Good Amount of Support. Not Only That the Neck and Shoulders Would Be Relaxed. Also, the Rest of the Muscles and Joints Would Be Free to Do Their Jobs. When It Comes to a Tight Core, It Would Help You to Learn How to Pull the Abs of Your Body in to Get the Most Out of Many of the Exercises You Are Doing.
When Doing Pilates Exercise, There Are Various Kind of Abdominal Exercises. These Would Help to Improve Not Only the Strength of the Core Muscles Along With the Endurance.
7. Easily Creates a Long, Strong Muscle
When you are doing Pilates, you are creating a toned muscle. That can work well both with your body as even the whole and functional fitness of yours as and when you move along with your life.
Now one of the major ways Pilates would be able to create long, strong muscles is through the usage of the type of muscle contraction. These are called an eccentric contraction. Suck kind of muscle contraction can happen when the muscle elongates under tension. Concerning Pilates, the moves you are doing often call for you in resisting the gravity and move in a controlled manner. That would be just like one is doing a triceps push up and even when one is in the controlled release of tension on a Pilates ring.
8. Suitable for Everyone
Irrespective of whether you are an older adult, one that is beginning to exercise, or an elite athlete, or somewhere in between, you must know one thing. The foundations of Pilates movement can apply to you as well as your body. The major focus would be on building some of the major core strength, along with proper alignment. Here it can even have the body-mind connection. That makes Pilates accessible to all people.
As there are thousands of possible exercises and modifications involved, Pilates workouts would be easily tailored to any individual needs. These are some of the ways you can adapt the exercises. Even there are specific considerations for Pilates for men and women who are in the pregnancy mode. Suppose you do have any current or past injuries or other particular concerns; you can easily work with a trained Pilates instructor to learn modifications.
9. Best Whole-Body Fitness
Of course, Pilates exercise can train the body as an integrated whole, Plus, it would be focusing on core, lower body, and upper body strength as well as flexibility and posture. Not many people are aware that Pilates workouts can help to promote strength, balanced muscle development, flexibility, and increased range of motion for the joints.
In such exercise there is extreme attention to core support and full-body fitness. These would even consist of adding the breath and the mind. Plus that an even be able to provide a level of integrative fitness that is hard to find elsewhere. This is one of the major reasons that Pilates is popular in rehab settings, as well as with athletes who find that Pilates is a great foundation for any kind of movement they do.
10. Enhancing Body Awareness
Now the Pilates are one of the best mind-body practices. It can enhance proprioception and body awareness. The attention inward and ability to focus on the sensations in your body can heightens your awareness of comfort or pain, emotions, and the surrounding environment.
When there is enhanced proprioception, the body would be able to respond to stimulus. That can prevent injuries and falls. When there is a better body awareness, one can get rid of the habit of overeating. Frankly, you will be more in tune with your body’s hunger signals.
11. Reducing Menstrual Pain
Do you know that Dysmenorrhea is the condition of painful menstrual periods? If you, are one having it, you know how debilitating it can be? Many research prove that Pilates can help reduce menstrual pain.
12. Improving One’s Balance
Balance is necessary at any age. Plus, it is important for everyday activities These involve coordination, like walking, or any of life’s nonlinear movements, such as reaching up and twisting. Pilates improves balance and gait not only through core strengthening.
13. Boosting Immunity
A lot of research works show Pilates can boost immune system functioning, especially in older adults. Besides the improved circulation, it can improve immune system function.
Is Pilates Suitable for Everyone?
Pilates caters for everyone, from beginner to advance. You can perform exercises using your own body weight, or with the help of various pieces of equipment. So, go ahead and try it.
