Pilates makes P90X Easier

I knew it but this week proved it. Pilates is the athlete's secret weapon.  After making it through Week one of P90X, I have no soreness and more strength. I use the breathing I teach my clients and it really fuels hardworking muscles. At my age, 56, I ought to have bailed out on day two but the extra layer of strength I already had in my small muscle groups powerfully supported me. I feel like a winner. I am so up to this 90 day challenge. I have taught that athletes who take Pilates have an edge over those who don't. They are stronger and much less prone to injury. I'll add that the exercises in P90X can be very hard on the back. Because Pilates strengthens the accessory muscles of the spine on all three planes of movement, I was able to support my spine in a healthy way. A couple of the exercises were too detrimental to  my back so I modified them to take the pressure off my spine. Yoga has captured the national attention but it simply cannot conmpare to the benefits of Pilates. Pilates is intelligent exercise.

Healing Bodies

I not only love to teach Pilates but thrill to help others heal the tension, aches, and pains that trouble them.  Last week I helped a dentist to relax his neck and shoulders so that he could be comfortable as he treated his patients all day. How incredible is that?  Every time I get the chance to heal a pain, my dedication to Pilates grows stronger. Yesterday, one of my favorite women (I have a whole lot of favorites) came to class with a migraine headache and a clenched neck and shoulder area. She amazed me first by coming to class. Women our age tend to hurt and then isolate at home. We began working out and, shortly after, she noticed how much better she felt. By the end of class, her relief was complete. That kind of outcome can bring me nearly to tears. I love Pilates because it made my body beautiful but I also consider it to be a ministry of healing.  I guess it's the same feeling a doctor gets when his patient gets better. Of course like a doctor, having motivated and responsible patients makes all the difference.

Try these at work or any time you feel tension and pain in the neck and shoulder areas. If you really want to solve the problem, get yourself to a Pilates class ASAP!

Always bring your own sunshine with you wherever you go...

You Are Only as Young as Your Spine is Flexible

Until our spines are frozen, herniated, or in major pain, we really don't want to talk about spinal health. It's boring. Can't we hear about something more interesting? Take a minute to consider that building strong and pain free spines makes life so much easier. One of my students in her fifties remarked to me the other day that her husband strained his back simply trying to put their grandchild into the car seat. While she felt sory that her husband hurt himself during a simple task, she also noted that she didn't have problems like that because her spine is in good shape from taking Pilates. Pilates builds a strong set of upper, lower, and oblique abdominal muscles to carry the load that many still carry with their weak backs. Additionally, Pilates focuses on spinal flexibility and accesses the smaller spinal muscles to strengthen them. These small muscles protect the spine from all sorts of injury.  Pilates does so many good things for the body especially focused spinal strengthening adds alot more ease and freedom to our lives, regardless of age.

Breathe Easy

One of the Commands of Pilates is breathing in coordination with your movements. Pilates protocol requires that you breath into the lower lobes of the lungs through your back. I teach this tenet in my classes. The teaching materials inform us that propper breathing with movement continuously delivers oxygen to hard working muscles.  But breathing does so much more than that. It actually increases lung capacity and strength. I stopped smoking cigarettes 30 years ago but my lungs still struggled to keep up during exertion. After 3 years of continuous Pilates training, my lung capacity even supports me in running and P90. Add good, deep breathing to your workout (you can hear me breathing in China) to rolling back your shoulders and reaching your head away from your shoulders, and you'll  increase your lung capacity and stamina for whatever task you do. Another benefit is the mood elevation that comes from focused breathing. I remember my first Pilates workout like it was yesterday. I left thinking two things: that I knew I had worked hard yet felt so, so good and that my mood was buoyant. Wondrous! Last, but not least, Pilates breathing has kept me illness free for the entire time I've practiced it. I used to get regular sinus infections and occasional  GI tract viruses. Now, I don't.  Zero. I know it sounds outlandish but it is true. I think that Pilates breathing efficiently rids the body of waste and delivers increased oxygenated blood to the imune system. I'm not a doctor but I know what's happened to me. If you will notice your own shallow breaths and catch yourself holding your breath frequently, you'll see how oxygen deprived you might be. Get to Pilates and start to breath easy again!