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.

Effects of Pilates to the body:

1. Toning and enhancing the body's overall flexibility is one effect that Pilates has on your body. Unlike many forms of exercise, Pilates does not make use of weights and weight lifting exercises to tone the muscles, it uses many other kinds of materials and equipment instead to attain this goal.

2. Developing muscle strength and agility is another effect of Pilates on the one's body. These characteristics or development that is achieved when practicing Pilates is important for a person to do activities that needs the use of muscle strength and agility.

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. Improved breathing efficiency and healthier lungs and heart functions is one of the many benefits that you can get in doing Pilates.

5. Practicing Pilates can also help in a person's rehabilitation and recovery from injuries.

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. The first principle is Centering which id the starting point for an individual to attain control over his/her own body.This is the method of Pilates also known as Central point.

2. The second principle of Pilates is control which makes a person concentrate on achieving control, specifically muscle control, over his own body. This principle can be achieved by properly doing every aspect of the Pilates 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. The fourth principle of Pilates is breathing. Considered as one of the most important principles of Pilates, once a person starts to do Pilates exercise improve oxygenation and improved breathing pattern is expected to be a result.

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.The last principle of Pilates is Concentration. doing Pilates, one should concentrate on his/her own body for them to internalize what area of the body needs more improvement and development.

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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