Moving on from the Mat

You’ve been practicing Pilates for a year. You look and feel great. Your posture has improved and your abdominals are stronger. Perhaps your form is excellent, and you need a more challenging workout. Or maybe you’re tired of the same exercise sequence, and you are looking for ways to spice up the routine. Pilates equipment sessions may be an option. Then you look at the session pricing. While the $50-$100 an hour would be well worth it, you were looking forward to buying new gear, or taking a trip to Europe.

Here’s the good news. You do have some choices. In the past few years, cutting edge Pilates instructors have been displaying the same ingenuity and creativity that was prevalent in Mr. Pilates himself, when he decided to make an exercise machine out of the hospital bedsprings! Professionals who enjoy “thinking outside the box” have been creating equipment-mimicking routines using stability balls, resistance bands and other sorts of strength and balance “toys”. Aside from being less expensive than machine workouts, there’s an added be benefit. Working with balance equipment requires greater activation of the deep core musculature, which enhances the effectiveness of the workout. Since balance skills set the foundation for all athletic movement, practicing Pilates in an environment that challenges balance, stability and equilibrium will have you well prepared for outdoor sports and recreation.

The Core of the Matter

While the words “core muscles” are commonplace, they are often misunderstood. People may refer to the most superficial abdominal muscle, the rectus abdominus, as a core muscle. The rectus abdominus is responsible for spinal flexion. But Computer Age ergonomics have caused us to over use this muscle. We sit flexed at our desk, then we go to the gym and we flex some more while performing traditional crunches.

Our “true” core muscles, the transverse abdominal muscle (TVA), the pelvic floor and the multifidus lie deeper in the body. At The University of Queensland, Paul Hodges conducted research about the connection between having an active TVA and the absence of low back pain. He performed muscle tests comparing subjects with bad backs and healthy backs. His research team discovered that subjects without back pain activated their transverse abdominal muscle prior to contracting other muscle groups. The TVA provided stability for the movement. Subjects with low back pain activated their TVA after the other muscles contracted. Since stability was compromised, the back muscles had to absorb the shock that resulted from wobbly movements.

These core muscles work on a “use it or lose it” principle. If you’ve been practicing Pilates for a while, the “scooping “of the abdominal area performed while exhaling activates the TVA. But “cheating” is often possible. The rectus gladly takes over if the core muscles fatigue. But they won’t bail you out when you’re working on the stability ball!

Pilates goes Ballistic

Colleen Craig, author of Pilates on the Ball, tells us that:

Pitting your gravity bound body against a mobile ball requires balance, and balance recruits many of the body’s deep stabilizing muscles. Most of these muscles are underused, resulting in the most common injuries of the knee, ankle, shoulder or back.

Female athletes need to be particularly concerned with knee injuries, especially ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) tears. During sport participation, neuromuscular control of the knee is maintained by the interactions between the quadriceps and hamstrings. The quadriceps are ACL antagonists. Upon contraction, they place stress on the ACL. The hamstrings are ACL agonists. Their contraction removes stress from the ACL.

If the hamstrings are much weaker than the quadriceps, they may not offer adequate protection to the ACL. It has been speculated that many women have a hamstring/quadricep muscle imbalance that predisposes them to ACL injury. Performing the Pilates shoulder bridge series on the stability ball may be an excellent way to re-balance these muscles.

Set Up

Action

• Inhale to prepare. Imagine the space between your vertebra is increasing.
• Exhale. Engage your core muscles, and peel your spine away from the mat, vertebra by vertebra.
• Inhale. Straighten your legs from the bridge position.
• Exhale. Bend your knees.
• Inhale. Return to the mat, articulating each vertebra.
• Repeat 4 times.

Both Sides Now

The US Ski Team trains on the Bosu. So should you. The word Bosu is an acronym that stands for “both sides up.” Shaped like a half ball, it can be used on either the dome or platform side. Given their similarity of shape, many exercises performed on the Pilates Barrel can be done on the Bosu. Advanced participants can practice the Teaser and Abdominal 5s series from the top of the Bosu.

Getting “Waisted”

Outdoor athletes should think about training for lateral strength and stability. Variations of the Pilates Mermaid and Side Bend become challenging and effective when performed on the Bosu. Position will influence intensity. Having your hip closer to the base of the Bosu is easier than having your hip on top of the dome.

Set Up

• In a side lying position, place your right hip either at the base or the top of the dome.
• Bend your knees, stacking the left leg directly over the right. Your right foot is on the floor.
• Drape your waistline over the Bosu. Right arm is on the floor. Your Left arm is overhead, parallel to your left ear.

Action

• Inhale to prepare.
• Exhale. Lift your right arm and your waist.
• Touch you left hip with you left hand.
• Inhale. Return slowly.
• Repeat 6 times, and then change sides. Remember you are moving sideways, not forward.

Variation: You can add a small ball under your supporting hand to track your lateral alignment. As you come up into the side bend, roll the ball along the floor.

On a Roll

Styrofoam rollers are the current rage in Pilates and Sport fitness. Cylindrical in shape, they can turn even the subtlest Pilates exercise into a formidable challenge.

Taps on a Roll

While this exercise is subtle when performed on the floor, executing it on a foam roller requires perfect form and alignment. Some Physical Therapists call this the “Dead Bug” exercise. It activates the deep core muscles in a way that is beneficial to people with back problems. Make sure that you pick a roller that is long enough to extend from the top of your head to the base of your spine.

Set Up

• Lie down on the roller, making sure that it’s center on your spine.
• Knees are bent, lined up with the pelvis.
• Feet are lifted from the floor.
• Shins are parallel to the ceiling; calves are parallel to the floor.

Action

• Inhale to prepare
• Exhale, draw navel to spine and lower the right foot towards the floor, keeping knee bent.
• Inhale to return
• Repeat on left foot.
• Alternate 8 times

Three Dimensional Pilates

Push and Twist

Here’s an interesting “twist” on the Pilates push up series. Adding rotation will work the obliques, along with the chest, triceps, back and core.

• Assume a push up position
• Hold the outside of the core board with each hand
• As the arms bend into the push up, rotate the board to the right
• Straighten your arms
• Repeat, this time rotating to the left

Always check with your doctor before starting a new fitness program. The exercises in this article are challenging! Have a friend or a fitness professional spot you while you perform them.