Answer To Your Fitness Questions" />The Six Principles Of Pilates
August 21, 2007
Now that school is beginning again, Pilates is one of those classes I look forward to.
The one thing that makes Pilates distinct from those other exercise influences is the manner in which it incorporates the all important “six principles”.
First Concentration: The “gaining the mastery of your mind over the complete control of your body”, by Pilates and Miller, 1945. He believes that the focus on the exercise being performed was healthy for the brain and the body. Hence, body awareness.
Second, Control: “Concentrate on the correct movements each time you exercise, lest you do them improperly and thus lose all the vital benefits of their value. Correctly executed and mastered to the point of subconscious reaction, these exercises will reflect grace and balance in your routine activities.” By Pilates and Miller, 1945.
Third, Physical Centering: The physical center is the focal point or the core. A more commonly used term is “powerhouse”. It is the space from the bottom of the rib cage to the top of the pelvis. This is purely a physical center, and is also referred to as “training from the inside out”. It is applied in each and every exercise.
Fourth, Flowing Movement: Once you acquire complete control of the exercises you gradually will gain in grace and alignment. Once you have that then the exerciser will focus the mind on the body, the next step to mastering is the releasing of tension so the movements of the exercise flow smoothly and evenly. And from one exercise to the next.
Fifth, Precision: Precise execution of the exercise is absolutely vital to this method. It will result in muscle balancing and development and efficient movement. Always learn proper form from the beginning, if you lose it, stop until you can return to proper good form.
Lastly, which is the sixth, Breathing: Breathing energizes the body as you perform the exercises and is essential to your best performance. Each exercise has movement patterns that coordinate with the breathing patterns. This will bring the client immediately to the present-state awareness. This is an essential characteristic in all mind-body disciplines.
So as you begin or continue your Pilates practice, it is imperative we all adhere to the principles of Pilates to see improvement in our body mechanics and of course, for best results.
“Train from the inside out, everyone!!”
The Jiva Bandha
August 8, 2007
Once we begin to practice yoga we will begin to learn about the “internal locks” within the body to help maintain strength and flexibility at the same time. One of the first bandhas or internal locks is named Jiva Bandha. It means “soul” internal lock. The placement of this bandha is where the tongue is gently placed to the junction where the back of the two front teeth meet the upper palate. In doing so it can be extremely difficult to clench and tighten the mouth, throat, or jaw. By relaxing those areas, most tension will dissipate. This takes us back to the beginning og this article in that as we begin to practice yoga there is often tension that happens in the mouth, teeth, face, eyes, jaw, and brow. This in turn causes an uneven breath.
This is when we remember that Patanjali wrote in a Yoga Sutra: “Yoga is effort without tension.” Jiva Bandha assists you in becoming more sensitive to your own threshold point. When you aren’t paying attention, you will always lose the softness and immediately tense up somewhere in the body, most generally the face, mouth and throat. So next time think about the Jiva Bandha, and when you notice the tension, it’s time to make a change and this bandha helps immensely!
