Trisha’s Tips

Expressions don't end with the face. Your entire body expresses itself. These are Involuntary Habitual Patterns (IHP). Take note of the way you stand, sit, work, and sleep. Tune into how you hold your shoulders, neck and head while talking or listening to another person. IHP's mold the muscles around the skeleton creating anomalies unique to you and issues that are best addressed through the practice of Pilates.

Want to know if the right muscles are working? Try this; lay on your back with knees bent, feet flat...hands behind your head, elbows open. Place a medium-sized book on your abdominal area. Take a breath, and as you exhale round up lifting from the shoulder blade line until your nose is pointed at the book. Sink your abdominals AWAY from the book. If the book pushes UP, your rectus are doing the job. If the book stays the same or sinks DOWN, your transversus are activated. The transversus abs make up a integral component to your deeper core muscles, but you must TEACH them how to take a front row seat.

In Pilates great emphasis is placed on keeping the pelvis level or neutral. What is a level pelvis? Lay on your back with knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Place your thumbs on your pelvic bones (below and to the sides of the belly button) and your index finger on your pubic bone. When these 3 bony landmarks are on the same plane, your pelvis is level.

Wonder whether your head and neck are in the proper position for "Hundreds"? When you round the head and shoulders up to your traditional "Hundreds" position, legs raised and arms reaching long by your sides; imagine you have a small orange under your chin. Keep your forehead pointing toward the navel, but lengthen the neck as though flexing up and over this small object.

In 2001 the trademark was lifted on use of the word "Pilates". At that time, anyone and everyone could use the word Pilates to describe products and the method they claim to teach. It represented the beginning of the market saturation, QVC products, and the inevitable dilution of the method known as Pilates. Pilates is NOT a series of exercises. It is NOT a recipe one learns from your standard DVD. It is a complex philosophy involving the eyes of expertise (your properly trained instructor) interfacing with your body and observing what you yourself are unaware of. While Pilates can be PRACTICED at home, it cannot be LEARNED at home. Find a professional who fully understands the complex philosophy behind this wonderful method and you will obtain the results you expect.

We all hear we MUST strengthen our "core", but few know what "the core" actually is outside of simply "the abs". The core involves an intricate network of muscles lying deep in the body's trunk, i.e., the transversus abs (which lay deep under the superficial rectus abs), your waist, your low back, the buttocks, and the Psoas; a thick muscle attaching the thigh bone to the spine. Pilates orchestrates a synergy with all of these muscles. In our infancy & early childhood, these muscles activated simultaneously with any physical effort of the body. Through Pilates the body relearns this synergistic response to support and optimize all
activities.

Pilates is MORE than merely exercise. It was intended to also generate chemicals in the brain responsible for relieving stress and depression, and integral to coping with daily pressures. The regular practice of Pilates, ideally 3 times per week, improves brain function, supports a healthy immune system and simply makes you feel good. As Joseph Pilates himself said, "it's good for the body!".

While breathing is an enormously vital component in activating from the right place while performing Pilates, be patient with yourself. Your inhalation oxygenates the tissues. Your exhalation causes closure of the ribs and activation of the deeper core muscles. Your instructor will continue reminding your body how to breathe, but in general, until your body "gets it"...just remember to breathe. It will become automatic to you with time and
practice.

Pilates is an eccentric method of activating the muscles. Weight lifting is concentric. This means that the focus is placed on strengthening the muscle fibers by challenging them during their lengthening phase. So, as opposed to thick, shortened muscle strength; through Pilates, you have long and lean muscle strength. Swimming, walking and running are very compatible with Pilates and provide the ideal cardio component to compliment your Pilates regimen.