Pilates - Basic Principles and Exercises for Health

So Pilates - a system for learning the skills of effective body movements. In the performance I mean lightness , integrity and security for the joints . Any movement can be an exercise pilates if it helps a person learn how to move more efficiently. Therefore , the main pilates - no exercise , and principles of the movement.
Dwell on some of these principles
1. BREATHING
Breathing - an important part of our existence, it accompanies us all life. With the first breath of the child begins his life outside the mother, and if breathing stops - stops life. Even if we do not move , even when we sleep, breathing movement going on in our body.


Breathing is closely related to our body, the emotions , the level of energy. Any of our state - relaxation or stress - as soon as reflected in the breeze. Conversely , changing the breath , we can change the overall tone of the body and quality of movement. That's why all the eastern movement practices ( yoga, qigong , etc.) are active breathing.
Today, most urban people breathing shallow . Someone just breathing belly, only one - vehnoyi chest. Pilates teaches people to breathe more fully, freely and easily.
Most Pilates exercises using lateral chest breathing: inhale side and rear of the lower ribs expand (you can try a breath , putting his hands on the edges of these pieces and sending the breath into the palm ).
In Pilates also uses a property of breathing: breathing in an effort to increase the concentration and breath helps to reveal any area of ​​the body .
2. Axial stretching and centering
In any exercise, Pilates is used axial traction - active increasing the length of the spine.
This extraction removes unnecessary strain on the intervertebral joints and stimulates the production of these intra- joint fluid. Thus, the axial stretching improves the functioning of the spine , making any movement in the spine lighter , freer , more accurate and safer.
You can feel the axial stretching, imagining that the top of your head attached elastic bandage (or a balloon with a light gas), which gently pulls her head up . Try to keep that image for a while and feel how comfortable was your back.
Any exercise Pilates also focuses on the work of the center of the body muscles : deep muscles of the abdomen and lower back , the main breathing muscle - diaphragm and pelvic floor muscles , intercostal and oblique muscles. Coordinated work of all these muscles gives a feeling taut body allows optimal (ie, minimum cost ) to perform complex movements , and ensures the safety of the lumbar spine. A pleasant side effect of strengthening the muscles of the center is tightened waist.
3. LEVELING THE WHOLE BODY
An important distinguishing feature of Pilates is to expand the focus on the whole body for any movement. Even if you intend to only a small movement of the hand, in Pilates we follow the correct posture . We try to distribute the force over the entire musculoskeletal system , avoiding overloading of individual joints.
Our bodies are designed brilliantly and can operate many decades with minimal wear and tear , but ... if properly used . Unfortunately , there are many reasons why we break these conditions : lack of physical culture ( with capital letters ) , lack of exercise , sedentary work , etc. By controlling the alignment of Pilates allows us to return to the correct motor skills , and our bodies stay longer moving and healthy.
4. Concentration for greater integration TRAFFIC
Breath control , axial traction, muscle work center alignment required for each exercise Pilates. It is important to be able to combine all the principles together, even performing complex movements easily , smoothly and harmoniously. Any movement is " the center " with the rhythm of breathing, spine and optimal position of all parts of the body - you feel the integrity of their entire body in motion. This requires full concentration: during classes Pilates you zoseredzhuyetes on your body and its movements. Transfer emphasis on body allows to unload the head, brings clarity of thought, improves body awareness . Gradually skills focusing on the body begin transferred to everyday life. Pursuing Pilates, you become more sensitive to your body, feel his needs better , move more easily refined and graceful , feel more confident and more cohesive in the body and in life.
Try Pilates ! Stay healthy and happy !