Unstable Surfaces
Doing your ab work on an unstable surface like a stability ball or Bosu enhances the workout by engaging the abdomen muscles more. It’s has been tested in two different studies that prove it works.
Move & Hold Still
It is one of the many challenges in Pilates: to move and hold still at the same time. Yet that is one of the aspects of Pilates that makes it so unique and provides you with so much control.
Think about moving and holding still the next time you do the following exercises:
The 100: You move your arms, but try not to move the rest of you body, espeically the rest of the upper body.
Leg Circles: You move your leg in the hip socket, but try not to let the opposite side of you pelvis lift.
Spinal Rotation: You twist at the spine without letting your hips move with you.
Can you think of another exercise in Pilates that requires you to move and hold still at the same time?
Challenge #14
This week only eat foods your Grandma would recognize. This will probably be easier if you don’t eat anything that comes out of a box, since packaged foods can contain a lot of ingredients Grandma probably never heard about before.
Years ago, my father took this picture of my Great Grandma with one of her yummy apples pies.
Voting & Pilates
When you vote today, remember to keep your belly button pulled toward your spine.
Elder Mary Bowen
This week I trained with Pilates Elder Mary Bowen for the second time. She has a home in Connecticut, so it is a wonderful opportunity to get to train with her. She is so close I wish I could afford to train with her weekly. In our lessons, she seems to talk more than to instruct exercises, but as an instructor (and a person) I learn a great deal from listening to her and attempting to absorb the wealth of information she has discovered in nearly 80-years.
What struck me most this time I met with her was her commentary on relaxing the body. I tend to be very tight, but that isn’t uncommon. We all carry tension in our neck and shoulders. We’re a society of tight hamstrings. She talked about how itching we all are as humans to move–to get going. “We’ll say, ‘Let’s Go,'” she explained. We’re always on the move; always rushing. She suggested, perhaps, we should consider, “Let’s Relax”–or maybe she said, “Let’s release.” I don’t remember, but it had the same intention. “It’s […]