The Essential Pilates Exercises

The Essential Pilates Exericses

The basic Pilates Method exercises were invented to warm up the body and get it ready for the more strenuous Pilates exercises to come and to teach the body to be aware of movement. As the practitioner begins to use the basic Pilates exercises, he or she needs to try to use the natural pelvic and abdominal muscles as much as possible. The student needs to empty his mind of all the daily stresses and pay close attention to the deep breathing techniques in Pilates. During the course of the exercises, the participant needs to stay aware of his shoulders, pressing them down as he lifts arms and stabilizes his pelvis.

For the best results in pelvic stability and body awareness, here are a few of the basic Pilates exercises:

Breathing: The student kneels on a mat and places his hand on his ribcage. He inhales deeply while feeling his ribcage open up. He then exhales deeply, feeling the ribcage close. Repeat five times.

Imprint and Breathing: The student lies on the mat with his knees bent and his feet flat on the floor. He lightly places his hands on his lower ribcage and breaths in deeply, feeling his ribcage expand. He then exhales, feeling his spine imprint on the mat. Repeat five times.

Knee Stir-ins: The student lies on the floor with his hand under his knee. He then makes small circle with his leg, while the opposite leg remains flexed with his foot flat on the floor. He should feel the circular movement in his hip joint.

Pelvic Presses or Bridges: The student lies on the floor. He then does a 10-degree lift using the abdominal muscles, but without using the rear end muscles. Next, he lifts onto his shoulders and then slowly starts to lower the shoulders back to the starting position. It is important that during this exercise, he keeps his abdominals contracted and focuses on lifting very slowly, one vertebrae at time. For this exercise, he will exhale while lifting and inhale while lowering.

Thigh Advance or Side-Lying Stability: The student lies down on his side with his head on his arm, supporting the front of the body with the opposite arm. Then, he flexes his foot on the top leg and stretches the leg away from the hip joint. He then repeats five times.

Neck Curl: This exercise is one of three for the cervical or thoracic regions. The student lies down with knees flexed and feet flat on the floor. He supports his head in his hands and elongates his neck as he lowers his chin to his chest and his head lifts off the floor. He then returns his head to the floor and repeats this exercise only three times. This exercise isolates the neck muscles and helps to adjust the cervical spine.

Puppet Arms: This exercise is the second of three for the cervical spine. The student lies down with knees flexed and feet flat on the floor. He then extends his arms over his shoulders and lifts his lower arms while depressing the shoulders. Next, he will perform the same movement with his arms stretched diagonally across his chest. This exercise is to be repeated three times also.

Cat-Flexion of the Spine: The students in positioned on all four knees with his wrists under his shoulders and his knees under his hips. He then flexes his spine toward the ceiling and then lowers and arches his legs into extended position. Keeping his arms straight, he then repeats the exercise three times.

The basic Pilates Method Exercises are the simplest and most fundamental of all the Pilates exercises. As with any new exercise program, it is always a good idea to consult a trained Pilates instructor to get them to show you how to perform these exercises correctly.