Pilates Principle: Alignment and Weight Bearing of the Extremities

Our next Pilates principle is alignment and weight bearing of the extremities.  In other words, we want to approximate straightness (in our bodies!  This is not queer-shaming!) for optimal relations with gravity.  Eric Franklin says, “Ideal Alignment involves all body parts approximating toward the central axis, as much as structure permits.”

Structurally, we’re actually not all that straight.  Our spines curve multiple times from top to bottom.  Our femurs angle in from the hip sockets to the knees.  Our knees, even though they are mostly hinges, also have some rotational abilities.  What we want to do, when we align ourselves, is to make sure that we are moving our bones in ways that facilitate movement and avoid injury.

 

In Pilates, we do this by working with what are called kinetic chains to refine our movements.  There are three kinds:  closed, pseudo-closed, and open.  Closed kinetic chain movements are those when we are working against a stable surface.  When we do footwork on the reformer, that is a closed chain movement because our feet are firmly on the foot bar while our knees and hips are bending.  Doing a single leg pump on the chair is a pseudo closed chain movement for the working leg because the working foot is stabilized against the chair pedal while the pedal moves through space.  Open chain movement is what happens when we do femur arcs on the mat:  our foot is not stabilized against anything as it moves through space with the motion of the hip.

 

Closed kinetic chains are simplest for our bodies.  The stabilization provided by the closure lets us focus on the parts that are moving without worrying about the parts that are held still.  As we progress, we can learn to stabilize ourselves and carry on through open chain movements with proper alignment.

 

Another way we work on this principle is by doing exercises with different relationships to gravity.  Footwork on the reformer, double leg pump on the chair, footwork on the trap table, and squats are all very similar exercises, but our relationship to gravity and weight-bearing is different in each position.  Sometimes, as in footwork on the reformer, we are not working against very much resistance at all, which allows people with problematic knees to experience the movement of a squat without all that stress.  We can build up our ability to deal with gravity gradually.

 

All this work helps us learn where our bodies are in space, move with efficiency and grace, and feel good.

 

Go play.

Procrastination

We all have things we don’t feel like doing.  (Sometimes it is writing blog posts!  Shh… don’t tell anyone!)  I am here to help.  Here are some exercises to do while we are procrastinating about other things.  Or, possibly, something we want to do even less than whatever we are procrastinating about.  Either way, we will end up ahead, whether we exercise or we get down to other business. 

1.     Squats.  Squats are my favorite exercise for lots of reasons, but the one I’m going to focus on right now is that they don’t require any equipment!  We just have to stand there and then get to work.  Do ten or twenty.

2.     Foot exercises.  We don’t even have to stand up to do these.  If we have a ball, we can do the push like a pedal, side to side, sink into the grass exercises in series.  If we don’t, we can lift our big toes, then our little toes, then our middle toes.

3.     Neck stretch.  We put our right hand on the left side of our head, pull our right ear down toward our right shoulder, and press our left hand down toward the floor.  We hold a while and then turn our head as if we are giving our biceps a kiss.  Then we do the other side.

4.     Doorway stretch.  We stand in a doorway, arms stretched out against the doorframe.  Then we lean forward to stretch our chests and shoulders.

 

Worst case, we have spent about five minutes.  We might even feel a little more energized.

Monday Workout: More

Sometimes challenge comes in the form of doing more reps.  We’re doing twice as many pushups this week as usual.  It is always all right to modify or to rest as needed.  Three rounds.

 

kb swings	30
kb twist	20
kb 8	10
woodchoppers	30
deadlifts	20
curls	10
squat raise	30
pushups	20
pretty princesses	10

The Amazing Stickie and Single Arm Clean and Press

As always, the Amazing Stickie loves efficiency in workouts.  Today she is working on her oblique abdominals, moving multiple joints for a metabolic boost, and getting her heart rate up all at once by doing the single arm clean and press.

She begins by holding a light weight in one hand.  Most of the time she puts her other hand on her hip, but that doesn’t really matter.  She squats down and bends at the waist to bring the weight to the floor near her foot.  Then she straightens up and brings the weight to shoulder level.  From there, she lifts the weight overhead.  That is one rep.  Stickie usually does fifteen on one side and then repeats using the other hand.

Pilates Principle: Head, Neck, and Shoulder Organization

I love organization.  It is not, however, a word that springs to mind when I think about my head, neck, and shoulders.  I mean, I don’t want a disorganized head, neck, and shoulders, but, until Pilates, I didn’t really even know what that meant.

Basically, head-neck-shoulder organization means that our bones and muscles are moving the way they should.  We reduce tension.  We improve our breathing because we’re not relying on our neck muscles to do everything.  We learn to keep our highly-mobile shoulder joints stable in all kinds of positions.

 

In terms of posture, this means that most of us need to shift our heads back a little, so that our ears are over our shoulders.  We may need to draw our shoulders back and down a little so that they line up with our hips.

 

When we are moving, we want our shoulder blades to be able to glide over our rib cage in appropriate directions without popping away from the rib cage. 

 

One way to practice this is by doing arm arcs, with or without a foam roller.  We get to lie down, either on the floor or with the roller along our spines with our head and behind both on the roller.  Our knees are bent and our feet are flat on the floor.  We begin with our arms at our sides.  As we inhale, we lift our arms up toward the ceiling and then toward the floor over our heads.  We return the arms along the same pathway with the exhale.  Simple, right?  Now we take a moment to notice what our shoulder blades are doing as we go through this motion.  They may want to go gallivanting up toward the top of our heads.  We want to avoid that if we can.  Practice helps.

 

One good reason to do this practice is that it can help us avoid shoulder injury.  Shoulder injuries are often extremely frustrating and long-lasting.  It’s better to skip that step if at all possible.

 

Go play.

Fight the Monster

This is one of those posts that comes with a bunch of disclaimers.  I am not a doctor or a therapist or a psychiatrist or a psychologist.  Anyone suffering from depression should consult a real professional.  Taking medication for depression can be a lifesaving decision. 

Another important note:  I’m here for you.

 

Now, on to the actual post.  Which is about fitness and depression.

 

Depression comes in many forms and it can be persistent, sneaky, and frustrating.  Fitness activities are not a substitute for medical or therapeutic help, but they can be a helpful addition.  Here are some things to try to lift our spirits:

 

1.     Cardio.  This is a proven strategy for improving mood.  We don’t even have to do a ton of it, or work very hard, for it to have an effect.  Dragging ourselves out for a fifteen minute walk can make a big difference.

2.     Outside.  Speaking of that walk, exposure to daylight and fresh air and nature helps us feel better.  Forest bathing is a thing, but if all we can manage is a visit to the tree on the corner, that is useful, too.

3.     Hydration.  Drinking more water is almost never a bad thing.  Water makes all our body processes work better, including the ones in our brains.  Having enough water will increase the likelihood that we will feel better.

4.     Breath.  Doing a mind-body kind of exercise, like Pilates of yoga, can reconnect us with our breath, which can help soothe us or energize us, depending on how we use the breath.  (To soothe, make the exhale longer than the inhale; to balance, make them the same length; to energize, make the inhale longer than the exhale.)

5.     Food.  No, I’m not suggesting we dive face-first into the cake.  Sometimes when we are depressed, we do want to eat everything in sight, so it’s a good idea to make sure that most of what’s in sight is good for us.  Other times, we don’t feel like eating at all, so it is good to have some tasty, healthful choices available.

6.     Rest.  It is okay to rest sometimes.  Depression can mess with our ability to get good sleep, so we may need to be taking care of our bodies by taking it easy.

7.     Action.  One of the wonderful things about fitness activities is that we can check them off our lists without too much effort.  Accomplishing anything, no matter how small, can help us battle the depression-voice that says we can’t do anything.  Plus, if we choose strength training, we can know we are getting stronger while doing it.

 

I could make this list longer, but it’s already pretty long.  Anyone who wants more should hit me up!  Be well.

Monday Workout: Asymmetry and Core

I am kind of obsessed with balance right now, so we’re continuing to work on it with asymmetric exercises and compound exercises that challenge our core strength.  Three rounds.

 

1 arm clean and press	30
rows	20
1 leg squat	10
jacks	30
lunge to curl	20
skullcrushers	10
squat heel lift	30
lateral raise	20
brains	10