1. Take responsibility for your Pilates workout by understanding that The Pilates Method is not just a series of exercises to be performed….it’s a an exercise method meant for you to get more out of your body. These are the Pilates Principles that you should look for in all your Pilates Classes. Pick one principle and focus on it during your workout. For example, lately I’ve been focusing on Length in my classes which is also decompression or alignment in movement.
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Control -
Alignment
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Stability
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Mobility
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Decompression
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Fluidity
You can find these principles in each and every exercise. You may only want to focus on one or two principles at a time, but they are there for you.
2. The second way to take responsibility for your workout is to ask yourself these 3 questions in your Pilates Class
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Do I feel my belly working?
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Can I use my breath better or more?
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Can I get an Internal Shower in at least one repetition in one or more exercises?
*An Internal Shower is a phrase that Joe Pilates used. It’s that point where you get really warm and flushed and feel your body responding like never before. This is from doing the exercise at a deeper level than you may ever have before. That is the Internal Shower.
If you answer “no” to these 3 questions, then it might benefit you to take a private so that you can get more out of your workout.
3. The last way to take responsibility for your workout in Pilates is to know the exercises. You can set yourself up for success by knowing the names of the exercises and how to get set up for them. Take the 100’s. It should be one of the first exercises you learn in Pilates. You should know that it involves breathing and pumping the arms. Knowing the names and set up helps with flow or fluidity which is one of the principles. See how it all starts to connect 🙂
The more you know about The Pilates Exercises, the Pilates Principles and asking yourself the 3 questions, the better your body will perform the exercises and the better you will feel about yourself and your workout!
Namaste!