You are reading the words of a skeptic. I am a skeptic of the “one size fits all” phenomenon that permeates the marketing world. I am a skeptic of anyone that says “_______ is perfect for everyone.” And in the midst of such conversations I find myself thinking, “Wanna Bet.” And then I dutifully try to figure out exactly how whatever it is that is being sold to me is NOT perfect for me. Friends call me stubborn, and I own it. (kind of) But now as I write this, I find myself in a dilemma., Because I actually do believe that Pilates is for everyone…Hmmm, considering my own skepticism I feel the need to tell you that I teach Pilates, own a Pilates Studio, and am trying to sell a Pilates session to you. But for my fellow skeptics my only hope is that the following paragraphs might trigger some curiosity. I will explore the basis for the assertion “Pilates is for everyone.” Why might the marketing world put this out into the world?
Pilates helps many people balance the core. I say balance as opposed to strengthen, because Pilates is more than just abdominal work, and the core of the body consists of more than just the abdominals. And while we’re on the subject the abdominals consist of four or more (depending on who you talk to) different muscles with a multitude of functions. Then there are all of the myofascial connections between the abdominals and other muscles of the core. Therefore when a person spends time at the gym doing “crunches” to “strengthen” the core. He is only strengthening one motion and one activity to the neglect of other myofascial connections and functions. Pilates balances the core. At the Pilates Studio the cyclist that spends hours of his time in spinal flexion will do very different “core” work than the gymnast that spends hours of her time moving in and out of spinal extension. The tennis player who has a brilliant tennis serve and equally brilliant tennis swing will have very different “core” exercises than the swimmer who wants to improve his butterfly. The person who spends his day sitting at a desk in front of a computer will do very different “core” work than the person who stands all day. Pilates balances the muscles of the core. Everyone needs more balance right?
My next thought is who are my clientele? Do I teach everyone? Well no, but I’ve taught people between the ages of 10 and 86. Clearly the workout of a 10-year-old boy differs greatly from that of an 86-year-old woman. Yet, each workout was created with Pilates principles. Maybe the previous assertion is based in the variety of exercises that can be done in a Pilates Studio. With the ten-year-old boy we made use of the balance balls for coordination and balance, and we spent a lot of time on the mat moving through quadruped practicing getting up and down from the floor. The 86-year-old woman came to me many years ago to prepare for a knee replacement surgery. We worked to strengthen her muscles before the surgery and to help her recover after her surgery. Now we continue to work on strength in her body and balance as she walks. At the Pilates Studio progress is measured by the goals achieved not by number of exercises. Everyone has goals right?
Finally, the assertion might find some truth in the Pilates principles for exercise progression. Often when an exercise becomes “too easy,” the assumption is that adding resistance will make it “harder” and thus increase the progress towards strength and flexibility. At the Pilates Studio, adding resistance is only one possibility of many to progress an exercise. When a client says to me, “this exercise is feeling too easy” I get to be creative. I might decrease the base of support. If someone is doing an exercise lying on his back, I might have him do the same motion sitting or standing. I could also destabilize the base of support. Maybe I’ll put a squishy ball underneath someone’s pelvis and then ask her to continue as if the ball weren’t there. Maybe I’ll ask someone to repeat an exercise while balancing on the balance board. The principles of exercise progress in Pilates increase functional strength, which makes the effects of a Pilates workout more apparent in everyday lives. At the Pilates studio exercise is not happening for exercise sake, but for the sake of life improvement. Everyone wants his life to improve right?
So to my fellow skeptics in the world, the people that have read this entire post dutifully looking for reasons that Pilates is not perfect for them, I salute you because you are my kindred spirits. Believe me when I say that I am not looking for your blind faith, but give Pilates a chance. Pilates may not be for everyone, but from the mouth of a skeptic, it certainly comes close.
Katrina Hawley C.M.A R.S.M.E
Pilates Instructor
Co-Owner of The Pilates Studio
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