Strengthen Your Core and Optimize Your Health with Pilates
In the early 20th century, a German physical trainer named Joseph Pilates developed an exercise system we now know as Pilates. Focusing on improving flexibility while building strength, Pilates has become a great full-body exercise that can help you lose weight and optimize your health.
Contact a weight loss specialist in to help you incorporate Pilates into your workout routine. Call (832) 532-0050 or contact us online.
How Pilates Works
Pilates combines a series of movements which aim to strengthen and stabilize your core. Exercises that involve stretching, flexing and bending your different body parts, combined with steady breathing, help add agility and versatility to your body’s functions.
The guiding principles of Pilates include:
- Concentration: Focusing on your mind-body awareness to ensure precise movement while exercising.
- Control: Performing each move consciously and decisively—which sometimes means slowly—to maximize your body’s muscle function and efficiency.
- Centering: Focusing on your core muscles to help develop your entire body’s function.
- Flow: Completing each move smoothly and gracefully to ensure your body’s serenity.
- Precision: Practicing proper form to ensure optimal benefit from your exercise.
- Breathing: Controlling your breath with deep exhalations to help activate your muscles and keep them moving precisely.
Benefits of Pilates
Regularly practicing Pilates can help you become one with your body as well as maintain your entire body’s health. Benefits of Pilates can include:
- Body Shaping: Pilates helps you tone your muscles to give you a leaner appearance. You will also notice an improved posture.
- Increased Strength: Pilates helps you develop muscle definition and strength, which will help you perform other exercises with increased comfort and ease.
- Increased Flexibility: Pilates enhances your balance as well as your ability to move with increased grace and effectiveness.
Pilates strengthens the thigh muscles (quadriceps), which can help prevent the development of arthritis and knee injuries. Those who already have arthritis or who suffer from other forms of chronic pain (such as chronic back pain) may find that Pilates can help relieve pain, though consulting your healthcare provider about whether Pilates should be avoided or pursued is strongly recommended. Women, under proper advisement from their healthcare provider, often practice Pilates during pregnancy because it is low-impact. In fact, Pilates is one of the few exercises that can be modified to work with your current health status, regardless of injury or fitness level, throughout your entire life.
Why Pilates Works for Weight Loss
Pilates helps sculpt your core by strengthening your muscles, turning stubborn belly fat into lean muscle over time. Your abdominal muscles, which act as the powerhouse of your entire body, are in turn activated, supporting improved function to the rest of your body. In addition to helping build strength and flexibility, this process also increases calorie burning and tissue regeneration through the practice of deep and efficient breathing. Combining these benefits, Pilates has the potential for not only making you a happier and healthier person by helping you lose weight over time, but it also has the potential for turning your body into a shapely figure of optimal function.
Getting Started with Pilates
Pilates is a great exercise because you can practice it for virtually your entire life, unlike other exercises that put excess strain on your body. If you are interested in getting started with Pilates, visit a Pilates class at a gym, or work out from the comfort of your home—all you need is a mat!
With any weight loss initiative, it is important to evaluate not only your physical activity but also your diet and other lifestyle factors. For optimal weight loss results, it is always recommended to first meet with your healthcare provider. Your healthcare provider may also recommend adding additional exercise into your routine to compliment Pilates including some form of cardiovascular exercise. For more information about Pilates, contact a specialist in , call, (832) 532-0050 or contact us online.
