Main Line Pilates

PRINCIPALS OF PILATES

In order to gain control, you must concentrate on coming from your center with precise flowing movements that ride within your breath.  

This sentence incorporates all the pilates principles.  It is not important WHICH exercise you do, its about HOW you perform them.

We have 6 principles we refer to in pilates

These are the things we keep in the back of our mind while we are performing the exercises.

Pilates fusion of mind and body-- carry into everyday life.

1. Control (through your mind). The pilates method teaches you to be in complete control of your body, not at its mercy. The movements are specific and controlled.

2. Concentration. You need to concentrate on exactly what you are doing, All the time. *Hard to do. Focus will get easier.

3. Centering. A starting place. All movements start from your center, or your core.  Think core of an apple. All movements start from your center and work their way out.  Focal point of pilates.

4. Flowing movement.  Movements start from your center than flow outward. Not too stiff. Not too jerky or not too fast or too slow. Also, this refers to the transitions from one exercise right into the next. 

5. Precision. Precision is a vital part of control. Concentrate on doing the movements exactly as they were intended to be done. Working on precise alignment of the body.

6. Breathing. Very Important.  All the above aspects are but think of this first.  Breathing should be properly coordinated with every movement. A full inhale then a full and complete exhale. Inhale starts. Exhale finishes. Breathing gets the blood charged with oxygen and your able to get rid of waste. An Internal shower.