Athletes in any sport can benefit
from the balance, flexibility,
muscle control, and mindfulness
developed through Pilates. With
just a few basic supplies, you
can implement a regimen that
improves performance and
overall health.
The growing popularity
of Pilates as a tool for
enhancing athletic performance
is no accident. More
and more athletes are
adopting Pilates because it’s a versatile
way to train without overstressing the
body, the benefits are well documented
by research, and, quite simply, users say
the results speak for themselves.
So why isn’t every athletic program
taking advantage of what Pilates has to
offer? One reason may be the belief that
Pilates involves very intricate moves only
dancers can execute, or that it requires
large equipment that’s bulky, expensive,
and hard to obtain. But in reality, while
Pilates can involve complex movements
and can be performed with the help of
machines like a Reformer, neither is a
necessity. Pilates is a holistic approach
to movement, muscle development, and
concentration, and it includes a broad spectrum of activities—some of which
require only a few basic props, such as
toning balls, bands or straps, and mats.
Pilates offers many physical and mental
health and performance advantages.
Once you see how easy it is to introduce
basic Pilates exercises to your athletes,
you might consider making it a part of
their performance enhancement, injury
prevention, and conditioning programs.
If you do, I’m confident that before long,
your athletes will thank you for it.
WHY PILATES WORKS
Athletic success depends on a unique
balance of mental and physical skills.
But how often does a traditional training
program address the mental side of
athletic performance? Part of the value
of Pilates is that it enables athletes to
develop greater mind-body awareness,
creating new insight into the connection
between the physical and psychological
components of movement, strength, and
agility. Athletes achieve this through a
focus on breathing, concentration during
movement, and engaging multiple
body systems simultaneously.
Pilates develops an athlete’s kinesthetic
awareness, or where the body is in
relation to itself and the world around
it. That may sound like an abstract concept,
but it’s an essential component of
every move we make. Athletes with a
greater understanding of how their body
travels through planes of movement have
an advantage over their opponents in efficiency,
balance, and coordination.
Pilates also complements weight training
by enhancing functional movement
through coordinated exercises that target
both the core muscles and local stabilizers.
These are key for promoting
joint stability, which is often compromised
by repetitive high-demand training.
The coordination and awareness
athletes gain through Pilates can improve
their movement control, leading
to enhanced performance.
Furthermore, the focus on postural
alignment in Pilates reduces unnecessary
strain on the muscles and joints.
Specific strengthening exercises help
balance opposing pairs of muscles that
support the joints, and once athletes
incorporate these concepts into their
training regimen, virtually every aspect
of conditioning becomes more effective
and healthier.
John Garey, owner of John Garey
Pilates in Los Angeles and a STOTT
PILATES® Master Instructor Trainer,
has worked with many competitive
athletes, including members of the USA
Rugby national team. He says athletes
who start using Pilates often tell him
it makes them think about the body
and its function in a whole new way,
which translates into improved performance.
“Whether they’re cyclists, golfers,
or rugby players, athletes find they transfer what they’ve learned in the Pilates
studio to their sport—often subconsciously,”
Garey says. “They find
themselves thinking more about their
‘center,’ or core.
“Pilates makes athletes get back in
touch with their basic training principles,”
Garey continues. “The benefits
are absolutely amazing—they experience
increased power, strength, and
mobility.”
Another reason for implementing
Pilates is the way it enhances injury
rehabilitation protocols. Matt Nichol,
Head Strength and Conditioning
Coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs,
says Pilates teaches rehabbing athletes
to be more mindful of their movements—
integrating their pelvis, trunk,
and shoulder girdle in a safe, progressive
system. “Pilates can be a very
effective supplement to an injury rehabilitation
program,” Nichol says. “It
provides athletes with a challenging
workout without excessive impact or
weight bearing.”
Another reason for implementing
Pilates is the way it enhances injury
rehabilitation protocols. Matt Nichol,
Head Strength and Conditioning
Coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs,
says Pilates teaches rehabbing athletes
to be more mindful of their movements—
integrating their pelvis, trunk,
and shoulder girdle in a safe, progressive
system. “Pilates can be a very
effective supplement to an injury rehabilitation
program,” Nichol says. “It
provides athletes with a challenging
workout without excessive impact or
weight bearing.”
Pilates can assist in injury prevention
as well. The exercises in a Pilates workout
develop core strength while promoting
a controlled lengthening of the
muscles. They enhance the overall flexibility
of the lower back, hamstrings,
and shoulders—three body areas where
injury is often linked directly or indirectly
to a deficit in range of motion.
Finally, Pilates heavily emphasizes
breathing, which provides athletes with
a physical and mental edge. Whether
it’s a basketball player preparing for a
clutch free throw, a swimmer hoping
to optimize the timing and depth of
her breaths, or a golfer looking for an
extra measure of focus and concentration
while putting, greater awareness
of breathing developed through Pilates
can pay important dividends in virtually
any activity.
HITTING THE MAT
Now, let’s get into some specific Pilates
exercises that can benefit athletes. Each
exercise described below requires no
advanced Pilates training or knowledge,
and the equipment can be found in almost
any fitness or athlete development
facility.
Ab Prep. This exercise challenges all
three levels of abdominal muscles: the
local stabilizers, global stabilizers, and
global mobilizers. The athlete begins
lying on their back with feet hip-distance
apart and flat on the mat, with the
spine in a neutral position. Toning balls,
roughly the size of apples and weighing
one, two, or three pounds, are placed
under each hand with the palms facing
down.
As the athlete inhales, they nod their
head forward slightly. As they exhale,
they curl the upper body off the mat until
they can see their toes without pressing
the lower back into the floor. They
simultaneously let the toning balls roll
toward their feet as their hands move forward.
On the second inhalation they hold
this position, then while exhaling, slowly lower the shoulders and head back to the
mat and roll the toning balls back to their
original position near the hips.
|
In this exercise, the hands on the toning
balls allow for a more neutral position
of the shoulder joint, providing a
proprioceptive tool to engage the shoulder
musculature. It also challenges upper-
body strength while relaxing the
hip flexors, which are well developed
in many athletes, but often too tight to
support optimal movement.
Breast Stroke Prep. This exercise
strengthens the upper-back erector spinae
without overworking the lowerback
musculature. The athlete begins
lying on their stomach, legs slightly
apart, with the front of the hips flat on
the mat and their nose hovering slightly
off the ground. The elbows are bent so
that the hands are near the shoulders on
either side of the mat, with palms down.
Once again, each hand is placed on a
toning ball.
Breast Stroke Prep. This exercise
strengthens the upper-back erector spinae
without overworking the lowerback
musculature. The athlete begins
lying on their stomach, legs slightly
apart, with the front of the hips flat on
the mat and their nose hovering slightly
off the ground. The elbows are bent so
that the hands are near the shoulders on
either side of the mat, with palms down.
Once again, each hand is placed on a
toning ball.
The toning ball under each hand challenges
the shoulder girdle as the base of
support by creating instability. As the
arm is challenged in extension, the upper
spine extends, and the movement
strengthens the latissimus dorsi and posterior
deltoid. In addition, by observing
the athlete during this exercise, you can
easily see strength imbalances between
the left and right sides of the body, since
the base of support is unstable.
Obliques Prep. This exercise focuses
on strengthening the rectus abdominis
to bring the upper body into flexion.
The athlete begins lying on their back
with knees up (femurs at roughly a 45-
degree angle from the ground) and feet
flat on the mat. The spine is neutral, feet are hip-distance apart, and hands
are behind the head. A toning ball is
held between the knees.
As the athlete inhales, they nod the
head slightly forward. Then while exhaling,
they curl their upper body off the
mat, rotating the left shoulder toward
the right knee. On the second inhalation,
they lower the body to the starting
position, then repeat the movement with
the opposite shoulder while exhaling.
The hands behind the head in this exercise
create a longer lever, which increases
the challenge to the abdominals while
supporting the head and neck in a neutral
position. The obliques are strengthened
as the spine rotates, and the toning
ball between the knees strengthens the
adductor muscles at the same time. The
upper spine is forced through two planes
of motion while the pelvis is challenged
to remain neutral, a movement pattern
that increases biomechanical efficiency.
Hip Rolls. In this exercise, sequential
articulation of the spine begins at the
spine’s base, thus challenging coordination
and neuromuscular facilitation.
Like in the Obliques Prep, the athlete begins with knees off the ground and
feet hip-distance apart, but this time,
a toning ball is placed under the arch
of each foot. The spine is neutral and
arms are at the sides, with the hands
near each hip, palms down.
The athlete inhales without moving,
then while exhaling, they start at the
tailbone and slowly peel the spine off the
mat until the torso is in line with the femurs
and body weight is resting between
the shoulder blades. On the second inhalation,
the athlete keeps tight abdominals
and holds the position. While exhaling,
the spine slowly returns to the mat from
the top down, as the athlete returns to
the start position.
This exercise provides an excellent
strength, mobility, and stability challenge
by placing the toning ball under
each foot—the muscles of the foot, ankle,
knee, and hip must work to maintain
a neutral position. Meanwhile, the
back extensors lengthen, which trains
balance in the posterior musculature.
Side Bend Prep. To work the lateral
musculature and strengthen the deltoids, obliques, and gluteus medius,
side bends are invaluable. For this exercise,
the athlete begins sitting on their
right hip, with their right hand on the
mat. The knees are bent and together,
and the top forearm rests against the
top thigh, with the hand holding a toning
ball. While the spine feels out of
alignment in this position, the shoulder
blades should be held stable.
After inhaling without moving, the
athlete exhales while lifting the lower
hip off the mat, distributing their weight
evenly between the hand on the mat and
the lower knee. They contract the inner
thighs, abs, and glutes, and extend the
top arm (with the toning ball in-hand)
over the head. Then, while inhaling, the
athlete slowly lowers back to the starting
position. This movement is performed
an equal number of times on each side.
Beyond the strength benefits, this exercise
improves flexibility and range of
motion. It also challenges the shoulder
girdle, stabilizers, and mobilizers.
IMPLEMENTATION
Athletes new to Pilates may be surprised
at how challenging these movements are,
and you can adjust the number of reps
in response to their feedback. A typical
session might use the five exercises described
above as a warmup routine, with the athlete completing five to eight repetitions
of each. During Obliques Prep and
Side Bend Prep, lateral symmetry is important,
so be sure the athlete performs
the same number of reps on each side.
An ideal warmup prepares both the
mind and body to act succinctly to create
movement. A Pilates progression
achieves this by activating all the major
muscle groups, joint structures, and energy
systems, while instilling a focus on
controlled movement, breathing, and
mental focus. It also lowers blood pressure
and improves blood flow, which
increases cardiac output.
These and other Pilates exercises can
be used beyond warmup as well, and
the best guide is an athlete’s performance
goals. For instance, if you’ve
identified weak shoulder stabilizers as
one athlete’s problem, you might prescribe
the Side Bend Prep and similar
variants that engage the shoulder musculature.
Meanwhile, an athlete who
struggles with balance and coordination
might use a series of Pilates movements
that, like Hip Rolls, emphasize
overcoming instability.
As a prelude to strength training, Pilates
can target joint stabilization before
loading begins. An athlete who
trains eccentric strength in this way will
have an easier time with deceleration
movements during strength training, and enjoy better overall joint control.
When mind and body work in full
coordination, athletes achieve large
gains in strength, skill, neuromuscular
balance, and biomechanical efficiency.
In addition, the enhanced body awareness
and mental acuity they develop
through Pilates can provide a performance
edge they never expected. By
incorporating mat work into your athletes’
training regimens, they’ll find
that even the simplest movements can
have profound effects. |
