Tag: Pilates
I’ve been slacking big time on going to Pilates class, and this research makes me wish I’d been going on the regular:
Good posture makes you tougher, according to findings published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. Slouching can actually make you physically weaker, making you more sensitive to pain. Which suggests, for example, that instead of curling up into a ball when in pain, you should stand tall and hang tough so that you feel more in control and more powerful, which may increase your pain tolerance.
July 13, 2011
Yoga has a bit of a reputation for being an expensive pursuit (if you haven’t read it yet, this 2006 article from the Atlantic about the commodification of yoga is worth a read)–but it doesn’t have to be. Strike a pose with some tres affordable yoga tools from Jogi.
How affordable? Nothing’s more than $45.
Jogi is from the peeps at Joe Fresh (and btw Jogi is pronounced yogi, in case you were wondering) and the collection of fitness tools go beyond yoga (there’s also tools such as a Cardio Kit ($25) and Pedometre ($10).
(And while we’re on the topic of affordabilty Passport to Prana is one of the most inexpensive ways to practice in numerous studios–and they keep launching in more and more cities–so be sure to check if it’s available in your neck of the woods).
March 2, 2011
I’ve never really understood how Pilates can make you stand taller, so I checked in with Body Harmonic Pilates founder Margot McKinnon. Here what she had to say:
“When we look at our own or another person’s posture, we are seeing their muscles and bones trying to hold the person up against gravity. And gravity is a strong force indeed.
So when you see someone with very rounded shoulders and a forward head carriage she is showing an imbalance between the front and back muscles of the torso. Basically the front muscles are extra short and the back muscles are extra long.
When they are at their appropriate lengths, you see someone without rounded shoulders and without a forward head. Another example would be someone with a big arch in the lower back that extends up past the waist. This person has shortened back muscles and elongated abdominal muscles. When these muscles work in proper balance you see someone with a slight arch in the lower back and abdominal muscles that pull inward slightly rather than poking outward.”
Hmm. So it’s all about balance. Pilates helps by creating balance in the muscles of your body so that tone is appropriate around every joint, says Margot. “When muscles work in optimal balance with each other they pull the bones into correct alignment, and voila, posture improves.”
Neat.
(Oh, and BTW you might want to sign up for Pilates classes if you’ve got some job interviews in store.)
January 7, 2011
Next page
Previous page
