Over the next six months, I will be sharing Joseph Pilates’ six key principles with my clients and implementing them within each session. He believed these principles were crucial to the Pilates Method—integral to proper technique and reaping the intended benefits.
In January, I focused on the first key principle: Centering. The center, in my opinion, also known as your core or your powerhouse, is more than just crucial to your development—it is the foundation of Pilates. The center includes your abdominals, obliques, hips, lumbar muscles, and glutes.
Not only does engaging your core provide nice looking abdominals, but it also protects your spine, provides balance and stability, and produces proper alignment; it is your center of gravity!
To engage the center properly, you need to draw the ribs in and the navel to your spine while maintaining neutral spine and breathing properly. Next month I’ll delve a bit deeper into Breath, the second key principle, and why it is significant to the Pilates Method. Until next time!