Skip to main content

How do you know if you are working your core too hard?


I am terrible at this.  I am super competitive and very hard on myself.  I always feel that I should be able to do the hardest level and the maximum amount of repetitions. But experience, training and an excellent tutor has shown me that Pilates should not be like that.  It is better to have a deep connection with your body, tuning in to how you are feeling on a particular day at an exact moment.  The way to go is building a strong core through listen to your body, learning good technique and understanding which muscles you should be feeling. 

So how do you really know if you are working your core too hard?  

  • Firstly being able to hold your neutral spine throughout an exercise is a great sign that you are working at the right level.  As soon as you can't keep your core engagement and neutral spine for all stages of an exercise you are probably working too hard.  
  • Can you feel your tummy doming?  Another sign that you are working too hard.  
  • If you can feel your tummy doming you might be getting a little pain in your lumbar spine.  Another sign things are a bit too hard.  When I am teaching I often have to remind clients to slow the movement down.  Flow, precision and control are some of the fundamental elements of Pilates.  
  • It can often be easier to make a movement faster using a little momentum, however often a slower precise movement gives you a higher quality of exercise. So my forth watch point is don't move too fast. (Although, I love rolling like a ball).  
  • My final watch point is holding your breath.  If you find yourself holding your breath whilst completing an exercise, its probably a bit hard.  It is always better to breath.  Breathing patterns can help with core engagement, but breathing differently to what is being directed is preferable over holding your breath.  Some very respected teachers are moving away from prescribed breathing patterns and letting the individual choose a breathing pattern that works for them.

What can you do to improve? Spend some time getting to know your body.  Listen to how you are feeling throughout an exercise.  Throw away any preconceptions of how strong you are or what you should be able to achieve.  When you are in your class be really present with your body and the instructions, there is nothing else that is important. Start at level 1 and be really sure that you have perfected all elements of the movement before progressing.  As part of my personnel practice I sometimes go right back to basics and complete level 1 classes, focusing on technique.  Am I engaging my core without squeezing my bottom (I am terrible for that), have I nailed the breathing? (I am quite good at holding my breath, at times), can I feel the muscles that are working?  Finally, am I only moving the parts of my body that should be moving? I am very good at shrugging my shoulders up when doing some tricky leg work.  I know my shoulders are not going to help, but it just happens.  

Remember to enjoy your practice, be aware of your body and don't be too ambitious.  

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When I stretch my hip flexor muscles I feel it in the front of my thighs. Is this right?

 The short answer is yes!  In my first post I talked about the movement of hip flexion and listed the hip flexors.  We have already covered the iliopsoas the main flexor of the hip.  Today I am going to talk about the rectus femoris muscle which also assist with hip flexion.  The rectus femoris is the large muscles at the front of your upper thigh.  If you sit down with a tray on your lap, the tray would be resting on your rectus femoris. It is part of the quadriceps, four muscles on the front of the leg between the pelvis and the knee. Rectus femoris is the only quadricep that reaches over the hip joint as it originates on the front of the pelvis.   In class I often reference your ASIS ( A nterior S uperior I lliac S pine), you have two and they are the nobly bones you can feel through your skin at the front of your pelvis.  Well you also have two  AIIS ( A nterior I nferior I lliac S pine) this is another nobly part of the pelvic bon...
Post a Comment
Read more

What is my rotator cuff?

 We all have two rotator cuffs which are very important to our shoulder operation, one inside each shoulder.  Your rotator cuff is made of four muscles that provide joint security (I love this term, a tiny little police force living in your shoulder making sure that the glenohumeral (shoulder) joint remains functioning).   Why does your shoulder need a police force?  Well the ball and socket joint of the shoulder is a bit rubbish (and also very good *).  It is not like a caravan and car ball and socket joint where you have a deep strong connection (a bit like the hip).  It is more like a scallop shell and a stick with a bulbus end. It fits ok, but really needs lots of tape and string to keep it together.  Your rotator cuff muscles are the police, the tape and the string that hold this amazing joint together.   The next part is only for reading if you are super interested in the names and actions of the muscles.  The four muscles of ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pilates key principles: Control

 In Pilates we aim to maintain a high level of control over the movements that we make.  As you will have completed some Pilates with me, you will be aware that a small angle change in leg positioning or increased stability through the pelvis can suddenly increase the intensity of an exercise.  When thinking about control it is very closely related to precision and you could say that these key principles come hand in hand.  You will find that control is improved once you have made multiple attempts at an exercise.  Muscles will increase in strength and your muscles will remember the movement of an exercise.  Therefore when taking part in a class, stay at a level where you can maintain control.   If you work at too high a level you will find it harder to master the control of position and movement and then perfect the exercise.  When we have control over a movement we are also able to make the movement using only the muscles connected with tha...
Post a Comment
Read more