“You will develop muscular power with corresponding endurance, ability to perform arduos duties, to play strenuous games, to walk, run or travel for long distances without undue body fatique or mental strain.”
~ Joseph Pilates
Pilates trains you to be in control of your body and your mind.
The benefits of Pilates for athletes are multiply. It promotes stamina, flexibility, concentration, control of body movements, coordination and the three dimensional breathing increases lung capacity and flow of oxygen to the bloodstream and muscles; all of which is fundamental to athletes who wish to improve their performance and technique and do their very best.
Pilates works for the inside out, focusing on the deep postural muscles – the local stabilisers. These muscles are primary in maintaining stability of the joints and therefore training these muscles will help to avoid injury. Athletes tend to be strong through bigger global muscles ( such as hip flexors and hamstrings) and weaker in the local stabilising muscles( such as rotator cuff and popliteus). Therfore it s important to work all muscles in a balanced way.
Pilates corrects muscle imbalances improving posture and it has been proved that better posture and stability will significantly improve an athletes technique and performance reducing back strain and injury. Pilates is particularly important for those who practise uni-lateral sports such as golf or tennis. These athletes will have more evident muscle imbalances.
Pilates trains us to recruit the correct muscles and in the correct muscle sequence therefore using muscles efficiently. The cleaner an athletes gesture is the more energy they will save which can help them gain seconds on their time.
So coming from the powerhouse ( including muscles from the pelvic floor, transversus abdominus, multifidus and more) the athlete will be able to find their power and transfer it to the extremities. Whether it be the swing of a golfer, , the stroke of a tennis player or swimmer, the kick of the footballer …it starts from the breath, engaging the core igniting the power and transfering it to the extremities with control…it’s a winner!
Pilates gives us more body mind awareness. Athletes will be more aware of their body movements which will also help to prevent injury.
Pilates is also a an excellent form of regeneration, to recuperate after intensive training to lengthen and dynamically stretch muscles.
Many professional and Olympic athletes have incorporated Pilates into their training program, here are a few examples:
Golf – Tiger Woods
Football – Gareth Bale . Real Madrid
Alpine Skiing – Mikaela Shiffrin
Basketball – Dwayne Wade . NBA Miami Heat
Tennis – Maria Sarapova
Surf – Stephanie Gilmore
Swimming – Missy Franklin
Figure Skating – Kristi Yamaguchi
“To achieve the highest accomplishments within the scope of our capabilities in all walks of life, we must constantly strive to acquire strong, healthy bodies and develop our minds to the limit of our ability.”
~ Joseph Pilates