And more importantly...why should you care?
You probably didn't sign up to Pilates classes to deepen your proprioceptive awareness, enhance the stability around your glenohumeral joint, or rewire the subconscious firing of musculoskeletal activation, am I right?
You probably signed up to feel more energetic, get more flexible or active generally, be able to reach your toes without so much groaning or get that flatter belly feeling back...so I'm loathed to get too 'pilates-ey'
However, indulge me in a little nerdy Pilates history as I walk you briefly through the 6 Pilates principles, and how you can use them the squeeze the most juice out of your Pilates practice...and life.
What are the Pilates principles?
The original six principles are concentration, control, centre, flow, precision and breathing. I have read that Jospeh Pilates (the guy who invented the movement practice) didn't actually come up with them. Rather, it was his students who used them subsequently to kind of summarise the key 'things' that the Pilates technique encapsulates.
Alrighty, I won't take tons of your time I promise
Here's a run down of those 6 - the original idea behind them, and how I believe they are relevant to today's Pilates practitioners, or indeed any human to be honest...
1 Breathing
Chances are you're doing this right now, you little Pilates expert you 😉
If you've ever been in a Pilates class you'll know that as well as the actual movement cue ie 'move your arm here' it will probably be accompanied with a breath cue ie 'breathe in to prepare as you move here, and then deep exhale as you life your head / lower your arm / wrap your leg around your head / balance in a headstand / do the splits etc (jokes)
JP studied all sorts of ancient and diverse philosophies and movement practices and felt very strong about the integration of breath work in his practice. To be honest, I think he was ahead of his time with the sharp rise in awareness of breath work in modern times. Have you seen the work of Wim Hoff and good ol' Gwinny Paltrow for example?
Despite the fact that it's a subconscious movement 99% of the time, when activated and controlled in a very conscious way it can affect posture, muscle activation, toxin and metabolism functionality, and even altered states of mind and stress management.
In Kore Pilates classes I predominantly use it to make the use of the abdominal muscles as effective as possible, to deepen the connection between mind, body & movement, and to try and confuse my students as much as possible obvs 'did you say breathe in or out there Sarah?!' 😅
To be truthful, this is an area I would like to really delve into more in my studying and learning because I find it endlessly fascinating.
Watch out more breath work practices in future kore classes!
What you can do with this principle:
- Look into breath work as part of your every day life
- Don't get hung up in breathing 'right' in class, your teacher will cue it when it's important
- Take a deep breath right now with the intention to reset and release tension
“Above all, learn how to breathe correctly.”
- Joseph Pilates
2. Concentration
If you made it through that waffly section on breathing and you're still reading this blog, you must be concenting on it to a certain extent. You are a veritable Pilates guru now!
Unlike something like running where you can jog along fairly automatically and let your mind wander, the nature of Pilates' specific movements and often subtle muscle activation and/or level of coordination required, quite simply means you have to concentrate on what you're doing.
It's essentially mindfulness.
Oh hello another modern buzz word, funny that...
It's one (of the MANY) reasons why I love practising it myself so much. I warmly welcome the opportunity to think about trying to 'tuck my pelvis', 'squeeze my leg a little higher', 'ouch that's burning' and 'hold that bit still' for an hour instead of 'what can I feed my daughter other than fish fingers again', 'I need to send that email to so-and-so' and 'car needs a service.'
It takes at least a good handful of sessions for the mind to start re-wiring and recognising how things are feeling different in the body. Through repetition and practice these new postures and way of moving become second-nature (huzzah!) but until then it takes a lot of concentration to break free of years of postural habits.
What you can do with this principle:
- Set an intention at the beginning of class to be present and mindful with each movement
- Think about where else in your day you can apply mindfulness
- Concentrate / be mindful of your posture (did ya just sit up a lil straighter??)
''Concentrate on the correct movement each time you exercise, lest you do them improperly and thus lose all vital benefits.” - Joseph Pilates
3. Centre
Literally, your centre. The centre of your physical body - the rectangle between your shoulders and hips. In Pilates, as in some comtemporary dance practices (for any fellow danceerrrsss amongst the crowds of 4 ppl reading this) this centre is often referred to as the powerhouse.
This is where a lot of the core (kore 😏) muscles are found which stabilise your trunk: the muscles of the back, surrounding your spine, the deep abdominals which wrap around your middle and the superficial abs which look good on Thor but also more functionally enable flexion of the trunk.
This powerhouse of strength and stability is what a large proportion of Pilates is based on, as anyone half way through an intense lil abs section of any class will quickly confirm.
In short: strengthen the core for a solid foundation of support + increase flexibility of the limbs & joints for mobility = whole body synergy.
What you can do with this principle:
- Research / ask your teacher about the core muscles in class
- Do your pelvic floor exercises (looking at you mamas)
- How else can you live your life from your centre / heart?
“A man is as young as his spinal column.” Jospeh Pilates
4. Precision
Half way there, you're doing great hunny...
Right, bear with on this one because I have some thoughts but it's a nuanced point to try and dance around...
Traditionally, originally, for big man Joe; precision was an absolute cornerstone of Pilates. It's arguably what sets it apart from other movement modalities. I agree, that to achieve certain results there is a level of precision which should be attained in order to either achieve the desired outcome at all, or at least to make it as effective as possible.
Let me give an example: someone is doing a spine curl (glute bridge) - ideally in tradish Pilates, we'd want a clear sequential curling of the spine, ribcage closed in, no tension in the shoulders, a perfectly hip-distance aligned parallel position of the knees and a relaxed. smile on your face.
Now, if you're smashing it, rolling through those spine curls easily and doing them on one leg whilst doing a cross-word you better believe that I'm giving you all of those cues and looking for the precision of technique.
I personally take a slightly more free-flowing, experimental and person-by-person approach to this principle.
If you're new to Pilates, there's a bit of tension in your shoulders for the first few, your ribs are slightly flared and your knees are 1mm wider than the 'should be' - dya know what? Just go for it babe, roll through a few sets, get used to it. As long as your glutes and hamstrings are doing some work, your challenging yourself in a safe way and your mind is in like full Pilates-zone I'm happy.
For me it's weighing up the usefulness (is that the right word?) of 'precision.'
What stage are you at, will dropping your gate 1mm dramatically effect the efficiency of the movement or just overwhelm you with things to think about?
It might be a slightly more laxidasical approach than most Pilates teachers, but I maintain my broad stroke philosophy of 'hey we're moving' that's frickin' awesome!'
Movement, experimentation, getting to know your body, getting moving, getting strong, working the heart-rate up and enjoying the process will always come before precision for me.
What you can do with this principle:
- What in your life needs precision, or letting go of precision?
- If you're working on a new Pilates move, focus on one aspect and do it really well, then build the next one
- Take movements (and heck, life!) slower and with more awareness
5. Control
Did you know that Pilates originally was called 'contrology'? Which shows how much the principle of control was so central to the technique!
This one kind of goes hand in hand with precision and control to be fair, so rally hammering home those points. Pilates believed that well executed movements done with control were far more effective than 'poorly executed' flinging yourself around - I don't think he used those words but the sentiment is the same.
Despite the fact the at he was talking physically, controlling your body, and using your body to smoothly control the pulleys and springs of the Pilates equipment - he was also referring to control of your mind, and probably life.
“Contrology is not a system of haphazard exercises designed to produce only bulging muscles.” - Joseph Pilates
Pilates once said “Contrology was conceived to limber and stretch muscles and ligaments so that your body will be as supple as that of a cat, not muscular like a brewery-truck horse or professional weightlifter you so much admire at the circus”
It was always about holistic health, over aesthetic or superficial gains.
What you can do with this principle:
- What in your life needs control, or letting go of control?
- Next time you perform a Pilates movement, how can you execute it with the upmost control?
- Congratulate yourself for taking control of your health & wellbeing.
6. Flow
My fave principle 🤗
Stay with me, we've almost made it through this journey together! You can have a cuppa tea after I promise.
Again, the dancer in me loves this one - I love the idea that on a physical level, the Pilates exercises are designed to oil your joints, creak out ya bones, stretch the tight bits and strengthen the weaker bits so that untimely, we can flow and glide through daily life with more freedom and fluidity.
Aahhh feels freeing just to think of it doesn't it?
(Nestle down for storytime)
I had a recent conversation with a chap who has been doing Pilates for some years, and was explaining the sometimes subtle but hugely impactful effect it has had. 'Look at my gait' he proudly said as he took long fluid marches around the room we were in. It was awesome. He explained how he does a lot of hiking and he has noticed through his regular Pilates sessions how it has enabled his stride to open up - making his hiking feel so much free-er and more effortless. Love that for him.
As well as this, Pilates teachers totally get off on talking about the 'class flow' - that is programming the sequence of exercises in a class to flow through the different positions, and even effort-levels to create a succinct journey through a class. I try and experiment with this a little, but nerdy actually love this, creating more intense bursts, peaks, ebbs and flows through little sequences, and trying to make the transitions of sections as seamless as possible.
What can you do with this principle?
- Experiment with making your cup of tea with fluidity. (what the ehll is she talking about) What movement are your body flowing through subconsciously, how can you add a flow to the sequence of movements - that's all Pilates is after all.
- Next time you walk, can you imagine doing it with flow - easy gliding movements?
- Like a kore class: is there a way to programme flow into your routines to make them sequentially less choppy & jarring?
Legend! You made it through that longer-than-intended romp through the 6 main Pilates principles:
1 Breathing
2 Concentration
3 Centre
4 Precision
5 Control
6 Flow
So, in some ways I think getting 'hung up' and bound to the original principles too tightly can be a little out-dated, I do still think with a fresh perspective there is a lot of benefit to having these 6 cornerstones to shape your Pilates journey. I hope it was in some way interesting and has given you some food for thought to apply to your next class, or indeed throughout your day.
With love & warmth
Sarah
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