You should understand that primary cause of back pain lays in the structural imbalances of the body and Pilates reformer exercises effectively deal with that. The state of health of the back is affected by factors like improper posture, pelvic instability and general lack of awareness of your own body. These are the issues that Pilates exercise mat help overcome and improve the state of back.
Pilates Helps Correct Posture
Pilates concentrate on the alignment of different parts of human body. When we say alignment, we are referring to good posture. Good posture is a way of life decided by the body’s capacity to align its parts effectively as per the ever changing requirements. Improper alignment causes uneven strain on the skeleton, especially the spine. Undertaking of beginner pilates exercises, keeping alignment in focus, help to make uniform use of muscle and development, and facilitate body movement, the natural way.
For instance, one of the most common improper postures that people tend to have is to either tuck or tilt the pelvis. Both position cause weakness on one side of the body and more than usual pressure on the other, thus denying the spine the support of its natural curves, and that sets in a chain reaction of aches and pains starting from the spine that may go all the way up to the neck. Doing Pilates helps to have an improved awareness of proper positioning of the spine and pelvis, and builds inner strength required for supporting the natural curves of the spine. This is referred to as a neutral spine and it has helped many people to bring their backs to better state of health.
Pilates Develops Core Strength
Good posture, not just confined to one’s appearance, demands core strength for keeping the different parts aligned. Having core strength implies that all the muscles of the trunk of your body remain sturdy, supple, and work in harmony to support and keep the spine steady.
Core strength goes beyond the big surface muscles that we often tend to include like those of the trunk of the body, the rectus abdominis that controls the tilt of the pelvis and curvature of the lower spine, the infamous 6-pack abs muscle or the striking big muscles of the back, like the lattisimus dorsi, the broadest muscle of the back, popularly called “the lats.” The core muscles also include the muscles below the surface musculature.
Whereas most forms of exercise focus on strengthening the big surface muscles, Pilates so trains the body that all of the core muscles work in unison to support and stabilize the back. Developing core strength necessarily involves training the body in such a manner that it understands when to release and activate its core muscles.
Some of these not so obvious but very important core muscles include the muscles of the pelvic floor; the psoas, which play an immensely important role in keeping us upright or while bending our hips; the transversospinalis- a group of small muscles on either side of the back, the combined action of which causes rotation and extension of the vertebral column; and the transverse and oblique abdominal muscles. The diaphragm, our principal breathing muscle, is right in the middle of the core. All of these muscles play crucial roles in supporting the spine and maintaining its stability.
Pilates Promotes Flexibility
A healthy spine is capable of curving forward and backward, twisting, and moving from side to side. With developed core strength the back muscles get trained to work in harmony with the abdominal muscles and thus provide defensive support to the spine enabling it to have an increased range of motion. Pilates exercises can easily be modified, allowing us to develop spinal flexibility at our own tempo. This feature of Pilates makes it easy for people with back pain to work with.
Pilates Increases Body Awareness
Irrespective of its being caused as a consequence of some physical injury, or as is usually the case, the result of improper posture while standing or moving, back pain is a clear signal that demands us to be more attentive to the ways we handle our bodies.
And, The Pilates is a full attention exercise. You can’t do Pilates unless you become exceedingly aware of your alignment and the power you bring to movement.
Practicing this kind of awareness is of great help to people with back pain because Pilates while helping improved physical functioning, also increases awareness, and goes beyond the physical and mental holding patterns that back pain may cause. As a result, there is enough room in one’s whole being for a positive change.
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