Week 4 - Focused on Pilates

I’ve enjoyed the Yoga and Tai Chi portions of the Bodyflow class I am attending, but have struggled to motivate myself to excel in the Pilates portion. For me, Pilates is a lot more physically enduring compared to Yoga and Tai Chi. The Pilates music tracks are fast paced and the moves are sequenced to the fast paced music. This causes me to be more physically exhausted after we finish the Pilates portion of the class. I also feel like the majority of Pilates moves we do in class are focused on the abs. I decided to take an hour-long Pilates class with one of my friends in order to fine tune and accommodate my Pilates skills.

I really learned a lot about breathing in Pilates during this class. I am able to focus on my breathing for Yoga and Tai Chi because the movements are a lot slower than Pilates. I realized that when I got to the Pilates portion of the class, the music and moves were so quick and fast paced that I forget to pay attention to my breathing. My lack of knowledge transfer could have been the reason that I was really struggling with Pilates.

The Pilates class I attended only had 1 other person in it besides myself and my friend. All 3 of us were beginners and the instructor took the time to explain each movement and answer any questions we had. She told us that steady breathing between the movements is so important because it allows the muscles to contract faster and perform more efficiently. Our instructor focused on moves that worked our legs, stomach areas, and upper back. The instructor asked us which areas we liked and didn’t like in Pilates and also what we struggled with the most. She showed us how to keep our core (stomach area) strong as we moved throughout different Pilates moves. She indicated that by having a strong core and strengthen that core, we will be able to breathe and move throughout the poses better. I really felt that this instructor was able to really help me strengthen component skills like my breathing and strong core to better perform various Pilates movements.

Reflecting back on the Pilates class I attended and the reading by Ambrose on How Students Develop Mastery, I realized what an expert the instructor was in teaching Pilates. She was able to instantly see how we struggled in different poses, and took the time to stop and fine tune our individual poses and issues we had. She was excellent in identifying foundational component knowledge we would need in order to be successful with the movement. Later that week, I went back to Bodyflow class and applied the knowledge I had learned from the Pilates instructor, and I actually found myself in a flow-like state of mind. I instantly remembered to concentrate on my breathing and core while carrying out the Pilates movements. I had a much easier time with the Pilates portion of the Bodyflow class after attending the Pilates class.

This is my favorite move the Pilates instructor taught me. It’s called the Mermaid. It incorporates balance, breathing and focuses on working the lower back and lateral sides of the abs.