Singing to the Core
Posted by Lesley Powell on December 15, 2008 · 2 Comments
by Lesley Powell
I have been talking with some of my teachers who are also singers. Amongst some singing teachers, pilates is not recommended. A lot has to do with past training about locking the ribs down to solve the problem of hyperextended ribs.
The great change in Pilates and knowledge about the body is the importance of the movement of the diaphragm. As in our past post, we talked about how the diaphragm moves 3 dimensionally within our torso in a healthy person. There is a real inter-relationship between the diaphragm, the pelvic floor and the transverse abdominus.
Using sound is a great way to get in touch with the breath and discover the quality of your breathing. Many systems like Yoga’s OM inspire the deep breathing necessary for core support and freedom of the spine. Irmgard Bartenieff used our Western vowels, a,e,i, o, u, to get students conscious of their breath.
At the PMA conference this November, Kathy Grant had us do roll downs reciting our full names, addresesses with phone numbers and then whistling. By having your clients speak as they move, will force them to breath. You can not talk and not breath.
Using sound is a great way for students to become aware of their breath. Deep breathing will create a sound with resonance. Poor breathing makes the sound strained and coming from tension of mouth and throat.
When the breath is not moving 3 dimensionally, you will see sometimes the client moving the spine with breath. Usually the pattern is they hyperextend the ribs on the inhale and compress the ribs down on the exhale.
One of my favorite images of breath is from the Franklin Method. See the breath spiral down to the pelvic floor on the inhale and spiral up on the exhale. Think of the breath going up and down like a spiral staircase or spiral straw.
The cue in dance and Pilates, that closes the ribs, does not connect us to our deep core muscles. In many ways, that cue creates more problems in the organization of the spine and shoulders especially in standing. Finding full breath in all positions; supine, prone, quadriped, sitting and standing, will enhance how you use your core muscles.
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Filed under abdominals, Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), Conditioning, core strengthening, pelvic floor, Post-rehabilitation, Professional Teacher tips, transverse abdominals, Uncategorized, Yoga · Tagged with A-linkPilates, abdominals, bartenieff Fundamentals, core support, joseph pilates, pelvic floor, pilates mat, singing, teaching, transverse abdominus, Yoga
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As a trained Stott Pilates Instructor I am wondering if you fully understand the Pilates breathing technique. We teach breathing in through the nose and out through pursed lips. Breathing 3 dimentionally like an Accordion deep into the lower lobes of the lunges. As you exhale this fires the pelvic floor and deep abnominal muscles, both theTransverses and Obliques.
I did like the Franklin Method imagery though.
This is one technique for breath. If you visit other body therapies, they have wonderful techniques of opening breath and movement. Not all clients work well with this technique. I like to teach breath also in application to their lives. Pursing the lips on exhale is not what we do everyday.
If you look at yoga, there is incredible information about breath. Years ago at Movements Afoot, I had a teacher from the Middendorf technique. We would sometimes do a breath exercise that would change the quality of movement. Other times a movement exercise would change how we breathe. I felt so incredible with these classes.