Archive for the ‘Holistic fitness’ Category
Posted by Body thinker on December 1, 2008
by Dr. Martha Eddy
“Just found your site. I am a long time Rebirther and recently began teaching a
“Breathing for Relaxation” class at a senior center. There are 8 men and 2 women, all in their 80’s! I distributed a copy of our respiratory system so that we could track how physiologically our breathing works. Then as we talked about chest and belly breathing, one man has a most intersted question
which I am on a quest to give an informed answer. I hope you can help me.
“Where does the air go when we breath in and out of the belly
because the air has to go into the lungs?”
Great question and I need help with an accurate answer. Thanks much for any information.”
from a comment
Dr. Martha Eddy (Dr. Move): It sounds like you are providing a great service at the center.
In response to your students question - “Where does the air go when we breath in and out of the belly because the air has to go into the lungs?”:
The belly and lungs interact in breathing because of the movement of the diaphragm – the horizontal, dome-shaped muscle that separates the abdomen from the chest since its attaches to the bottom of each of the ribs all the way around from the back of the body to the front arched region of the solar plexus.
The breathing (oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange) only really happens in the lungs
(and in the cells of the body)
but it is the movement of the diaphragm downward into the abdominal region
that causes a vacuum in the chest to “inspire” an inward breath.
This movement of the plunger action of the diaphragm can cause the belly to protrude – “stick out” and is commonly referred to as “belly breathing.” The upward relaxation of the diaphramatic muscle helps to push the air out of the lungs! When this happens the stomach flattens a bit.
The other day an elderly colleague of mine advised a group of us during a photo shoot moment to “Hold your stomach in. Take a deep breath.”. I said that’s a bit of a contradiction since generally the belly bulges out when we breathe in deeply.
However its actually great to learn how to activate the abdominal muscles AND breathe deeply. We call this three-dimensional breathing. It is what actually happens anatomically. Our teacher physical therapist Irmgard Bartenieff knew her anatomy and also was trained in the 3-D use of space for all human movement through a system called Laban Movement Analysis.
3D breathing is simply allowing the diaphragm to move downward to begin the inhale AND being aware that this plunger action happens throughout the full cylinder shape of our torso. It presses down evenly in the front, back and sides of our abdominal region. So if we engage our deep abdominals for better posture the movement of the diaphragm will EVENLY move our abdomen down and out. The result will be that not only our “belly breathes” but our lower back gets a massage from the movement into that area. This is important. So much back pain can be relieved by 3D breathing into all directions of the torso. It helps posture, keeps muscles balanced, and increases our respiratory capacity (more oxygen).
People trained as CMAs – Certified Movement Analysts in your area can help teach this. There is nothing like learning through direct experience with a teacher demonstrating and giving you physical cues.
I hope you find this useful, and pleasurable! Keep asking your great questions.
Posted in Holistic fitness, Pilates, Professional Teacher tips, core strengthening, transverse abdominals, wellness | Tagged: breathing, Certified Laban Movement Anaylst, CMA, diaphragm, Irmgard Bartenieff, lungs, Pilates | 4 Comments »
Posted by Body thinker on November 26, 2008
by Lesley Powell
With running a business, trying to relocate it and dealing with today’s headlines, it is a stressful time. It is a stressful time for all with the threats of layoffs, the world economy and the changes that are happening.
I am thankful to have movement to help destress me. We all need moments to refocus our minds away from the stress. For me, the movement practices of Pilates, yoga and somatics help me find ease in my body and my mind.
Even me as a professional movement teacher, I do better of focusing when I am in class. The teacher helps me focus on their lesson plans and my body’s sensations. I also once a week go to a drawing class. I call this my therapy. This therapy takes me to a total different side of my brain.
Group classes are great and affordable ways to destress, share with others, learn and feel great. I hope that everyone can find a way to free their mind to destress.
Posted in Holistic fitness, Pilates, realpeoplepilates | Tagged: bodymind, creativity, meditation, Pilates, somatics, stress | 2 Comments »
Posted by Body thinker on September 20, 2008
by Lesley Powell
Agony of DE-feet
“Have any of you worked with anyone who has had a proximal big toe joint fused due to arthritis? Any experience? opinions? I would imagine it would be an issue for gait – she limps a bit now.
My friend’s surgeon is recommending this since acupuncture and physical therapy haven’t worked. He said there could be a bit of a limp… She’s not a client of mine – i’ve worked with her a few times and she experiences temporary relief but doesn’t do any management herself so she’s looking for a permanent fix…” Pilates Teacher
When a client has arthritis/bunion at the big toe, the joint no longer flexes. It is painful to flex at this joint. So they will have to change their gait to adapt to this. Most probably they will have to turn out at the foot. This allows the foot to come easier through when walking.
With one of my client with a bunion, her walk was more of a shuffle. Because of the inability to push through the foot, this is one way the client develops less hamstring and gluteal strength. The hamstrings and gluteals are also necessary for standing on one leg. She never got well on her legs which is called “midstance” in gait.
Since the client is not doing a proper pelvic shift over the standing leg, they will shuffle or limp. I worked a lot on teaching the client to do a better thigh lift 
to transfer the leg from back to front. This will mean still training the legs especially psoas, quadripceps, hamstrings and gluteals. Training the feet is still essential for grounding forces and alignment of the standing leg.
Psoas: thigh lifts, single leg stretch, double leg stretch, reverse kneeling abdominals on reformer, leg springs/straps to train psoas (lie opposite direction than usual training)
Quadriceps: footwork on reformer and wunda chair, sitting on physioball- bouncing, single leg lifts, squats
Hamstrings & gluteals: leg springs/straps. Bridging especially in neutral, Pilates shoulder bridge with one leg lift, standing using wunda chair, Pilates Upright
Other great exercises: single leg kick, double leg kick, quadriped with opposite leg and arm, quadriped with flexing knee in with flexed back and extending leg and back, swan
Feet: small releves to their comfort zone, footwork with toes curled over foot bar, theraband to strengthen plantar flexion (pointing foot at metatarsal joint and full foot plantar flexion, ankle circles
Posted in Conditioning, Holistic fitness, Pilates, Post-rehabilitation, Professional Teacher tips, Rehabilitation fitness, injuries, wellness | Tagged: bunions, foot problems, gait, Pilates, standing, walking | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on September 4, 2008
by Lesley Powell
Pilates is more than getting into shape and looking better. Of course, Pilates will change your posture through developing your core muscles with your entire body. Many clients claim that clothes fit different with Pilates. Pilates trains your muscles to hold your posture well. When you slump, your clothes hang poorly. As you improve your posture, you will look better.
Pilates invites into your body lifelong habits of wellness and vitality. When we are young, we think only about our appearance. We take for granted our youth. Pilates will teach you how to keep your body flexible and strong. This is the essence of youth. Most of our adult lives, our movements become less. When you do not move fully, the body tightens up. Pilates takes all of your joints to a fuller range of motion. Every movement of Pilates invites ease of motion, flexibility and strength. Part of the problem of getting old is stiffness and weakness. Pilates will keep a spring in your step.
Pilates is a movement meditation. Pilates trains your mind. By centering your mind on the gift of your body, you will learn stress-free techniques. By focusing on the essence of life; breath and the feelings of the body moving, teaches you how to control your mind.
Pilates is a full mindbody technique that changes your body and your mind. Pilates teaches you how to control your mind and your body to new visions of vitality, wellness and health. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all found the true gift of our lives: our bodies and mind, instead of superficial gifts of consumerism.
Posted in Holistic fitness, Pilates, abdominals, wellness | Tagged: abdominials, meditation, Pilates, posture, wellness | 1 Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on August 24, 2008
By Lesley Powell
“I feel frustrated at the aerobics-type mat class experience where everyone is doing the same work, and no one is really ‘doing’ the Pilates Method. Eve Gentry said you can know every Pilates exercise and still not know Pilates. I agree completely.
In my mat classes I educate. My students are not in my class for a ‘work out’ they are there to learn how to do and deepen the Pilates Method on their own. My goal is always helping my students be able to understand the Method well enough in their own unique bodies that they can go to any class and have a good experience, or do it on their own.
I sometimes have students grouch at me that they want to go faster in the work, but I politely point out this is a practice, something to cultivate over a life time, and not to rush into, as they are best off creating good movement patterns from the beginning, and not have to reset poor patterns later.” Pilates Teacher
It is hard to get people to slow down, get conscious and think about their bodies. Many people think hard work in exercise is about speed and a burn. We have an expression about those people as “A+++” personalities.
Sometimes to teach humility, one needs to teach an exercise beyond their capacity. Safely of course! Then you reteach the importance of the slow building blocks to get to this point. We also have to teach concentration and patience.
On the other hand, I can understand the fusion classes as a business incentive. With so many pilates mat classes out there, how do you built a class and make it different and appealing to clients. I do not have the answer. I have talked with many Pilates owners throughout the world about their businesses. Many are dropping the mat classes, because they are not making money. The competition from the gyms and their ability to have cheap classes as part as their membership has changed our business. The ironic thing is the mat work is much harder than the machines. The machines can give the client information how to initiate into the more difficult exercises for example the “rollover” vs the “short spine”.
As a woman going into menopause and weight gain, I have to find a way to get aerobics in. I tried running, but the injuries from dancing, my knees and my SI can’t handle it. At the studio, we have come up with a fusion class Pilates: Heart & Core. We start out with a mat with legs springs and props. It starts out slow with the building the core. Then we end with a very simple aerobic bouncing on the balls still using the Pilates concepts. I can’t tell you how great I feel. Many aerobics classes whack my body out. The workout with the reconnecting to core support and strengthening the legs gives me a safe aerobic workout.
How many people are not exercising because they get hurt. I think that there is a place to teach how to connect to Pilates principles in our movement loves. It still needs the foundation of the practice and its detailed connections. I find many people do a great Pilates workout and not know how to connect it to their lives.
Posted in Conditioning, Holistic fitness, Personal training Certification, Pilates, Professional Teacher tips, abdominals, back pain relief, core strengthening, knee injuries | Tagged: aerobics, fusion classes, joseph pilates, menopause, Personal training Certification, Pilates, pilates mat, weight gain | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on August 17, 2008
by Lesley Powell
Between my career as a dancer, health reasons and menopause, my psoas has tighten up a lot. I have been doing a lot of work with constructive rest, exercises from Painfree by Paul Escoque and visualization while I move about my Iliospsoas. Another great resource about the psoas is The Psoas Book by Liz Koch and Pelvic Power by Eric Franklin.
I have come to realized that I am tightening my psoas while I am exercising. This is not functional, but a bad habit. I try to visualize the length of my psoas from the attachment to the lesser trocanter to the front of the lower thoracic spine. I work with imagery to feel the space of the illacus to soften and shape to the back of the pelvis. As I am able to connect to a new length and space of the iliospsoas, it is like a reflex for me that the abdominals hollow deeper.
Experiment with finding ways to release the psoas. Sometimes stretching it, tightens the psoas for me. Even training the psoas properly can get me to release the muscles better.
Posted in Holistic fitness, Pilates, Post-rehabilitation, Professional Teacher tips, abdominals, back pain relief, injuries, posture, wellness | Tagged: Franklin Method, iliopsoas, Pilates | 1 Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on July 7, 2008
By Lesley Powell
There has been controversy about warm-ups. Some say warm-ups are not necessary and not injury preventive. I think that it depends on what the warm-up is for. What do you want to warm-up?
A lot of dancers make the mistake of stretching their hamstrings as their warm-up. Over-stretching a muscle can release it and kick the function needed for moving.
For me, a warm-up is getting the joints and the muscles moving in preparation for larger and more demanding movement and/or workout. Especially as I have gotten older, I feel stiff. Moving my spine gently in different planes is my first goal. A Warmup should increase muscles and body temperature as well as blood supply.
My warm-up is simple, not advanced movement. It could include:
- Cat & Camel
- Side bending
- Rotation
Then there is improvement of mobilization of the joints:
- Hip joints
- Shoulders & neck
- Ankles & feet.
It is also a time of developing concentration and bringing back the mind-body connection. The warm-up prepares me to clearing my mind, increasing focus through imagery. For me, since I have some problems with knees and SI, bringing back better function is key. This is also a time of bringing in specific exercises for your movment love to improve function. It can also be a rehearsal of an activity.
Other Great resources for ideas for warm-ups
Hanna Somatics
Bartenieff Fundamentals
Dr. Eric Cobb/ZHealth
Posted in Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), Holistic fitness, Professional Teacher tips, back pain relief, injuries, knee injuries, wellness | Tagged: back discomfort, Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), hanna somatics, Pilates, stiffness, warmups | 1 Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on May 13, 2008
by Lesley Powell
Freeing the shoulderAn article about the shoulder-
Upper and downward rotation of the scapula can be a confusing anatomical term.
The term is about the placement of shoulder blade on the ribs in movement. Upper rotation is the healthy movement of the scapula following the lift of the arm in the front sagittal plane. The tip of the scapula will follow the direction of the hand moving up in space. The inferior border of the scapula (the lower tip of the shoulder blade) moves forward to the armpits and then up around to the front ribs. Downward rotation of the shoulder blade follows the movement of the arm sagittal back in extension of the shoulder. The superior border of the scapula moves up over the shoulder when the arm extends backwards.
HUMERUS-SCAPULA PUSHUP
To start
- Lie prone with a foam roll or a prop (bolster, blocks, books, etc.) under your thighbones.
- Your weight is on your forearms parallel with the humerus bone right under your shoulder socket. If you have a tendency to use your Lats too much, place the elbow slightly in front of your shoulders.
The movement
- Allow the shoulder blades to come together. You will feel slumped. Keep your head in line with your spine. Remember this is about the scapula moving not the spine.
- Press down on the forearms. Feel how the lateral border of each scapula revolves around the armpit towards your front ribs. The tip of your scapula moves towards your elbow. Observe how the clavicle is rolling over your shoulder. The length between your armpit and hips remain the same.
- Repeat three more sets
Observation
- Were you able to maintain your spine in neutral as your scapulae gliding together and apart? Did the clavicle remain wide the entire time? Were the ribs under the clavicle and the armpit remain the same distance apart?
Level II Scapula – full extension of the arm
The movement
- With weight on your parallel forearms, Allow the shoulder blades to come together maintaining a good head-tail connection
- Press the forearms into the floor. Feel the tips of each of your shoulder blades reach to your elbows. The space between your scapulas is wide with your spine in neutral.
- Lift your elbows off the floor while maintaining the stability of the scapula on the ribs. Keep the reaching of the connection of the tips of the shoulder blades to the elbow. You want to feel a line of reach from the tip of your scapula to your elbow to the hand. This is the hand scapula relationship.
- (Optional – if you were able to maintain the upper rotation of the scapula with straightening your arms, try this) Lift of your right hand off the floor by reaching the tip of the scapula more in upper rotation. Both shoulder blades should remain wide on the back ribs.
- Place your right hand back to the floor. Maintain the shoulder blades adhering gently around the ribs.
- Repeat to the other side.
Observation
As you improved the scapular connection, did you feel how it changed the length of your ribs? How did your ribs changed when you fully extended the elbow?
Posted in Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), Conditioning, Holistic fitness, Professional Teacher tips, Rehabilitation fitness, shoulders, wellness | Tagged: arm work, hand-scapula, shoulders, strengthening, tense shoulders | 1 Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on May 4, 2008
by Lesley Powell
Ohhh the scapula comin around the ribcage.
Ohhh the scapula comin around the ribcage.
Ohhh the scapula comin around the ribcage.
Hee Haw
Freeing the Shoulders to Connect to the Core , an article in Pilates Pro, I go over how the bones of the shoulder girdle move. I always in my lesson plans with clients, am teaching them about their bodies.
“Embodied Anatomy improves function” Eric Franklin
One of the first things that I teach is how the scapula glides. When the scapula moves properly, you will solve many problems why the shoulders are up and tense. You will also improve the connection to the anterior serratus.
The movement
- Begin to raise your left elbow to the ceiling, feel the shoulder blade gliding wider on the ribcage. Gradually rotate the humerus bone outward so the entire left arm bent is now facing the wall in front of you. Reach the left elbow to the ceiling to help abduct the scapula more.
- Glide the scapula in more upper rotation and gently increase the outer rotation of the humerus bone to bring the left elbow over your head. The arm stays in the same plane as the scapula and gradually rotates more outward. For most, this will bring your elbow in front of your ears. (To get the elbow in line with the torso, one has to improve the mobility and the mechanics of the scapula).
- As if you were running the film backwards, return the arm back to your hip paying attention to the gradual rotation of the arm and the scapula. When the arm returns to the hip, the arm is slightly inwardly rotated.
- Repeat 4 more times
- Reverse to the other side and other arm
Now try a full arm circle. Can you initiate the movement from the shoulder blade? If you have a partner, let the partner place their hand on the shoulder blade to assist in its gliding. Do not worry about depressing down right now. See if you can get the tip of your scapula to make a small circle around your ribcage. As the scapula follows the curves of the ribcage, many of the problems of the shoulders can be solved.
Next week: Anterior serratus training.
Posted in Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), Holistic fitness, Post-rehabilitation, Professional Teacher tips, Rehabilitation fitness, injuries, wellness | Tagged: barteniff Fundamentals, hand-scapula, Pilates, shoulder blade, shoulder pain, shoulders, tense shoulders | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Body thinker on April 20, 2008
by Doris Pasteleur and Lesley Powell
Edited by Dr. Martha Eddy
Movement is the shifting of the body’s weight on different surfaces. Different parts of the body may shift on the ground or surface. However the weight shift is the propulsion of the center of the body, the pelvis through space to cause locomotion or a change of levels and locomotion.
Building blocks: A good weight shift is the coordination of the body to (1) ground into the floor (surface) and (2) to move the body in a specific direction in space. Before we can move up, we must have the foundation of down, grounding. Grounding is a basic foundation. Without a foundation, there can be no building. Weight shift involves the coordination of dynamic alignment seen in the sequential leverage of our bones from toe to head, organized by the muscles, and accompanied by the fluids and organs moving in synchrony.
Propulsion: When a person releases his or her own natural body weight into the floor, it helps the brain estimate the amount work needed to coordinate the necessary push off to shift the body into space. Even when pulling a heavy load successfully involves having a person push her or his feet into the ground first. An improper weight shift puts undue pressure on the spine and superficial muscles of the limbs.
Pelvic Shifts: Irmgard Bartenieff divided the concept of weight shift into two building blocks of movement, pelvic shift forward and pelvic shift lateral. Of course this fundamental action includes multiple aspects, for instance the pelvic shift forward includes a pelvic shift back. A healthy gait has elements of both the forward and lateral pelvic shifts.
Weight shifts enable level changes from lying down to sitting to standing. They are the building block for locomotion – traveling across space. There is a constant changing relationship of weight shifts from one body part to another, a dynamic dance.
Posted in Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), BodyMind Centering, Conditioning, Holistic fitness, Professional Teacher tips, gait, standing, walking, wellness | Tagged: Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF), BodyMind Centering, gait, grounding, level changes, moving, standing, walking | Leave a Comment »
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