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[Y18]Yoga And Pilates Equipment

by Pilates Editor, Pil

The Pilates Method, also known as Pilates or Pilates Exercises, is a physical fitness method developed by Joseph Pilates in the early 20th century.
Joseph Pilates sometimes referred to these exercises as Contrology, or to put it simply, the way through which one learns to use the mind to control the muscles in the body.
The Pilates Method focuses on the core postural muscles that keep the body balanced and provide support to the spine. The Pilates Method also involves the learning of awareness of breath and alignment of the spine. It focuses on strengthening of the torso muscles that are important to ease and prevent back pain.
Pilates equipment used for training is interesting if it is nothing else. You will come across names like Reformer and Cadillac. There are several types of Pilates equipment and props that can be used during Pilates training.
The Reformer was the first Pilates equipment to come into use when Joseph Pilates was interned in England during the First World War. During that time he spent a lot of time training people from Scotland Yard and at the same time helping with the rehabilitation of bed ridden patients that were suffering from the 1918 influenza epidemic.
The Reformer is made of a series of springs attached to a sliding platform. The whole thing is supported by a frame. With a little imagination it can start resembling a rowing machine. The platform can be moved by either pulling the pulleys or by pushing on the foot bar. When you are on the Reformer, the platform is moving and maintaining balance can become difficult but that is where the exercising of the muscles comes into play. There are many exercises that can be performed on the Reformer.
Another popular Pilate's equipment is the Cadillac. Due to its appearance the Cadillac can give people mental images of medieval torture racks. Please be assured that it is completely safe. The Cadillac consists of a platform with posts on all four corners. It is somewhat like a bed with the corner posts providing various levers and pullets that provide support as well as resistance during your Pilates workout.

Since the time of Joseph Pilates, more than 80 separate exercises have evolved and all of these can be performed on the Cadillac. Each of these 80 exercises focuses on a specific group of muscles in the body. A lot of exercises focus on the development of the body's core strength in the abdomen.
A note of caution with regard to Pilate's equipment and exercise: Do not use either without a thorough demonstration from an experience Pilate's exerciser.

Check out http://www.pilates-class.com for more info.

The reformer is probably the most popular Pilates Equipment; it is used by a lot of Pilates practitioners, and can be seen on almost every Pilates Studio in the world. It is basically a sliding carriage that has foot bars, jump boards, leg and arm pulleys. These features allow the exerciser to work on different parts of the body with the same machine.

There are two types of reformers, spring reformers and gravity reformers. A spring Pilates equipment reformer, makes use of springs for resistance, it is usually used while lying on the back and pulling with your arms or pushing with your legs. The Gravity reformer has the same concept of push and pull, but instead of springs, it makes use of the person’s own weight. The person is diagonal in position in order for the gravity to pull down on him/her, creating the resistance needed for the exercise.

Cadillac

The second type of Pilates equipment is the Cadillac or the trapeze table. This Pilates equipment looks like a cage, without the bars though, just the frames, and attached along the bars are springs, straps, and extra bars that are used for several types of exercises. For example, for the legs, you can lie down facing the opposite direction of the strap that you are going to use, and then putting the strap around your leg, you pull it down, and the resistance goes through your thighs and calves. Another way to use a Cadillac is to sit down, this time facing the strap that you are to use, and then holding the strap in your hands pull on it while simultaneously lying down, then sit back up again, this works on your abdomen.

Wunda Chair

One other Pilates equipment is the Wunda chair, which looks like a bench only slightly higher; it has two bars on each side with spring attached to it. One exercise that can be done is to push on the bars while standing or sitting on the bench, or standing or sitting on the floor.

Pilates has a series of mat exercises that improve certain parts of the body, therefore, the Pilates Mat, is definitely a must have Pilates equipment. Mat exercises are usually taught as to groups. These exercises focus mostly on the trunk and hip, to strengthen then, and on the spine and hips again for flexibility. The mat, is probably the least expensive of Pilates equipment, and it is also the most limited, the amt is basically for back protection and doesn’t offer any form of resistance for the user, but still mat exercises are very good ones, especially for those on a budget.

These are only few of the most common exercise equipment that you may see in a Pilates studio, there are however, other equipment that you might be able to use at home, like barrels, Pilates balls, and Pilates rings, these are however, not part of the original Pilates equipment that Joseph Pilates designed initially, but rather a derivation and application of the different Pilates techniques from other types of exercises.

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