PILATES FOR SPORT

Top Sportsmen and women are now making Pilates an essential part of their fitness regime because it is a great way to improve their chosen skill. Pilates can boost performance, improve technique and keep bodies strong, supple and injury free.

Many sports have their own key patterns of movement which are repeated over and over which can eventually result in muscular imbalances. Less frequently used muscle groups can become weak and ineffective whilst the muscles more often used can become bulky and tight. Pilates focuses on the WHOLE body structure to rebalance muscles and improve postural alignment, whilst building the all important core stability.

‘I do an hour of Pilates a day and fitness-wise I am the best I have been for a long time.’ David Beckham June 2009

RUNNING

'The stronger the core, the more likely you are to hold your form and less likely to get injured.’ Paula Radcliffe, Marathon World Record holder.

Whether you run for fun or are training for a marathon, posture is one of the most important aspects to successful running and is dependent on strong core muscles which Pilates exercises target. As a runner myself I can vouch for the fact that these exercises can make a huge positive difference to posture, technique, balance and stability which in turn leads to a far more efficient running form and less chance of injury.

Evidence that core strength improves your running was revealed in a study published by the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research* where 28 runners with varying abilities were put to the test. After initial evaluation of ground reaction forces, lower- extremity scores and 5,0000m running performance, half participated in a six-week core strength training programme while the other half did not. All runners went through a repeat of the evaluations after the six weeks. The core strength training group increased their running times more over the course of the study than the other group, providing evidence that core strength Pilates training can make you a faster and more efficient runner.

✸Reference: Runner’s World April 2009

GOLF

Tiger Woods, Annika Sorenstam, David Duval and Camilo Villegas will all tell you that Pilates has improved their golf game.

Golf, a 'one-sided' sport, like tennis, stresses one side of the body more than the other, so it’s easy to injure your back. Pilates can prevent this from happening by improving posture. In the game of golf, maintaining proper posture during the swing and follow through reduces the strain on your lower back and shoulders.

Pilates, like golf, is about stability – the ability in the case of golf to hold a position long enough to play through a shot without the body collapsing or twisting.

Pilates, like golf, is about core strength, movement from the centre of the body, flexibility, precise movements and tiny margins – a small improvement in a golfer’s shoulder flexibility, for example, can be the difference between a drive from the tee veering into the rough or going straight onto the green.

The exercises that Joseph Pilates (who was a boxer and gymnast) invented in the 1920s are still the best formula for strengthening all the muscles in the body and using your ‘core’ body for movement. The breathing and concentration that one learns with these exercises also helps your golf game. By practising Pilates you will also increase the strength and rotation of your spine, stretch the mid and upper back, increase the mobility of the shoulder blades and improve pelvic stability – all things needed to improve your golf swing!

Reference: 'The Golfer’s Guide to Pilates’ by Monica Clyde

xx 'The Truth About Pilates' by Zoila Berry

TENNIS

Venus Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati and Martina Navratolova, to name but a few tennis players, are all fans of Pilates. Not only does it improve stamina and agility, but also helps with strength and rotation of the shoulders which adds to the power of the all important serve.

Tennis players need to have flexibility, balance and endurance but like Golf, tennis is a ‘one-sided’ sport. This of course can lead to muscle imbalance and then pain and injury.

Pilates exercises increase core strength which will in turn improve the power of the tennis player’s stroke; Pilates can improve balance which is needed in a game for quick reaction to directional changes and the exercises will increase upper and lower body power and strength for better ball deliverance. The increase in muscular flexibility, leg strength and endurance will lead to excellent form, posture and a really enjoyable and relaxed game of tennis.

‘It helps with a lot of injury prevention. I'd recommend it to anyone.’ Elena Baltacha, British Tennis Player

‘The advanced exercises were some of the toughest exercises I have ever done and I've done every fitness workout imaginable. These stretches and exercises are still in my workout routine.' Pat Cash, Former Wimbledon Singles Tennis Champion

Harriet Angell YOUR TRAINING ANGEL email: harri@trainingangel.co.uk tel: 01628 475270 mob: 07779 410382