The Six Principles Of Pilates - Centring
Centre. Core. Inner strength.
Something we all aim to work on but sometimes it can feel like a minefield. Am I doing it right? Have I found that inner core connection? What does that even feel like? Will I ever get it?
Let me take you through a practice…
Take a seat, sitting upright with your back straight. Breath in, breath out. Breath in through your nose, out through your mouth. Breath in deeply, now breath out ALL the air. Completely empty your lungs. Notice the changes that makes to your abdomen, your belly, your back, your waist. Now breath in the same, and as you exhale all the air again think about lifting your pelvic floor (think holding in a wee). Now place you hand on your belly. Breath in but send it to your ribcage and try not to let your belly move. As you exhale feel what happens with your belly, it moves away from your hand drawing towards your spine, now also lift your pelvic floor and imagine drawing your inner muscles up towards your ribs to feel a length internally in your abdomen. Continue for 4 more deep breaths and see if you can deepen that connection each time, imagine a corset that is getting gradually tighter around your middle. Feel not only the abdominals engaging but the subsequent core muscles of the back, sides and pelvic floor.
That is your core activating. Now in order to work on centring we add movement, we challenge the body to move whilst also keeping that core connection.
In every Pilates exercise there is a moving part and a stable part. We focus on maintaining stability, for instance in the pelvis, whilst we move another area, such as the leg.
This is where the challenge comes in, we must find our centre in order to maintain this stability. This is why we add breath patterns to exercises to help us get those deep core muscles engaged, and strengthened, just like the practice above breathing out helps us to draw those core muscles in like the corset tightening around our middle.
In time you will begin to notice increased strength, you may feel a little taller, and will notice more control over your movements. You have found your centre!
“When all the muscles are properly developed, you will, as a matter of course, perform your work with minimum effort and maximum pleasure”