The Benefits of Pilates in Spine Care

We all know that participating in regular exercise provides numerous benefits from reducing the risk of developing diabetes to improving strength and mobility. With a plethora of exercise programs to choose from, why would one choose Pilates?

Pilates works from muscles deeper within the body toward the outside muscle groups. By working from the inside out, you develop a greater understanding of the body. Smaller muscle groups come into use, and you begin to discover muscles you never knew you had. The Pilates method also helps you develop a control that is useful for performing a range of movements- from the simplest, such as walking up a flight of stairs, to the most complex, such as lifting an awkward loadfrom a difficult position without straining your back, shoulders or other muscles.

Pilates is a mind-body centering technique that emphasizes the importance of beginning movement to form a central core of stability. Pilates is a safe, no-impact exercise routine that stretches and strengthens all the major muscle groups in a logical sequence, without neglecting the smaller, weaker muscles. It is taught in two categories, matwork and machine based work. Both are taught in many formats and are tailor-made for individuals following an assessment. Matwork consists of 34 original Pilates exercises performed on the “mat” that are designed to promote core stability, flexibility, endurance, postural and body awareness and to correct muscle imbalances. Machine based Pilates takes the concepts of matwork into spring loaded resistance machines.

Pilates is based on the following eight principles:

1. Breathing

2. Concentration

3. Control

4. Centering

5. Precision

6. Flow

7. Integrated isolation

8. Routine/Repetition

The repertoire of APPI Pilates exercises focuses to improve spinal mobility, flexibility of the key trunk and lower limb muscles groups, body awareness and postural awareness. Thus, allowing me to incorporate Pilates as a form of physical therapy for patients that I am seeing whom suffer back and neck pain. Roughly five years ago, I started my Pilates journey by taking classes and courses to educate myself about the process. Pilates is more than an exercise routine for me. It is a way of moving throughout the day. For more information about the NH NeuroSpine Institute’s use of Pilates, please call us at (603) 472-8888.

Nicole Feinauer, PTA
New Hampshire NeuroSpine Institute