Help - Pilates question

kirdyq
kirdyq Posts: 165 Member
edited January 28 in Fitness and Exercise
I did a beginners pilates mat workout for the first time last night. I figured I'd be sore today, but I'm not. I'm worried maybe I did it wrong - I thought my abs and legs would be sore. But, I've started running a few weeks ago as well (and I was terribly sore when I started that), so maybe that has limbered me up a bit and is the reason I"m not sore?

I just don't want to be doing it wrong - it was moderately challenging for me when I did it. Mostly in the legs. I really thought that I'd be feeling the burn more in the abs though, and I did not. Maybe I'm not engaging the core? The instructor was saying, if it's easy you're doing it wrong. I didn't feel that it was easy - I had to use the modifications. But, I didn't feel like I was just going to die, either.

I would really appreciate some advice - I don't want to do this routine for weeks, only to find I've received no benefit from it b/c I am doing it wrong. Any pilates gurus out there????

Replies

  • zytah
    zytah Posts: 153 Member
    Beginner myself. I found it to be too easy day 1 but I was doing it wrong. They keep telling you to suck your belly button to your spine so your core is engaged. I find myself letting it go more than half the time. When I realized i let go and sucked it back in, boy did that burn!
  • jbruced
    jbruced Posts: 210 Member
    The modified positions may not have challenged your muscles enough at this point. Like zytah mentioned you may not be engaging the core muscles properly; I have a problem with that as well, but I figure its because I am just learning now and haven't mastered the techniques yet.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    Maybe you alluded to it ..... you might be a beginner only in a sense that you are learning pilates. Maybe you are not a beginner in a fitness level sense..... OR

    Pilates does take awhile to learn; you really need to focus on your muscles & breath as you are doing it... the breath helps engage the core (for me anyway) ... not an expert, but I do enjoy pilates.

    When I started pilates, my focus was not "complete" ..... I couldn't hold my core still .... my hips & shoulders moved when they should have been still. It took some doing before my "form" was there.

    Some instructors are better than others in pointing out form ..... you might try a different video, maybe you don't click with the instructor. Winsor and Stott are usually good for form ..... but really slow..... after you learn it, you will want to move on... maybe check your library. I find the 10 Minute Solution ones just move too fast for a beginner .... really hard to grasp everything all at once, but I do like the intermediate ones. My first 2 DVDs were:

    Pilates for Dummies: http://www.collagevideo.com/workout-video/pilates-for-dummies-9444
    Pilates Body Band Workout: http://www.collagevideo.com/workout-video/pilates-body-band-workout-9257
  • asugar
    asugar Posts: 178 Member
    was this a class or on your own with a video? A trained teacher makes a big difference.
  • ShengHuo
    ShengHuo Posts: 42 Member
    Also just because you aren't sore doesn't mean it won't help! When I started running (all of the times, haha), I would be sore for a few days, then it would fade. I was working just as hard, was able to run faster, run further, and could tell that my leg muscles were stronger, even though I was no longer getting sore. Even if you aren't getting sore, it will still help with toning and strengthening.
  • kirdyq
    kirdyq Posts: 165 Member
    This was a video at home. Try as I might, I can find NO pilates classes in my area. It's very disappointing to me. I wish, wish, wish that a fitness studio around here had pilates during a lunch hour. Or even yoga. I think either would be a perfect lunch time exercise. Of the yoga offered around here, everything is mid-morning or evening...bah!

    I am having a hard time knowing if I'm sucking in my belly button. Do you know you are doing it when you kind of tighten your muscles in that area?

    I do know that I am moving parts of my body that I should not be. I figure that the more I do that, hopefully the better control I will have? There is a separate 12 minute workout on the dvd from the super beginner level 20 minute workout. The 12 minute workout uses the beginner exercises, but faster and more fluid. I just sat and watched it last night, and definitely one of the things I noticed and was amazed by was how the trunk part of her body was just so so still as she moved her arms and legs. I am wobbly.
  • kirdyq
    kirdyq Posts: 165 Member
    I also think that I have a hard time "engaging" the core area and breathing as I'm supposed to. I think that maybe I kinda hold my breath a little when I"m engaging, making it hard to breathe as you are supposed to?

    I hope that I can get better at pilates!
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