Hello world!

Pilates is a low-impact exercise that focuses on strengthening your core. Joseph Pilates, a German gymnast, developed a series of exercises. These helped injured soldiers rehabilitate while they were bedridden. Pilates is concerned with six principles: breathing, centering, concentration, control, flow, and precision. Pilates exercises require you to concentrate on each movement and focus on your core.

Today, pilates classes feature specific sets of exercises - which can be adapted to your own level - to improve core stability and encourage better posture, strength, mobility, and flexibility. Classes in our Exhale 4017 studio for example might include the Mat, Reformer, Wunda chair, and other various pieces of equipment such as stability balls, resistance bands, arcs, and the foam Roller. We love a good foam roll - sometimes a little ouchie but full of delicious benefits, especially for runners! Save that for another time.

Firstly, it will make you a better runner. A study in 2018 explored how Pilates training can help runners through targeted strength training. The results show how Pilates training is beneficial for trained runners in improving performance. Stability and core strength are essential for an efficient running technique and to help you avoid injury.

Regular Pilates training helps strengthen your core and stabilize your pelvis, feet, and ankles - just some essential components that help you to avoid injury. For some of us this is essential because running can trigger or cause many injuries or pain - hip, knee, lower back, ankle, shoulder, calf… oh the list can go on - but does it need to?

If you think about it as a runner - a slight imbalance in the body can go on to create problems because it’s such a repetitive movement. For example, ideally, there is enough strength in the medial quad as in the lateral quad to make sure that the knee joint is functioning in the most efficient way it can.

Without balanced muscles and physical symmetry, runners may be prone to overuse injuries. When a muscle is weak, or an aspect of the body or movement is asymmetrical, the body will find a way to compensate, which is going to cause more stress on the structures, and on the soft tissues of the body, which can result in pain or sometimes more traumatic injuries. Sometimes the tiniest adjustment and improvement in your posture or in your core stability can make a huge impact to help improve the imbalance.

If you’re a runner but aren’t convinced how Pilates can help you, then read on to find out more about the benefits of Pilates for runners.

As runners, staying healthy is one of the hardest parts of training. If we think of common running niggles: lateral hip pain, runners knee, back pain, shin splints, and foot/ankle overuse injuries, often as Pilates movement specialists we see the common thread between these is a lack of central connection, ie: the core and the pelvis. I am yet to find a runner who has not taken to core strength training like a fish to water and benefitted from adding regular sessions to their weekly regime.

Pilates exercises help runners increase their core strength and have better breath control. They also enhance balance and improve posture, which helps prevent injuries.

At Exhale 4017, we offer a variety of Pilates classes. You can view our list of class types here.