Building inner strength….at Inner Strength Pilates!
Looking to improve your stride and time? Pilates is invaluable when incorporated into a runners’ fitness regimen!
There are six principles of Pilates—concentration, centering, control, breathing, precision and flow—and they all apply to running. When a runner learns how to engage their powerhouse, and allow motion to originate from it, they will increase lung capacity, run faster, with more efficiency, with control and with less risk of injury. Working from the core, inside out, Pilates helps to build a solid platform of inner strength. It provides a stable foundation which in turn supports the running muscles, and Pilates does all this without putting additional stress on your joints. We work to engage the proper firing pattern of the muscles and strengthen that pattern to develop muscular balance. With a stronger core, increased stamina will naturally follow. By strengthening the muscles of the abdomen, pelvis and back, runners will experience better endurance, especially important for those long distance runs. Over the past 27 years, you wouldn’t believe the number of terrific runners that I have met who are unable to touch their toes! I educate them to learn the correlation between their flexibility and their rate of injury.
Pilates offers the opportunity to build functional strength through an increased range of motion. When dealing with set-backs in your training program, we utilize our Egoscue Method Postural Alignment Therapy. The runner is evaluated with pictures and functional testing to determine where imbalances are occurring, and is then placed on a menu of exercises to correct the compensating patterns of movement, thereby eliminating pain.
Common running injuries typically stem from:
- tight, weak hips
- an overworked but weak gluteal complex
- weak, improperly trained abdominals
- weak leg stabilizers
A series of visits with our Certified Egoscue Method Postural Therapist, Amy Dixon, will get you back on the road! Professional runner Donnie Cowart, has this to say about his experiences with Pilates & Egoscue Therapy at Inner Strength Pilates….. “I have been a competitive runner for the past 13 years. Recently competing in 2012 Olympic Trials where I placed 4th in my event. Throughout college I realized there were imbalances in my body that I was unsure of how to fix. After college I was in search of new ways to strengthen my body, increase flexibility, and allow me to stay healthy in my demanding sport. I stumbled upon Pilates and right away saw benefits in flexibility and strengthening of key muscle groups. In recent months I have added Egoscue Therapy to my routine and it has proven to be the missing puzzle piece to allowing me to finally get my body restored to a balanced state. In the past, I often battled chronic low back pain, stiffness in my hips and glutes; which all lead to other issues. Now that I perform Egoscue Therapy on a daily basis my low back pain has subsided because my hips are in balance and work properly. I now have better range of motion, flexibility, strength, and fewer aches and pains. Inner Strength Pilates knowledge and guidance has allowed me to be a better athlete day after day!”
