Guides
Pilates Off the Mat
In this week’s blog post, we will be learning how to incorporate the principles of pilates into our lives, off the mat, thanks to Charlotte Rosen. Charlotte holds a BA in Dance and Psychology from Connecticut College. She is a comprehensively certified Peak Pilates instructor, Balance Barre Teacher Trainer, and Responsive Classroom Educator. She has been in dance education, fitness, and professional dance performance for the last 15 years and enjoys witnessing the transformative power of community, movement, and positivity with her students and colleagues. She will be sharing how you can incorporate pilates into your life, off the mat with the six principles of pilates!
Growing up, I did not have religion. No set of guidelines on how to best live my life. Then one day, it clicked. I was reading up on the Principles of Pilates as I prepared for my first teacher exam and I had an epiphany. The Pilates Principles that I had been physically and mentally focusing on are the same Principles and tenants I strive to bring into my daily life. As we remain cooped up inside during Quarantine, I will share some insight on how to bring some of these Pilates Principles out of your body and into your daily living.
Principles of Pilates:
Control
Breath
Concentration
Centering
Flow
Precision
Let’s talk about control.
Pilates is the art of controlled and intentional movement. In fact, Joseph Pilates called his method contrology when he was still alive (1883-1967, yes pilates has survived and thrived for over 100+ years!). Feeling in control of our body, our movement, our mind, and our agendas makes us feel safe and empowered. However, this quarantine has unearthed a complete lack of control that may leave many of us feeling powerless. But the truth is, we actually are never fully in control. Accepting a certain lack of control and predictability in life is the first step toward embracing this particularly challenging season. While we can not control the external factors and happenings of our outside world, there is a space within us that we do have control over. This space is our mind and our habits. The more you finetune your own routine and habits in your daily life that serve you in a positive way, the healthier your headspace will be. For me, this means turning my phone on airplane mode an hour before bedtime and starting my day on my own terms through reading, journaling, and meditation. A commitment to this routine gives me some semblance of control and simultaneously helps me curate my day in a way that is less focused on work and productivity and more focused on creating a place for space, peace, reflection, and growth. Take a moment and think about some of the first things you do in the morning. These habits mark the rest of your day and you are in control of it, so curate it by design. Be intentional. Don’t just let the scroll of instagram or flash of media news fill you up. When we focus on what we can control, we open space in our life and take back some of the power that may be lacking for you right now.
I am going to start my mornings with these feel good moments:
- ___________________________________________________________
- ___________________________________________________________
- ___________________________________________________________
Inhale 2, 3, 4, 5
Exhale 2, 3, 4, 5
Breathing. In Pilates, we use the exhale when things are strenuous. I encourage you to do the same thing off your mat. Breathing may seem easy and routine, so why should we focus on it? The average human takes 23,040 breaths a day. That’s a ton! How many of these are we actually mindful of? Probably very few. When we bring our attention to our breath it shakes us into the present moment. When we come to the present moment, we can not be inundated with fear and anxiety that overthinking the past or future tends to evoke. Recently, my boyfriend brought to my attention that I actually hold my breath anytime I send a message, write a post on instagram, or try to explain something. Once I started noticing this, I also noticed that holding in my breath also caused me to unnecessarily tighten and grip other muscles in my body. When we tighten and hold our breath, we create a message of stress and instability in our body. Deep breathing downregulates our sympathetic nervous system, which helps us to be at ease. As an experiment, try setting your timer for every hour on the hour. When this reminder comes in, engage in the following 4×4 breathing exercise.
4×4 breathing exercise.
Inhale for 4 counts
Hold the breath for 4 counts
Exhale for 4 counts
Hold the breath for 4 counts
Repeat 4 times.
Take note of how you feel before and after this breathing exercise. Give this a try one time, and you’ll be hooked! There is simply no denying how much better we can feel when we take a deep mindful breath. So go ahead, take a breath and enjoy the soothing benefits. As Pilates teaches us, the breath helps us overcome challenges in the mind and the body. We could all use this reminder, now, more than ever.
Concentration
Concentration is a key Principle of Pilates that really refers to the mindset you bring into your workout. If you are struggling with concentration right now, dear reader, you are not alone! I have two hands up right now waving in the air that I have difficulty concentrating in this heightened time of unknowing and stuck at homeness. This is exacerbated by all of the amazing online offerings that feel like they are pulling me in a million directions. Right now, so much is accessible at our fingertips. We have apps on our phone dinging and reminding us of zoom calls, google meets, slack notifications, instagram updates and the like. My phone is like a distraction vortex ready to wreak havoc on my productivity at any moment. In my house, my boyfriend and I have a saying, “no half work,” and it is written in huge letters on our shared calendar. Half work looks like start a big task, check your email, do more of your task, accept a facetime from your sister, re-direct back toward task, post on your instagram story. Does this song sound familiar? I am GUILTY as charged. Right there with you. Half work is the habit of weaving in and out of a focused task. It’s not optimal to say the least. Combat half work habits by creating a list of what you would like to accomplish in time sensitive order in the morning. Focus on the top of your list and see the task as best you can all the way through. Then, give yourself an actual break. Go on a walk, have a snack, do some gentle stretching. Allowing yourself a proper break will allow you to focus on the task when you return and it may even bring in some new creative ideas. If you can have a single pointed focus on just one task without interruption, you will find your day to be more efficient and enjoyable. When we try to do everything at once and let our phones distract us from the task, the task automatically drags on well past the point of what is necessary and then becomes a joy and energy sucker. #nohalfwork Write it somewhere loud, proud, and prominent as a reminder!
Centering
In Pilates, we have an unshakeable belief that proper movement emanates for your core. The core is also known as your power house, Pilates scoop, c curve, abdominals ect. In my everyday life, centering means affirmations. Affirmations are “I” statements that serve as positive and intentional reminders of who you are at your core or who you hope to be. These affirmations can help serve as a guide and anchor, especially when fear, anxiety, insecurity or inferiority come knocking at the door.
2 affirmations that I currently have on repeat are:
- I am a caring human
- I can do hard things
These affirmations center me and guide my day, especially when it gets tough. These two reminders are what help me to not rush through a seemingly endless “to do,” list. It serves as a quick reminder to give my all to my tasks, which actually makes it more enjoyable. When I remind myself that I can do hard things, it’s like having an internal cheerleader that lets me look for plan b, plan c, or plan d when my initial plan is not enactable. My life was completely flipped upside down when the lock down hit, as all of our lives were. This has left all of us facing unpredictable and maybe undesirable tasks. When I remind myself of my affirmations; I can do hard things and I am a caring human, it helps carry me through the icky shit that I have no desire to deal with. I also remind myself that some people are praying for the situation I have. To be able to sit down and share these insights with you from the comfort of a warm home is an absolute luxury. But still, we are all facing challenges and new unexpected tasks that pose a hardship on some level for us all. To arm yourself with strong mental tools, try writing your own affirmations.
“I am…………….”
“I can………..….”
“I will……….……”
Go with the Flow
Flow and natural continuation of movement is a key principle of Pilates. Right now, going with the flow is particularly funky and hard. There are no ifs, hows, or what’s about it. Finding your flow in the face of 24/7 cohabitation, transferring your special gifts or business online, becoming an at home school teacher, figuring out the puzzle of safe grocery store shopping, or trying to stay connected to family and friends from afar is an all time challenge. However, I’ve been trying to look at these challenges and interruptions as opportunities. They are opportunities to expand your skill set, opportunities to practice better communication with the loved ones you are sharing space with, an opportunity to find new ways to connect with those you love and those you serve, an opportunity to practice extra compassion to yourself and others. There is also an opportunity to let go. Let go of the idea that you have to be the best or perfect or totally evolved version of yourself right now. We are in a global pandemic and crisis, it would be robotic of you to not be affected and shifted as a result. Part of bringing flow into your life during this time is looking at hardships with a new perspective AND giving yourself the grace and humility to try and fail, and try and fail again. For example, my first few zoom Barre and Pilates classes that I taught were a far cry from the quality I expect and demand of myself in an in person setting. And that’s okay! I told my students it would be better next time. And I allowed myself the space and time to build a new muscle, the muscle of virtual teaching which is totally new for me. Let yourself be new at something and see that learning curve as a sign of strength, not weakness. I recently had a conversation with a friend who was distraught at not meeting her own expectations for an online class. Remind yourself, you are doing the best you can in a new and very challenging environment. Bringing back affirmations into your life through writing or visualization and practicing reframing are great ways to help you feel more in the flow of things.
A challenge I am facing:______________________________________________
How I can reframe the challenge as an opportunity: _________________________________
Precision
Precision is one of my favorite Principles of Pilates and it relates to executing the exercise clearly and with specificity. In quarantine, you may have found yourself with additional free time. Shout out to all of our health heroes, first responders, and restaurant/grocery store/pharmacy employees who do not have this luxury right now. We are forever indebted to you. If you are finding yourself with free time, you may be asking what do I do with this? My recommendation would be to actually look backwards to see how you may want to move forward with precision. As one of my favorite coaches Dave Hollis says, “In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to.” How can you look back at the constant hum bug of the rat race life style many of us were engaging with pre covid and carve out maybe a different design for your life moving forward? Who and what really matters to you? How can you work smarter not harder? I know that while being at home in isolation can be a total drag, it is also cozy. If you are enjoying this contrast, how can you invite more coziness into your life moving forward? When I take a look backwards, I see that I am a big dreamer but a small follow througher (is that a word?). Having some extra time has allowed me to examine this discrepancy and work to take small everyday actions toward specific goals. Right now, your eyes are reading a small part of one of my goals; write more and finish your book! While my book is still in the creation phase, this article is a positive step in the write direction (pun intended). Even saying it outloud, is one step closer in that direction. Now, it’s your turn.
Bringing precision into my life moving forward looks like : _______________________
I hope that looking at Pilates Principles off the mat will serve you as you navigate your life now and in the future. Maybe start by picking one Principle and focusing on it for one week, next week try another and see how it goes! Try it and report back, @charlottemadeleinerosen. If you have any questions or comments please feel free to reach out: charlottepilates@gmail.com.
Workout with me here !
If you are not in the south shore area of Boston, check out this post which highlights some amazing studios in Boston that also incorporate the principles of pilates into their classes!
Excellent article, Charlotte! I’ve been thinking of a lot of these points lately and you did a beautiful job of writing it out all in one place! Thank you 😊