I am safe!! November 28, 2008

Hello everyone,

 

Sorry to greet you with the terrible news in Mumbai it has caused shock here.  Please put your hands together in prayer for the lost and injured souls and for the souls still in turmoil admist the situation that is happening.

 

I, however am safe in a small town called Mandrem in north Goa.  The experience of 4 hours practice, 2 hours Reiki and 2 hours Meditation each day in the beautiful beach side shala is, well, I’m speechless………..words cannot describe.  It is an emotional time with lots of wonderful energy and healing people.

 

I hope that you are all safe and well back home, I do miss you all and wish you could all be here.

 

I have put the 7th Principle of Pilates up – Flowing movements, please home practice, even if just 5 minutes a day on breathing.

 

Love and light

Lucy

x

The Eight Principles of Pilates – No 7: Flowing Movements November 28, 2008

FLOWING MOVEMENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 In Pilates we make natural movements but concentrate on performing them correctly. 

 

The movements are graceful (Men – don’t be afraid to be graceful!).  The postures are performed slowly, lengthening away from the strong centre so we can concentrate on control, strength and correct alignment.

 

We DO NOT twist into awkward positions or strain, If you feel that you do in some postures please do the alternatives I offer (maybe dropping down a level), we should never feel stressed during a class.  If the alternative still causes you problems just stop and rest, we should all move at our own pace in the class, listening to the timing of our own breath.

 

So next time you are practicing enjoy the flow of the movement, visualise the shapes your bodies are making, point the toes, straighten the legs and take pride in your graceful bodies (men included!).

Last week of classes until January ‘09 November 19, 2008

Hello,

 

The programme below is just a rough copy of the class we did last Wednesday night and we have done it on Friday lunchtime too.  I hope you understand it, if you want to ask any questions or comment please do so. 

 

Remember also that this week is the last week of classes at Onneley House, Bearwood Baptist Church, Quinborne Community Centre and Birmingham Buddhist Centre.  All being well I will start the classes again on Monday 5th January 2009.

 

Enjoy your Christmas and the weather, oh……..and don’t eat too many mince pies!

 

I’m going to miss you all,

Lucy

 

Neck and Shoulders Programme November 19, 2008

The Eight Principles of Pilates – No 6: Co-ordination November 14, 2008

CO-ORDINATION

 

 

This is where it gets complicated!!  We have mastered lateral breathing; we have aligned ourselves correctly and created a strong centre.  Now we need to learn how to add movement while keeping a strong centre.

 

This is not easy at the start, but persevere.  The more you practice the body will remember what to do, it becomes part of your ‘muscle memory’.  The brain remembers sequences of movements so we need to keep ourselves aligned to use the body correctly.

 

Practicing how to keep a strong centre whilst moving is great for mental and physical training – kind of like rubbing your tummy whilst patting your head!

 

We normally start with smaller movements and build up to more complicated ones.  We use the legs and arms as resistance and load (instead of weights).

 

Repeating good patterns of movements will aid us change the way we move for the better.

 

The Eight Principles of Pilates – No 5: Centring November 6, 2008

CENTRING

 

 

 

 

 

By hollowing the stomach – bringing the navel towards the spine – we activate the central core muscles, namely: transverse abdominals (TA), Multifidus (deep back muscle) and the Pelvic Floor.  When these muscles engage they form a natural corset if you like, together they make a strong centre by which we are able to move safely and keep the back protected.

 

The action of ‘navel to spine’ starts with the pelvic floor and then the lower abdominals engage.

 

The best way to do this is:

 

1. As you breathe out, draw up the muscles of the pelvic floor and hollow the lower abdominals back to the spine.

 

1. Sometimes described as ‘Zip up and hollow’.  Imagine you are wearing tight jeans, use the inner core muscles to pull the tummy back so you can do the jeans up!

 

It is important not to grip the muscles too tightly as this will cause tension, try to ‘hollow’ the abdomen instead of gripping.

 

As a general rule these stabilising core muscles should only be held at 30% of their maximum.  A good way to visualise this is to imagine you have a lift inside you, you can bring the lift (pelvic floor) right up to the 10^th floor and then lower it down to about the third floor (inside of you!) and this is 30% contraction of the core muscles.

 

Once you have a strong centre you can add movements like extension, rotation (twisting) and flexion (bending forwards).

 

The core of the body is not only our stability centre; it is also our energy (chi) centre.  So a strong centre is good for our whole wellbeing and vitality.

Holiday November 2, 2008

Hello everyone,

 

For those of you that don’t know, I am going away on retreat on the 21^st November until the 20^th December.

 

I know this is inconvenient for you all and I apologise, I will be putting the final four principles of Pilates up on the site and a few basic programmes that you can do at home whilst I am away.

 

I will be giving out ‘Golden Tickets’ in the classes in the next three weeks (NOT Cocksmoors Woods), these will give you money off when you return to the class in the New Year or a free session where the terms and conditions apply.

 

I am going on a Yoga, Pilates, Meditation and Reiki retreat in Goa, so I will be full of fresh inspiration, skills and light to share with you on my return.

 

All classes are running as normal up until the 21^st November

 

There will be no classes during the period of 21^st Nov to the 5^th January (due to the Christmas / New Year weeks).

 

See you all next week, kind regards,

Lucy