Joseph Pilates wrote that one's self-confidence and health come from a balanced of body, mind, and spirit—a belief that probably sounds familiar to most yogis. The physical emphasis of Pilates can give yogis a new body awareness about their strengths and weaknesses, help them become more mindful of their limitations, and give them insight into how the body moves. The strength and precision of Pilates balances the freedom of movement of yoga.
In this workshop, we will be learning fun and energetic yoga sequences and then breaking it down with the help of pilates techniques and exercises to learn how to get the maximum result out of our yoga practice.
How can Pilates help my yoga practice?
It can help yogis get stronger, avoid injury, and sometimes advance into poses that they hadn't previously felt were possible. Learning to move from a solid foundation and with a strong connection to our bodies enables us to move through life with greater comfort and ease. Pilates can help yogis build a stable center, lengthen the side body, and increase awareness of alignment. Pilates helps yogis slow down and work deeper.
As yoga poses get more advanced, rather than just breathing into them, you start to use your core, which gives you endurance and a center from which to grow. Over time, this greater awareness of your center can help you integrate movement between the front and back body, which comes in handy especially in inversions, arm balances and in backbends.
How does Pilates work?
The exercises in pilates helps connect to muscles we've never used before. Our larger muscles like to do all the work, but Pilates helps us focus on and connect with the smaller, more intrinsic muscles.If the center is not realized or strengthened, then the structure is weak and the energy is not being channeled properly.
Because Pilates focuses on balancing the musculature, it helps create symmetry between the left and right sides of the body. By working both sides simultaneously, you're able to compare the strength of both sides and work them equally. That's the goal.
