Six Benefits of Pilates Exercises

Pilates is the exercise of choice for gymnasts, dancers and a large number of famous Hollywood celebrities, being firmly entrenched in the mainstream society. So why is Pilates so popular?

The incredible popularity of Pilates is linked to the fact that it provides its faithful practitioners with benefits that you simply can't get through traditional strength and aerobic training formats.
The top 6 benefits Pilates training does offer includes:

1. Pilates Strengthens Your Stabilizer Muscles

One of the many benefits you can achieve through correct use of Pilates exercises is the ability to increase the strength of your stabilizer muscles that cannot easily be worked on in a standard exercise program.

Since Pilates does make use of graceful and fluid movements, it can be a great way to get a better sense of the kinesthetic of your body. By doing Pilates over a prolonged time, it will help provide your body with a better sense of balance regardless of the position you are in.

2. Become a Muscle Man

Pilates helps you achieve a ripped lean look without the bulky muscles, while still retaining all the strength. Would you like to build strength and endurance without looking like a bodybuilder? If so, Pilates may be just what you have been searching for.

There's a reason that Pilates is the exercise of choice for gymnasts and professional dancers. Most conventional workouts tend to create bulky muscle. Why is this? In most workouts, the emphasis is placed on repetition and building strong muscles.

Repetition causes already strong muscles to get even stronger and bigger. Pilates does not rely on frequent repetition, therefore you don’t get stuck with overgrown muscles. Pilates focuses on the whole body, not just on sections of muscles.

3. Strengthens Your Core like No Other Exercise

Another main benefits Pilates offers is the ability to increased the amount of strength one can achieve in the ‘core' of the body. The term core refers to the muscles in and around the area of the abdominal muscles and the lower back.

Proper breathing control is also stressed in Pilates, adding to the numerous list of benefits that one can gain through regular use of the exercise program.

4. Strengthens Your Whole Body With A Mind-Body Workout

Pilates engages the mind and enhances your body awareness. Just like tai-chi, yoga, and most martial arts, Pilates is not just a workout for your body. Joseph H. Pilates (founder of Pilates) studied yoga, martial arts, and other ancient mind-body techniques and included a strong philosophical foundation into the practice of Pilates.

Pilates helps improve your mind and spirit while toning your body. The smooth, precise and flowing movements of Pilates are designed to make you more mindful of your body.

Breath movement is also emphasized to put you in touch with how your breath moves through your body. It has also been demonstrated that Pilates does actually help reduce anxiety, stress, and helps lift the spirit of depression sufferers. The mind-body connection is fundamental to the study and practice of Pilates.

5. Become More Efficient With Your Body

Pilates does also help you understand how to become more efficient with your body. Very few exercises can help your body become as efficient in its movement.

Why such importance on efficiency? Being efficient means that your body moves in a way, that is safer, smoother, and less prone to injury. By practicing Pilates on a regular basis, you can train your body more to move in a much safer and more efficient manner.

6. Prevents You from Future Injuries

Last but not least, Pilates strengthens your body while helping the prevention of future injuries. Pilates helps condition your whole body, not just certain muscles. This in turn helps balance the muscle and strengthens your body. Since no set of muscles is ever over or under trained, there is less risk for injury. The body becomes more fluid and supple, protecting against injury.

Other Benefits of Pilates

• Restore postural alignment.
• Reduce stress, relieve tension, and boost energy through deep stretching.
• Tone and build long, lean muscles without bulk.
• Create a stronger, more flexible spine.
• Heighten neuromuscular coordination.
• Increase joint range of motion.
• Enhance mobility, agility and stamina.
• Improve circulation.
• Improve the way your body looks and feels.
• Offer relief from back pain and joint stress.
• Correct over-training of muscle groups which can lead to stress and injury.
• Compliment sports training and develop functional fitness for daily life activity.