Combat Stress with Pilates

by Michelle Howard Smith

Pilates is a form of exercise that improves your flexibility and mental well being and strengthens your muscles.  The basic premise behind Pilates is that the mind and body are somehow connected and when you improve the condition of your body, you also improve the condition of your mind.  When the mind is in good condition, it is well prepared to fight off stress.  Pilates is a good form of body conditioning that can help alleviate stress.  It's sort of a combination of yoga and martial arts.  When doing Pilates, it's important to remember to breathe, focus on stabilizing your core and concentrate on the individual muscle groups you are working on.  The body serves as its own source of resistance during the exercises.

Since stress causes tension and physical symptoms, actively stretching and toning the body along with deep breathing, stress and tension can be released.  Think about those times when you feel stressed and under pressure.  Your neck and back tends tighten up and ache.  The stretching exercises of Pilates will release tightness and provide relief from tension.  While the actual problem causing the stress may still exist, the body is now more relaxed so that the mind can now function more effectively.

Don't let the simple description of Pilates fool you though.  When you first begin Pilates, it is not easy.  However, with practice, your flexibility and strength increases.  I remember when I first started Pilates I was all off balance and felt like I was being stressed just by doing the exercises!  I kept forgetting to breathe and that made me fee like I was straining.  Don't let that discourage you.  After a few sessions, it gets a little easier. The key is not to give up.  Realize that just as with anything you achieve in life, it takes time.  As Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. once said, " Rome wasn't built in a day."  You benefit in the long run if you don't give up, cave up and quit.  The better condition your body and mind are in, the better equipped you are to handle stress and sometimes avoid it.

I recommend working with a trained Pilates' instructor when beginning so you can learn the proper technique.  There are some good Pilates DVDs out there also.

So, I have not done Pilates in a while and writing this article has inspired me to resume.  I will keep my newsletter subscribers updated on my progress.  If you are interested, please do subscribe.  If you haven't figured out from some of my other articles, I'm a pretty funny character at times.  Plus the newsletter offers all sorts of information and tips about stress and stress relief, in addition to some discounts toward stress relief products to help you out.

 

A brief history about Pilates: Pilates was founded by a German man who served as a nurse in WWI.  As a child he was very sickly.  When Mr. Pilates served as nurse in the war, he developed a series of exercises done on a mat that focus on the body's core, the torso.  He designed these exercises to help injured patients and soldiers that were immobile.