Pilates

[LianneS]

Ive posted something about pilates in the pregnancy thread but I dont want to just be exclusive to people who read in there (as Im sure its not applicable to everyone!!)

I bought a pilates dvd a while back and did it for a while but when you do dvds at home something else always crops up so I figured I would go to a class...

I went to one on Saturday and it was brilliant...really good etc and I felt great afterwards...

Have other people tried pilates? I tried the core and balls too but found that harder and a bit bad on my back....
Is it a good weight loss regime as well? Will it trim me up or is it just good for your core stability?
Im gonna try and go at least once a week now, as well as swimming which is also a good soft exercise..

Lianne

[Sez]

I think any kind of exercise will help tone you up eventually.

I've never tried pilates, so can't comment, but I keep intending to give it a go. Maybe I'll try a home DVD, as when I start these sorts of classes, I find a reason comes up not to go to a session (too sore, not feeling up to it, headache, vet coming out for horse, etc etc), and when I've missed one, I'm never so keen to go back, but with a DVD I can do it whenever I feel up to it. Total opposite of what you've just posted, Lianne!

[LianneS]

Its really good Sez...

Its quite relaxing and not strenuous...I tried Yoga for instance and found that hurt my back...

Lianne

[Guest]

Hey,

I've just come home from my first Pilates class, and I'm feeling fine. I don't expect miracles, but the strengthening of the core feels great (although it is really difficult to do.....) especially for me who has got hip pain/impingement.

I also took up Yoga, which is great for the relaxation/meditation part as it calms me and takes my mind off that pelvic girdle for a while. I have to be careful with my lumbar spine during yoga, as to not block a vertebra again.

All in all, I can really recommend Pilates, the only bummer it's expensive. But the feeling of control right after Pilates is nice, just like the feeling of good posture...

Dancer78

[LianneS]

I agree there,

The experience you feel after pilates is just so good..... I dont think you can explain it, people need to do it to see what we mean!!

Lianne

[Guest]

Yeah, I can totally relate to that!

Right now the option of "surgery" is in the air for me (because of the impingement/restricted ROM in the hip), and this is just such a huge step and you never know what'll come out of it. So I'll try and see what Pilates and Yoga can do for me. So far I'm feeling okay, I've even reduced the amount of Diclofenac to one a day, and the pain has not become worse so far...

Take care!
Dancer

[JoyfulGirl]

OK. Didn't know whether to put this in the physio thread or here, lol.. mods, feel free to move it if needs be!

I was referred to a physio a while back who didn't want to touch me. She said that manipulation could damage my joints (fair enough), and also that she didn't want to give me traditional physio exercises because a) they are boring, so people are less likely to adhere to the programme, and b) because she didn't know if it would make things worse. So she basically sent me away with a book on Pilates & left me to it! Originally, she had said that I could go back & see her if I needed any help, but when I rang to get another appointment, I was told I am not on her books. So now I have to wait for another referral to go through & I'm really annoyed!!

Anyhoo, the problem I am having is with a warm up technique called shoulder stabilisation. The idea is that instead of just lifting your arm above your head as normal (well, normal for me, lol), you have to concentrate on bring your shoulder blade down at the back, and your arm will raise up with that. Have discovered that when I do it like this, I can't lift either of my arms above shoulder height, & it really hurts the bit right at the top of the upper arm (where the muscles & stuff are attached??). So now, I don't know if I'm doing it wrong, or if it's just that I've been using the wrong muscles, because it is also much more likely that my shoulder will pop out of place when I try & do it this "proper" way. I can't afford to go to a class to check this out., so does anyone have an opinion on whether I should just keep plugging away, or should I stop the exercises until I can get another physio appointment (weeks and weeks away)?
Cheers,
J. x

[hannah]

Hi Joyful,

Fascinating! I've just been sat trying out the holding the shoulder blade down and lift my arm. I can do it kinda with my left but my right gets to shoulder height and hurts and can't go any furhter (I have recently started dislocating it). In my case I think it might be lack of muscle strength, being a bit mashed from recent dis's and having used muscles wrong all my life. I have just started shoulder physio and been given a shoulder stabilising excersice that consists of pulling the shoulder blade down and raising the arm from the elbow - no shoulder movement at all - to try to start stabilising it.

The fact that I could do that move with my left arm, but not the dodgy right seems to me that it may not be technique, so maybe that particular excercise is just too much for it right now.

Personally I think if I was you I might see if I could do a lesser version of the same exercise, but if it feels like it might dislocate I think I'd give it a miss because dislocating hurts, and weakens things further (or so I understand), and wait until proper physio. (basically - I'm not sure!)

Hope this helps!

Hannah

P.s. to anyone else reading this thread, if you choose to try this exercise please be careful, my shoulder hurts now

[peekay]

We've talked alot about 'good shoulder behaviour' over in the thread on shoulders in the surgery section...this is actually quite a good description of some of the methods used to retrain the muscles.

As a starting point for retraining the muscles and the brain usually you'll need to start trying to control the 5 (I think!) big muscles that run across the shoulder blade. Usually people aren't aware they even use those muscles to use their shoulder and arm, however these muscles can easily become unbalanced and if the wrong one becomes too powerful, it unbalances the whole joint, often causing sublux's and dislocations.

Rather than trying to do the whole of the exercise as described (which would be the outcome you're aiming for) I'd suggest starting off literally by just trying to learn to control your shoulder blade. You do this by concentrating just on the shoulder blade and learning to use the muscles to bring your shoulder blade slightly down at the back so that it moves into the proper position against your rib cage....if you're doing it correctly, you will find your arm moves ever so slightly back...but that's the entire exercise, you shouldn't be aiming for a bigger movement than that. If you've got particularly unstable/painful shoulders you may find that you can't even get the control for that movement initially and that you need to do it in front of a mirror with help from another person, placing their hand gently on your shoulder blade at the back to give your muscles the feedback they need to tell your brain when to turn on and off and where they are. You may also find that it's exhausting and so only try the movement once or twice intitally. What's important is to get the position right, so do it in front of the mirror, make sure your arm/shoulder looks like it's moving into a good position when you control your shoulder blade and concentrate purely on that.

Even after being confident you're moving the right muscles to put the shoulder blade into the correct position, you may well find the next time you go to do the exercise your brain won't remember the right position, so do repeat the exercises in front of the mirror each time, and don't feel disheartened or weak at struggling with what seems such a simple exercise. Aim to build up to 4-5 repetitions of this movement 4-5 times a day so it'll only take you a few minutes each time...it's so it becomes an automatic movement for the brain and muscles, and don't be surprised if you find it very tiring. It took me several months just to get the hang of this basic movement, but the whole shoulder training, good movement, and improved stability physio principle is founded on retraining all these muscles and such basic tiny movements, so it's vital not to give up and keep plugging away with what seem like pointless and boring tasks at the time. You'll see dramatic results but not until months down the line!

Hope that's useful! BTW, I suspect it may be a struggle to lift the arm whilst doing this exercise because you're moving the head of the humerus by controlling the shoulder blade. Once you get more control of the muscles and control your shoulder blade properly you'll move the head of your humerus into a good position and your arm will be able to move comfortably, but intially I wonder if it's because there's not enough control so by trying to move the muscles at the back the head of the humerus moves, but not enough and so is in a poor position, therefore blocking the natural movement of the shoulder as the humeral head has to be free to 'drop' into the joint to let the arm up...if it's not in exactly the right place controlled by the muscles, it'll be blocked by the other parts of the joint and get stuck usually before it's half way up...you'll find your range of movement improves just fine as you gain control of your muscles properly...don't cheat whilst doing the exercises as it just continues the problem

Good luck, P xox

[JoyfulGirl]

wow, thanks! I'll come back in a few weeks & let you know how it goes...


J. x

[Rachel1985]

I tried a pilates class at fitness first the other day, and really wish i'd had the same positive experiences as everyone seems to have!

I explained to the instructor about EDS3/HMS & she said "Everyone has it to some extent, you have to learn to live with it" - very helpful. I found that she didn't really explain clearly enough how to activate the bits your meant to be activating, or what it should feel like. I found lying on my side really painful on my hips & generall didn't really have a clue what I was meant to be doing! I didn't feel anything afterwards even though I tried to follow her instructions, so i've kind of given up & have started doing tai chi instead!

[Shadowlady]

Hello!

I just have to recommend a book which I've found really, really helpful. Mods - I hope I'm allowed to do this?! It's called The Official Body Control Pilates Manual by Lynne Robinson, Helge Fisher, Jacqueline Knox and Gordon Thompson.

I've read a handful of pilates books, and none have come close to the descriptions, diagrams and explanations in this book, I've found it really helpful in my quest of better understanding how my body works in order to gain better control over it. I also like it because I've found quite a few of the physio exercises I've been given over the years in it.

I had similar difficulties with my shoulder muscles as described above, I really struggled to isolate the muscle that tethers the bottom of the shoulder blade down to the mid/lower back as the physio described it to me, but that became a whole lot easier with 'The Dumb Waiter' exercise, I won't try and explain it as there's quite a lot of explanation to do it correctly, but if you're trying pilates, this book is well worth a browse to help you understand your body and what the exercises are trying to do, even if you don't pull most of your exercises from it as I do!

Best wishes,

S

[Jenny P]

I have been given very similar sounding exercises for my shoulder, but also trying to do exercises with my shoulder in the correct position, such as leaning on a wall and pushing my own bodyweight away with my arm (elbow at right angles) or pulling on a weak piece of elastic moving my lower arm across my body, rotating at the elbow (sorry - dfficult to explain - probably best not to try to do these as i may have explained them badly)

anyway, doing any movement with my shoulder in the correct positon is really painful - i can't lift my arm straight out in front of me more than about twenty degrees up from by my side...

...so my question is if i can't actully do these exercises due to the pain, is there any point trying? I was contemplating trying to get some heavy duty pain relief in it - something like a cortisone injection in order to allow me to actually do the exercises, because at the moment i'm not getting anywhere - i've been doing these for about 2 months now with no improvement at all...in fact it's getting worse.

sorry for the sob story...i just wondered what the experts thought before I ask my physio.

thanks

Jen

[Shadowlady]

Hiya Jenny,

Sorry to hear how painful your shoulders are at the moment

I've found that knowing how much exercise I should be doing, and whether I should be doing a certain exercise is something that only I can judge. I need to feel reasonably in control of the movement, and I only feel comfortable exercising when my joints are in position. If I'm not in control - chances are I'll cause myself damage that results in pain. If my joints are not in position, I'm probably not using the right muscles for the movement, and they may not be able to function properly, this means that the exercise is not doing what it is supposed to, it's not beneficial and ... more pain.

I don't know how you can do weight bearing exercise with your shoulders when they're as bad as you describe. I think I'd ask the physio for lower level exercises.

It may be that you have some over-tensed up muscles that are pulling your shoulder out of alignment, making it painful when you try to hold yourself in alignment? Like you're working against your own body? For my shoulders, I had tense areas under my arms that caused my shoulder blade to try and follow my arm when I raised it, my chest muscles were too tight so pulling my shoulders back was hard and quite uncomfortable. Maybe you could ask your physio to check this and maybe get some stretches to do to release your shoulders a bit before exercising to strengthen the weak bits?

How about... instead of pushing your body off the wall, use your arm in the same position to push a door (not a heavy one!) open and closed? Instead of using the resistance bands, just move your arm in exactly the same movements instead? Imagine that you're moving through treacle, and hopefully, you'll be able to control the movements well enough that the exercises will be beneficial without causing a flare up. My favourite physio was brilliant at scaling down exercises for me, and she'd often give me exercises to build up to, so I'd have exercises for bad days and good days, and goals to aim for.

How many repetitions do you do? One physio wanted me to do 10-20 press ups against the wall every day, it was far too much to begin with so I did 2 or 3 after breakfast, a couple more mid morning, and spread them throughout the day, I was soon able to build up to doing more in a row.

It's very frustrating to build up slowly, but it's far less frustrating than injuring yourself and putting progress back weeks or months!

Sorry, that's a bit garbled, but hopefully it's helpful, it's worked well for me any how!

Take care,

S

edited to say even more! Sorry if you think I'm going on!

[Jenny]

Ok so I do a form of pilates twice a week but could never be able to just do a pilates class twice a week. I do Body Balance, which combines tai-chi, yoga AND pilates! I find the variation of the three different methods amazing, it gives you a good combination of muscle toning, stretching and relaxation.

Anyone else tried it?