Pilates for Athletes

Mr. Tayyab explains why Pilates is an incredibly effective fitness regime for athletes.

People who aspire to become an athlete and pursue professional sports understand that fitness is the core requirement to find and sustain your place in this field. However, the real nut to crack is to figure out what fitness regime and workout will work best for you. Human bodies come in all shapes and sizes and have different body dynamics. Fitness regimes for athletes focus on building muscle, strength, and stamina and not necessarily shedding weight. Many newbies get extensive machine-based workouts but often, the results are disappointing.

As someone who looks forward to having a fit body and great stamina, you need a workout regime that gives you effective results in terms of strength and stamina building and can be modified to suit all body types. Pilates is one of the most incredibly dynamic types of exercise that can give amazing results if planned right. RightHealth suggests an interesting regime, PIIT (Pilates Intensive Interval Training) program for this purpose.

As the name suggests, the program is inspired by the very popular HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) program. That being said, unlike HIIT, the entire 28-minute cycle of PIIT focuses on high-intensity sets of Pilates. These sets focus on developing your strength, stamina, and endurance. If the PIIT program is followed using the right coaching and nutrition plan, you will see amazing and long-lasting results fairly quickly.

How Pilates Can Help

Pilates is one of the most dynamic exercises that focus on developing multiple areas that are a core requirement of a good athlete. One of the most difficult areas that new athletes face when building stamina is controlling their breathing. Good breathing and blood circulation triggers oxygen supply in your body and helps to improve your overall athletic performance.

Another area where Pilates can be an amazing help is in strengthening your mental concentration. Many athletes undermine the importance of concentration in sports. Most competitive games are not just about your physical form and strength but also about your nerves and your ability to focus and perform under pressure. Therefore, exercises that help improve focus and concentration are very important.

When you are performing Pilates moves, your mind needs to be concentrated on maintaining the right postures, angles, and alignments and retaining them. This helps in improving your focus and concentration skills. Another important element of sport is the ability to control your body and keep your balance. Again, Pilates requires your body to resist gravity and maintain the balance that adds a lot of control to your body.

Most athletic situations require you to find the centre of energy and allow a smooth flow of energy towards your outer muscles. That is exactly what Pilates revolves around. Dedicated Pilates coaches will tell you how to find your centre of energy and allow the energy to move out in flow while you focus on retaining your balance. This also trains you for mind-body coordination and precision. Other areas where Pilates is helpful to include body alignment, relaxation, and performance management.

Effectiveness of Pilates

Contrary to what most people believe, Pilates is one of the most dynamic work programs with several different exercises. These exercises can be easily modified according to body types, and target goals and their intensity can be increased or decreased. Pilates is not merely a physical exercise. They are a comprehensive workout regime that aims at disciplining your mind-body coordination.

Important Things to Remember When Starting Pilates

If you are planning to start your Pilates anytime soon, there are a few things that you should educate yourself about. This is important so that you can make sure you are doing your workout the right way that will yield the most effective results and will minimize the chances of injuries.

Firstly, it is important to educate yourself about the difference between mat Pilates and reformer Pilates. Mat Pilates is a non-machine workout that is performed using a mat. The mat for Pilates has to be different from your regular yoga mat and has to be slightly cushioned. Reformer Pilates uses a Pilates machine, and it is advised that you take assistance from your gym instructor when using the equipment.

Secondly, know that it is normal to feel your muscles burning when you are performing Pilates and you will end up with sore muscles especially if you are a newbie. Gradually, your muscles will get tuned to the moves and will hurt lesser, however, when that happens, try to challenge yourself and increase the intensity in terms of time, laps, or resistance.

Page Reference

If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is:

TAYYAB, M. (2019)Pilates for Athletes[WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/article497.htm [Accessed

About the Author

Mr. Tayyab is a Freelance Journalist and writes about Nutrition and Minerals to help sportsmen and women.


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People who aspire to become an athlete and pursue professional sports understand that fitness is the core requirement to find and sustain your place in this field. However, the real nut to crack is to figure out what fitness regime and workout will work best for you. Human bodies come in all shapes and sizes and have different body dynamics. Fitness regimes for athletes focus on building muscle, strength, and stamina and not necessarily shedding weight. Many newbies get extensive machine-based workouts but often, the results are disappointing. As someone who looks forward to having a fit body and great stamina, you need a workout regime that gives you effective results in terms of strength and stamina building and can be modified to suit all body types. Pilates is one of the most incredibly dynamic types of exercise that can give amazing results if planned right. RightHealth suggests an interesting regime, PIIT (Pilates Intensive Interval Training) program for this purpose. As the name suggests, the program is inspired by the very popular HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) program. That being said, unlike HIIT, the entire 28-minute cycle of PIIT focuses on high-intensity sets of Pilates. These sets focus on developing your strength, stamina, and endurance. If the PIIT program is followed using the right coaching and nutrition plan, you will see amazing and long-lasting results fairly quickly. How Pilates Can Help Pilates is one of the most dynamic exercises that focus on developing multiple areas that are a core requirement of a good athlete. One of the most difficult areas that new athletes face when building stamina is controlling their breathing. Good breathing and blood circulation triggers oxygen supply in your body and helps to improve your overall athletic performance. Another area where Pilates can be an amazing help is in strengthening your mental concentration. Many athletes undermine the importance of concentration in sports. Most competitive games are not just about your physical form and strength but also about your nerves and your ability to focus and perform under pressure. Therefore, exercises that help improve focus and concentration are very important. When you are performing Pilates moves, your mind needs to be concentrated on maintaining the right postures, angles, and alignments and retaining them. This helps in improving your focus and concentration skills. Another important element of sport is the ability to control your body and keep your balance. Again, Pilates requires your body to resist gravity and maintain the balance that adds a lot of control to your body. Most athletic situations require you to find the centre of energy and allow a smooth flow of energy towards your outer muscles. That is exactly what Pilates revolves around. Dedicated Pilates coaches will tell you how to find your centre of energy and allow the energy to move out in flow while you focus on retaining your balance. This also trains you for mind-body coordination and precision. Other areas where Pilates is helpful to include body alignment, relaxation, and performance management. Effectiveness of Pilates Contrary to what most people believe, Pilates is one of the most dynamic work programs with several different exercises. These exercises can be easily modified according to body types, and target goals and their intensity can be increased or decreased. Pilates is not merely a physical exercise. They are a comprehensive workout regime that aims at disciplining your mind-body coordination. Important Things to Remember When Starting Pilates If you are planning to start your Pilates anytime soon, there are a few things that you should educate yourself about. This is important so that you can make sure you are doing your workout the right way that will yield the most effective results and will minimize the chances of injuries. Firstly, it is important to educate yourself about the difference between mat Pilates and reformer Pilates. Mat Pilates is a non-machine workout that is performed using a mat. The mat for Pilates has to be different from your regular yoga mat and has to be slightly cushioned. Reformer Pilates uses a Pilates machine, and it is advised that you take assistance from your gym instructor when using the equipment. Secondly, know that it is normal to feel your muscles burning when you are performing Pilates and you will end up with sore muscles especially if you are a newbie. Gradually, your muscles will get tuned to the moves and will hurt lesser, however, when that happens, try to challenge yourself and increase the intensity in terms of time, laps, or resistance. Page Reference If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is: TAYYAB, M. (2019)Pilates for Athletes[WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/article497.htm [Accessed About the Author Mr. Tayyab is a Freelance Journalist and writes about Nutrition and Minerals to help sportsmen and women.