Pilates Style

Welcome to the Pilates Style monthly newsletter. Each month we bring you a calendar of the must-know Pilates events around the country, updates on our conferences, Pilates-related news, original feature articles and bonus material from the current issue of Pilates Style magazine. We want to hear from you! If you have, or know of, a Pilates event, or have news to share with your community, email us at newsletter@pilatesstyle.com.

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Making (More) Magic
by Jillian Hessel

In the March/April issue of ‘Pilates Style,’ world-renowned Pilates instructor Jillian Hessel teaches us how to lengthen, strengthen and tone the upper body using the Magic Circle (“Do You Believe in Magic?” page 67). Now, in an exclusive to newsletter subscribers, she tells us how to bring that Magic below the belt with these terrific lower-body exercises.

This routine is performed with Ron Fletcher’s Percussive Breathing Technique. Ron teaches rhythmic breathing as a way to integrate the body with the motion of the exercise. Since these exercises use short and fast movements, we’ll use a breathing practice that reflects that. I have nicknamed this pattern the “sniff-sniff/blow-blow.” It begins with two quick, deep exhales, followed by two quick, complete exhales through pursed lips.

The emphasis is on moving the maximum volume of air in and out of the body with each breath cycle. The ribs should expand to the back and sides on the inhale, and the powerhouse pulls up and in to expel as much air as possible on the exhale. In the case of the Magic Circle isometric routines, one “sniff-sniff/blow-blow” cycle represents one exercise set, which corresponds with four squeezes in or pushes out against the Circle. Before beginning each exercise, exhale all the air out of your lungs through your mouth. In this way, each exercise set will begin with “sniff-sniff” and end with “blow-blow.”

Note: The number of reps for each exercise is a recommendation only—a lot will depend on the manufacturer, weight and resistance of your Circle, as well as your own fitness level. Use your own best discretion when performing this workout, and always listen to your body.

Seated Crossover for Legs

Seated Crossover for Legs

Sit upright on a mat, legs straight out in front of you. Place one extended leg inside the Circle, resting your heel on the bottom handle, and extend the other leg so the heel rests on top of the top handle. Point both feet.
Begin by exhaling all the air out of your lungs. Squeeze the Circle by pressing the top handle down toward the floor twice as you inhale (sniff/sniff) and twice as you exhale (blow/blow). Perform 10 sets with the feet pointed.
Perform another 10 sets, but flex the top foot as you inhale and point as you exhale. Switch sides and repeat.

Inner Thighs Supine

Inner Thighs Supine

Lie on your back with knees bent and spine in neutral position. Place the Circle between the inner thighs just above the knees. Exhale all the air out of your lungs. Squeeze the Circle by pressing the handles toward one another, using your inner thigh muscles twice as you inhale (sniff/sniff) and twice as you exhale (blow/blow). Perform 10 sets.
Relax the Circle and your muscles for a moment as you inhale. On your next exhale, posteriorly tilt the pelvis so that your low back is still pressed into the mat with an abdominal scoop, pubic bone tilted toward the ceiling. Repeat 10 sets of, squeezing the Circle as above in this tilted position.
Relax back to neutral spine position for a moment as you inhale. On your next exhale, posteriorly tilt the pelvis and peel the spine off the mat in to a full bridge position. Be sure not to “pop” your ribs or overarch your back. Repeat 10 sets, squeezing the Circle in the full bridge position. When finished, inhale deeply one more time in the bridge, and exhale as you roll down vertebra by vertebra, imprinting the spine back to the mat.

Side Lying Legwork: Inner Legs

Side Lying Legwork: Inner Legs

Lie down on your side and place the circle between your lower legs, just above the ankles. Extended the legs in line with your body. Be sure to maintain neutral pelvis and a good plumb line. Point both feet. Exhale all the air out of your lungs before you begin. Squeeze the circle down twice as you inhale (sniff/sniff) and twice as you exhale (blow/blow). Perform 10 sets with pointed feet, then repeat another 10 sets, pointing on the double inhale, and flexing on the double exhale.
Rotate both legs outward from the hips, and repeat the above sequence to target the deep hip rotator muscles.

Side Lying Legwork: Outer Legs

Side Lying Legwork: Outer Legs

In the same start position as above, place your lower legs inside the circle with the handles resting just above the ankles. Point both feet. Exhale all the air out of your lungs before you begin. Press the Circle apart twice as you inhale (sniff/sniff) and twice as you exhale (blow/blow). Perform 10 sets with pointed feet, then repeat another 10 sets, pointing on the double inhale and flexing on the double exhale.
Rotate both legs outward from the hips and repeat part the above sequence to target the deep hip rotator muscles.

Jillian Hessel, a former ballet dancer, has been teaching Pilates for more than 25 years. Her mentors include Pilates Elders Kathy Grant, Carola Trier and Ron Fletcher. Among Pilates aficionados, she is known as a teachers’ teacher and is sought after for her concise verbal instruction and clear imagery. She is the author of Pilates Basics (Gaiam, 2003) and is featured in several of Gaiam’s Pilates exercise videos. Visit her web site at jillianhessel.com.

We're always looking for models for our exercise stories. If you're a Pilates instructor or dedicated enthusiast aged 20-50 and you'd like to see yourself in print, click here to get more information about being in Pilates Style magazine.

Lots of people start to take life easy when they hit 60. Not Louise McGonigal. This Canadian grandmother of four is spending her golden years discovering her strength and endurance as an Ironman competitor. Over the past 16 years, McGonigal has competed in 17 Ironman competitions. Last year she won the world championship for her age group in the Ironman 70.3, a race that’s longer than Olympic triathlons but half the distance of the full Ironman.

How does the lively 63-year-old stay fit and focused for these intense competitions? With Pilates, of course. The method prepares her for every part of the triathlon, McGonigal says: “In terms of cycling, you think you’re just moving your legs and need good quad strength, but all that strength comes from a good core. With running it’s a lot of balance and stability,” she points out, crediting Pilates with strengthening her lateral muscles so she’s well balanced in all planes while running hills. For swimming, Pilates helps her to become streamlined and to understand the proper type of rotation the body needs to achieve in the water.

You don’t have to be a triathlete to derive benefits from Pilates in later years, though. McGonigal serves as inspiration to the people she teaches Pilates to at her local YMCA. “As you get older, one thing you have to be concerned about is losing muscle. A lot of women I work with say rather than dancing around in the step class, they like being in Pilates where they’re combating the deterioration that happens with aging, and they do it gently.”

Since McGonigal’s small town of Elmvale (population 1,500) isn’t exactly a Pilates hub, she looks to Pilates Style for stimulation. “When it comes every other month I get my fix,” she says. Her biggest inspiration? Last year’s article on a destination Pilates spa in Italy. “I’ve been there on cycling trips,” she says, “but to combine Pilates? I thought—now there’s a good idea!”

Pilates Day is Saturday, May 5th, 2007. Pilates Style magazine wants to know how you'll be celebrating. Click here and let us know your plans. Our favorites will be featured in Pilates Style magazine and website.

According to TeenHollywood.com, 45-year-old actress Demi Moore has begun giving Pilates classes in her home to family and friends. The avid exerciser recently ditched her hardcore exercise routine in favor of kinder, gentler methods like Pilates. She’s become such a fan that she has decided to share her love of the method with those close to her.