Pilates and posture – your cornerstone in building the physical resilience to face the onslaught of sedentary living.
A sedentary lifestyle refers to a way of living that involves minimal physical activity, typically characterised by prolonged periods of sitting or lying down and engaging in activities that require very little energy expenditure. In a sedentary lifestyle, we often spend a significant portion of our day sitting at desks, watching television, using computers or smartphones, or engaging in other sedentary behaviours with minimal movement.
Yet humans are not designed to be static! It brings about a stagnancy to our being. Not just physically, but energetically and mentally too. The less we move, the less we are able to move and therefore, the less we want to move. This lack of movement motivation is what plays a big part in the onset of non-specific pain and injuries as well as poor mental health, poor circulation and respiratory conditions to name but a few ailments.
All of the mentioned sedentary activities distract us from being present with who we are, how we feel and what we need to do on a daily basis to be healthy functioning human beings. Saying that, what we really need to focus on here is balance.
Contact our Pilates instructor Hayley Parry via email or phone or book an appointment directly!
Balance…It’s not so much about what we need to remove from our daily activities but rather what we can introduce to bring about this balance. The thought of removing activities that are sedentary but which we enjoy or need to do for work purposes tends to bring about a sense of lack or anxiety. If, however, we simply and subtly integrate active additions into our schedule, we will feel nothing but achievement and abundance.
An active lifestyle involves regular physical activity and movement, which helps to maintain overall health and well-being. It’s important to note that integrating small active additions to our regular daily schedule to begin with can really help get the ball rolling, especially if we are finding it hard to commit to setting aside time to exercise in our already busy lives.
Pilates and posture - some examples of small active additions can be seen below:
Getting up from the work desk every 20-30 minutes to go and get a glass of water or take a toilet break.
Pausing ever couple of hours at the desk to do a 2-minute whole-body exercise sequence here - password is b2h-2022 - that leaves you more energetic and focused afterwards
Sitting down on your chair and standing up again (chair squats) 8 or so times before settling back at the computer to continue work.
Using the stairs instead of escalators/lifts.
Standing on the tube/train to challenge balance instead of sitting down.
Getting up in the breaks of TV shows to do a chore or simply have a stretch or two before sitting down again.
Contact our Pilates instructor Raj Athwal via email or phone or book an appointment directly!
As soon as we start to notice that as a result of applying these small active additions, our pain, stiffness or general discomfort subsides, we naturally become more interested in how we can build upon this with a regular practice and this is where the Pilates technique comes in.
The Pilates technique is one of the most effective practices used to alleviate the consequences of a sedentary lifestyle in the long term.
Pilates and posture go hand in hand as Pilates is a movement-based therapy that focuses on strengthening the body, improving flexibility, and enhancing overall physical fitness. It was developed in the early 20th century by Joseph Pilates, a German physical trainer. The method is designed to improve body awareness, posture, balance, coordination, and muscle tone. Workouts typically involve a series of low-impact movements that target specific muscle groups, with an emphasis on breath support, mental presence and a deep understanding of how the body moves. It is suitable for people of all fitness levels and is often recommended for rehabilitation and injury prevention as well as for general fitness and well-being.
By integrating a regular Pilates practice into our schedules, not only will we be off setting the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle by increasing the strength and mobility of our physical bodies but we will also be educating ourselves on how our bodies work and what requirements are needed on a day to day basis. This puts us in the driver’s seat when it comes to maintaining a well-balanced, healthy and fully functioning body and will help keep injuries at bay.
At Bridge to Health, patients will initially get in touch because they have injured themselves and are in pain. Whilst osteopathy or acupuncture may be the first port of call to alleviate pain, we then often recommend that patients consider some rehabilitation Pilates sessions to enable their bodies to recover more successfully and build the skill-set to secure the body resilience that prevents a reoccurrence of injury. In that respect, whilst osteopathy and acupuncture may “give a man a fish”, Pilates aims to “teach a man to fish” in empowering patients to actively look after their body and fitness.
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