By Beth Lippman, Pilates Instructor at PRO Club
Have you been sitting more, and having pain or discomfort in your neck or back? Sitting short-ens and tightens the front of your hips; and very frequently can cause the spine to lose it’s natural curves. Your low back collapses back when sitting for prolonged periods, and your neck and upper back lose their reverse curve, and come forward.
Some clinical studies do show that lower back pain of unknown origins tends to decrease and/or resolve with Pilates exercise. A healthy spine needs to maintain the natural curves, and keep the spine from collapsing your weight into your hips.
Pilates helps by focusing not only on the back, but helps you focus on your center, core, or “Powerhouse” as Joe Pilates used to call it. When those deep abdominal muscles are firing correctly they attach tissue, called fascia onto the multifidus muscles along the spine. Those muscles, besides stabilizing the spinal segments, help lift the spine off the hips, creating axial elongation, and decompression of the spine. That’s why many people say they feel taller after Pilates.
