my yoga teacher says that through our (physical) yoga practice, we become our own masseurs - this certainly applies to a personal pilates practice as well. what do masseurs do after all? more often, they work to release tension and even out imbalances of muscle and energy.
a main principle in pilates is the idea of control - when you are in control of your body, you recognize blockages in energy and muscles, and actively work to find ways to unblock these areas. one of the more effective ways in doing so is by strengthening other surrounding areas around the same body area.
here's an example, if you are the type of person who experiences tension in your neck or shoulders, then we work on developing the latissmus dorsi muscles which are at the bottom of and below the shoulder girdle. when these muscles work like they’re supposed to, they actually complement the muscles above the shoulder girdle and alleviate the extra load that those muscles have been carrying by themselves.
with a regular pilates practice, you can learn to redistribute your physical (and mental) energy and through your own movement, actively unblock certain areas that are overworked, overloaded and overstressed. in turn, you will awaken and fortify those underutilized and neglected areas. this neck and shoulder tension we spoke of that was once there can be minimized, if not obliterated. all you have to do is dedicate yourself to finding a way to release that area’s tension, redirect that energy and lighten its load.
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