I was teaching footwork to a client this morning on the reformer. I asked her to stop for a second. To just pay attention to how her body and her backside felt on the reformer carriage. I then requested she put weight into her left hip, and left rib cage, and just notice the balance between the two sides. She did what I asked, and found a balanced place. Then we started the footwork sequence again. Her movement was much more balanced. I could tell she was working more efficiently, with more ease. And, ultimately, having to “work” a little more to find that balance. This is because our muscles obey our minds.
After our session she was talking about what an amazing difference that made. How she could really start to feel that balance in her body. She was amazed at how just thinking and “commanding” her body worked to help her create balance, and work her muscles more efficiently.
This is a great example of how simply effective and powerful we are in creating change in our bodies. Simply by changing how we think!
It’s one of the things that I love about the Pilates work. By practicing Pilates, you a learning a skill that will help you move better, and feel better in everything you do in life. Not just when you are on your Pilates Mat. I also love that you don’t have to be at any certain fitness level to learn this skill and start implementing it into your life. I’m not asking you to run a marathon, or lift an absurd amount of weight. I’m asking you to check in with your body. Think about how you are moving. And maybe change how you are thinking…since, you know, our muscles obey our minds.
In Return to Life, Joseph Pilates states,” Ideally, our muscles should obey our will. Reasonably, our will should not be dominated by reflex actions of our muscles. Contrology begins with mind control over muscles.” Well said Mr. Pilates!
