For proper breathing during Pilates, you need to first lie down on your back with your legs slightly bent and keens pointed at the ceilings. You will have trainers in Pilate studio, who shall instruct you to rest your hands on your abdomen under the belly bottom. You should keep on inhaling and exhaling. At this point, you shall get a feeling that your diaphragm is stretching from one end to the other.
There is a position called neutral position that is repeated in many exercises. It is a good way to work on the same muscles. Experts in Pilates studio call this position the neutral spine or the neutral pelvis position.
When you lie straight on your back, you can see two areas of your spine not touching the ground. One is the area at the lower back and the other under your neck. These are the two natural curvatures of your spinal cord. Familiarizing yourself with these areas will help you maintain the curves while you are lying down or sitting. You need to adjust yourself, until your curvature feels relaxed. Before you start, your Pilates exercise sessions or whenever you want to take a break, make sure to begin with neutral position.
Imprint is another foundational exercise practiced in Pilates studio. In this, the trainers will ask you to lie on your back like the previous exercises. Every part of your body must feel relaxed. You should focus on your breathing pattern when you allow your abdominal muscles drop towards the spinal cord. You should then relax your legs, hips and feel your spine sinking in the mat. You will feel relaxed when you pull up your belly button.
Beginners in a Pilates studio start with Swan Prep that helps spine relax in-between the workouts. For doing this, you need to lie on your back with arms close to your body and do the spinal stretch. Thereafter, you need to pull your hands over your shoulders, while keeping the shoulders below your ears. Instructors and trainers in good Pilates studios will ensure that you are following the proper breathing techniques while exercising.
After this, you need to stretch your spine and head as if you are reaching the sky. Your elbows will be bent slightly when you press your hands and lift your upper body. You need to slowly lower your back down. You should be breathing in while you lift and breathe out as your drop. You can repeat this few times holding this particular pose.
So, as you can understand only trainers in a good Pilates studio shall give so much attention to details while you exercise. So, if you want to enjoy a new fitness level, make sure to get in touch with experts of good studios.
This guest post was written by Joslyn Handzel, who works on behalf of The Pilates Flow, a leading Pilates studio in Bukit Timah, Singapore. To know more about breathing techniques during exercises, you may also refer to eHow.