Woman Exercise RoutineHome of Body Basics NewsletterMontly Tips to Reach Your Ultimate Health
That’s the first thing. But, okay let’s step back a bit and look at the overall observation of the woman’s body in Pilates from the viewpoint of an instructor. (me) Women’s bodies tend to be less tight than men’s and less compact (although smaller). Muscle tone seems to be lost more easily and it seems to be a softer body overall that can develop great flexibility. In putting together a woman exercise routine I would emphasize strengthening, toning and lengthening, whereas a man’s routine might contain more relaxing and stretching. I would always look at correct joint alignment. Women tend to be weak through the inner side of their body-inner thighs , pelvic floor, inner knee muscle and on down to the foot connection on the inside of the foot to the ground (behind the 1st and 2nd toe between). This can follow up into weak abdominals. Women have more to keep in in that area and strong abs are a must to keep things in place as well as a strong pelvic floor. Abs support the back and work with the pelvic floor and deep back muscles to keep it all contained and lifted. This is your core. Especially before and after childbirth, the pelvic structure loosens up for childbirth and often back problems start here. So strong abs, pelvic floor and deep back are a must. But they have to be able to relax as well. Control is the key. Correct posture is essential during childbearing years. In the upper body women need to develop ribcage muscle strength for maximum expansion and correct breathing. This helps to keep the spine correct in this area, to keep the shoulders open in front and wide and strong in the back. Muscles surrounding the shoulder blade often need strengthening while upper shoulder muscles need to relax. Further up the deep neck muscles need to be kept strong and the head correctly positioned to keep the correct spinal curvature so as not to develop that dowagers hump that women seem to have a leaning towards. (By the way, even if you have one it can be considerably straightened with work, providing no permanent damage) A lot of upper body problems stem from down below, especially if you have no core to hold you up. So let’s sum this up. An exercise routine for women should work on overall posture, breathing, core strength in the pelvic area --- abdominal, pelvic floor and deep back. Inner thighs should be part of the woman exercise routine. The inner knee muscle is often weak in women (technically known as the Vastus Medialis Oblique – one of the infamous quads) Footwork should be done concentrating on the inside connection with the ground described above. Opening out the upper body and strengthening with correct rib cage expansion out and back not forward and up. Neck muscle work and neck position work. All these are essential to most women’s exercise routines. For more general exercise information go to Pilates exercise .
Keep your eye on this website for up and coming downloadable woman exercise routine based on the above.
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