19 May Why We Love The Pilates Ring
The Pilates Ring is a versatile prop that adds lightweight resistance and an extra challenge to our Pilates workouts, which explains why our instructors simply love to incorporate this magic circle into our wide range of Reformer Pilates classes! In the next few months, we will be incorporating more exercises using the Pilates Ring to give you the extra boost in class.
Let us share with you the magical effect of using the Pilates Ring during a workout, and the impact it has on our bodies. What exactly does the Pilates Ring do that makes us work harder and sweat more in a shorter amount of time?
3 Reasons Why We Love The Pilates Ring:
1) Pilates Ring Increases Body Awareness
If you’ve used the Pilates Ring before, you’d have found that more effort is required to execute each movement correctly. What the Pilates Ring does is to assist your body to activate isolated muscles more effectively. In Pilates Fitness classes, we often use the Pilates ring as a prop to bring you to the correct posture or give you a deeper stretch during warm up. See the photo below.
The flexibility of the Pilates Ring facilitates enhanced body awareness by providing self-feedback to the participant during exercises. This helps the participant to self-correct immediately during each exercise repetition so that every repetition is performed correctly and effectively.
Psst – rumours have it that Joseph Pilates (founder of the Pilates method) invented the first magic circle using the ring from a beer keg.
2) Pilates Ring Adds Intensity and Resistance
The Pilates Ring is made from soft metal that allows it to bend slightly while providing firm resistance. This helps one to condition the body safely and get a toned, lean body faster as compared to doing the same exercise without the Pilates Ring. The Pilates Ring is often used in intermediate classes as a form of variation of Pilates exercises to keep classes fun and unpredictable at a higher intensity.
We love to use the Pilates Ring to keep the legs strong and engaged during Hundreds on the Reformer Machine! Add in an extra bend and stretch on the legs to work up a sweat:
If you’re afraid of bulking up or getting injured due to the high intensity, here’s the good news:
1) The Pilates Ring can be used several times a week for optimal results without resulting in a bulky build
2) It is less likely result in injury using the Pilates Ring due to its low maximum resistance threshold, which means it is suitable for seniors and rehabilitation as well!
3) Pilates Ring Challenges Balance and Core Strength
According to how the Pilates ring is used or positioned, placing pressure on the ring provides stability to the body. If a participant feels unstable during a particular movement, squeezing the Pilates Ring helps one to stabilize her body by reaching to the deep core muscles. Especially useful to beginners who are not able to activate their core muscles, Pilates Ring provides tactile feedback to help one to quickly understand how to engage the core muscles to do the exercises.
Another favorite use of the Pilates Ring in our classes is to place it in between the knees during Hip Roll. We also enjoy playing around with a combination of props such as toning balls for an extra resistance and challenge to the core!
We love the additional challenge that the Pilates Ring provides in class (and we know our clients love it too), which is why you may have noticed that we’ve been using the ring in our classes more frequently. Our Pilates Fitness instructors will be exploring different exercise variations that includes the ring, to push you just a bit harder as you inch closer to reaching your fitness goals.
Struggling to find time to exercise? Read our article on 3 Simple Ways To Make Exercise A Habit to find out how you can create long-lasting habits instead of just setting goals!
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