Breathing The Pilates Way
A simple deep, slow breath unwinds the body, releasing and relaxing
muscles and joints. It helps us physically and mentally balance the body
and mind leading to good health and well-being.

Breathing to Relieve Pain and Tension
I would see at first-hand how focused breathing could help instantly
release tension when I practiced as a massage therapist. Clients would
often come in with pain in their shoulders and neck due to weak upper
neck and back muscles and overworked accessory breathing muscles at
the front of their neck and chest. This was due to many reasons such as
shallow breathing which was often stress related, old injuries around the
rib area that had left scar tissue and which meant the respiratory muscles
were not moving fully, or maybe due to poor posture for example sitting
hunched over a desk for many hours a day.

I would ask the client to help me release these muscles in the treatment
by focusing their breath into that area. This worked very well and within
minutes muscles would soften and become more flexible, often releasing
other areas of the body too. Working into the upper area of the body with
breathwork would also help with discomfort and pain in the lower back or
hip, usually on the opposite side to the tension found higher up. The client
would leave the treatment breathing more freely and easily with relaxed
muscles and joints released using their own conscious, focused breath.
The power of the breath!





Pilates Breathing
With Pilates breathing throughout the classes you can release muscles
and joints yourself by learning to fully activate muscles used in breathing.
Often the diaphragm, one of the core muscles talked about in Pilates (the
primary muscle used in inhalation) and the external intercostal muscles
(particularly those in the lower part of the rib cage) donʼt move through
their full range of movement. During inhalation (in-breath) the diaphragm
and external intercostal muscles contract pulling the rib cage upwards
and outwards to the side known as lateral thoracic breathing in Pilates.
The diaphragm will descend lowering into your abdominal area and then it
rises and relaxes on exhalation. Our aim in the Pilates classes is to inhale
wide and full into our back and sides of ribs, our lungs will then expand
and widen the walls of the rib cage. As you breathe in through your nose
you can think of the lungs as balloons filling gradually with air.
In exhalation (out-breath) we expel air that has been used. The deeper
your exhalation, the greater your capacity to inhale fresh air. As you
breathe out you should feel the air gently being let go out through your
mouth. A good visual for this is to think of the breath moving through an
imaginary funnel towards your hips as you breathe out, or think of the
lower ribs drawing downwards to the hips (check out the video). We want
to breathe deeply and slowly but not forcefully as we donʼt want to create
tension. With exhalation in class the superficial abdominal muscle, rectus
abdominis (six pack), and transverse abdominis an inner core stabilising
muscle that runs horizontally underneath the vertical rectus abdominis
like a wide belt or corset are activated. These muscles will strengthen and
tone through forceful exhalation as will the internal intercostals and the
obliques at the side of the torso. Many muscles work just with inhalation
and exhalation and with the Pilates exercises you learn to coordinate your
movements with your breathing and work these muscles fully.


Benefits of Pilates Breathing
There are many benefits of Pilates breathing, not only are you
strengthening many muscles and keeping them flexible and mobile but:
• Your posture will be better too,
• You will stand taller having created space (gapping) between the
vertebrae of the spine,
• Abdominal muscles tone up,
• Your body alignment will be better,
• Movement will feel freer and easier.

You will also get more out of your physical activities that involve
cardiovascular work. For example, with running and cycling your
breathing improves due to the respiratory muscles working more
efficiently and effectively. So, if you are training for a marathon or an
event, Pilates can help with performance. Focused, deep breathing can
also help those who suffer from respiratory symptoms such as asthma,
rhinitis, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

Feel-Good Feeling After a Pilates Class
Often over the years, people say after a Pilates class that they feel better
within themselves and more relaxed after a busy often stressful day at
work. I think the reason that the class members are feeling more relaxed
is mainly due to the focused, deep breathing which is a natural relaxer
during the class. They are present in the moment and aware of their
breath and movement through the hours class. The parasympathetic
nervous system which is responsible for stimulation of “rest and digest”
activities promoting relaxation and recovery switches on, and there is
more of a balance between it and the sympathetic nervous system
stimulating activities associated with the “fight or flight” response which
produces the hormone adrenaline. Often if we are always on the go,
excessively busy and stressed, we will produce too much adrenaline on a
regular basis. This imbalance can lead to mental and physical ill health
over time. We want to find the balance (homeostasis) between the
parasympathetic nervous system and the sympathetic nervous system
and deep, focused breathing in class will help with this.
If stress and anxiety are reduced through deeper breathing this can lead
to many positives:
• Better sleep,
• Clearer thought,
• Better decision making,
• A feeling of calmness,
• Being able to move through your day with more ease generally, both
mentally and physically.

Please watch my short video on my website where I teach you how to
breathe the Pilates way.


If you would like to know more about the breathing we do in Pilates
classes or would like to join an online Pilates class please get in touch.
First published at https://janehamiltonpilates.co.uk/breathing-the-pilates-
way/