Basketball players sprint frequently up and down the court, runners need to keep their hips, hamstrings and core flexible and balanced, football (American football) players need strong mind/body coordination to make quick directional decisions, cyclists get tight hips from repetitive revolutions of the legs over time, golfers require core control and hamstring flexibility to keep their swing, especially their backswing, controlled and powerful….it goes on and on as to how our bodies are required to move within each individual sport. Each sport has 5 exercises from the book to get you started immediately. Practice those first to get your feet wet and progress from there!
Hockey requires a strong core, gluteus and legs for shooting, checking and skating.
Lots of interval sprinting up and down the ice….sometimes to avoid icing.
Perhaps one needs loose shoulders for throwing punches and integrated body control for checking, passing and those burning slap shots.
Hockey is my favorite sport and one I played for many years while growing up in frigid Wisconsin. I began my hockey career skating on frozen Lake Neshonoc in West Salem, Wisconsin directly from sunny southern California. We were called “Mites” and our first season was a great success (we went 0-11, losing one game by the incredibly close score of 22-0). Our goalie made sure the goal was securely guarded by simply placing his stick on the ice, brilliantly blocking the entrance to the net…unless one was inclined to raise the puck a fraction of an inch. I wish we had added Pilates to our practices back then..or at least I knew what the heck “off sides” was. It took me 4 years to figure that one out!
Practice these 5 exercises first.
3. Pendulum Straight leg Stretch
5. Tree Crunch
A “Mite” has been spotted!
I just did a video and article for FitBottomedGirls.com featuring the 5 Pilates exercises that every runner must do right now and I’ll include similar ones in this training log. Runners must keep their gait smooth and effortless as the steady, repetitive ‘thump thump’ of the shoes hitting the pavement chips away at your core strength, flexibility and joints. Often someone’s cardio outlasts their body, meaning that the heart keeps pumping blood smoothly and the oxygen uptake is on point while other parts of your body (core, joints, spine etc) begin breaking down. These exercises will help you recover and strengthen those weaker areas and create a more complete level of stamina no matter where and when you head out to pound the pavement.
Practice these 5 exercises first.
1. Scissors 100
3. Single Straight Leg Stretch
5. Swimming
“For both injured and non-injured runners, Pilates presents a functional workout routine that incorporates many components of physical therapy and strengthening and directly impacts running form and strength.”
- Elena Sonnino writing in USNews.com
Basketball requires non stop physical and mental strength up and down the court. Players need to jump to effectively shoot, block, rebound, sprint quickly forwards and backwards and have lots of strength to battle opponents underneath the hoop and along the three point line. Plus that court can be very demanding on the joints over the course of an entire game. Pilates will increase overall body and core strength which will add to the control of shooting and passing.
You’ll also gain faster reflexes for quick shifts in alignment and motion.
Practice these 5 exercises first.
1. Roll Up Saw
2. Tornado Single Straight Leg Stretch
5. Pilates Plank w/ Spider-Man
When you’re short you have to get creative…
“An hour of Pilates a day … and fitness-wise I am the best I have been for a long time.” David Beckham, Professional Soccer Player
Soccer is massive. Soccer is worldwide. In fact, there may not be a county, town or neighborhood in the world where a kid has not grabbed a soccer ball and met their friends for an impromptu game in a street, field or vacant lot. It’s a very accessible sport and it’s only becoming more popular every day. Soccer is also one of the most demanding sports on the planet and makes serious requests on your body for speed, endurance, agility, suppleness and flexibility. Pilates addresses all these issues and more. Remember: for Pilates to really elevate and enhance your physical and mental performance you must practice it several times per week. Just as you drink water EVERY day for maximum hydration you also stay extremely consistent with your Pilates for Athletes workouts. Keep those hamstrings loose too. Tight hamstrings are the villainous antagonists of the athlete.
Practice these 5 exercises first.
1. Swimming
My father has been a life long golfer and, he will tell you, the Milwaukee golfing champ his senior year in high school. Last week he was lamenting that he wished his parents had been more supportive of his thriving golf game and supported him to pursue it more seriously. He sees himself sitting on the Florida beaches reflecting on an exciting career trudging the links around the world and wearing flashy polos. He may have some regrets about his golf past but you certainly won’t by adding the core stabilizing and body awareness of Pilates to your golf practice. The first thing every golfer will say to me about improving their golf game is working on their swing (particularly the backswing) so you must keep focusing on proper mechanics in the swing…and that’s where the control, precision and core work of Pilates comes in. The golf swing is an incredibly complex movement and the basis of the game. Without the swing you’re just gently putting around the course. The longer a golfer can keep hitting the courses (and the ball) with success the happier they (you) will be.
I recommend viewing “Caddyshack” once monthly too.
Practice these 5 exercises first.
5. Swimming
“Cinderella story. Outta nowhere. A former greenskeeper, now, about to become the Masters champion. It looks like a mirac… It’s in the hole! It’s in the hole! It’s in the hole!”
- Carl Spackler in “Caddyshack” 1980
I’ve always loved football but decided to skip out once I was old enough to play tackle, full contact football. I remember standing on the sidelines watching a high school game when I was about 10 and hearing the vicious hits and sounds that emanated on every down. You never hear these painful sounds when watching football on television unless they specifically mic a team member. It’s unrelenting carnage on every play and continues up and down the field for an hour each week. A brutally challenging sport like this deserves a workout program to assist in recovery, alignment, strength, flexibility training and endurance. Many professional football clubs are adding Pilates to their training and seeing wonderful improvements in recovery time, flexibility, control and overall body alignment without any undue stress put on the body - Pilates is very easy on the joints and leaves the fortunate participant feeling rejuvenated and energized. Some are even reported to feel many inches (or feet) taller. I added rugby to this log because of many of the similarities to football. I’ll let the actual participants debate which sport requires more strength and endurance. As long as you add Pilates to your program you may debate as much as you wish :)
Practice these 5 exercises first.
1. V-Ups
2. V-Up Roll Up
3. Heel Beats
5. Boomerang
“The bottom line is that football is my job, and I want to do my job really well. Anything that can give me a competitive advantage on the field and help reduce injuries is a huge plus for me. It’s weird—I can lift 500 pounds, but in a Pilates session, there’s always some different type of motion that’s hard for me to do. That’s what is so great about it!” - Martellus Bennett (NFL tight end)
I’m a pretty consistent cyclist. Sometimes I head around our neighborhood which is very hilly and twisty with lots of wild life running to and fro and trying to disengage you from the seat. Other days I enjoy riding the spinning bike at the gym. When I lived in Florida I taught hundreds of spinning classes with much success (and sweat). The wildly repetitive circular revolution movement of biking is easy on the knees but wretchedly cranks up the tightness in the hamstrings, low back and hips. Your hips especially can feel like they’re constructed of immovable granite after a particularly intense ride. Your breath focus in cycling too may fly right out the window when the resistance heats up on the crank shaft. With this lack of oxygen we deny ourselves the fuel to perform each revolution at our very best. Pilates focuses SO MUCH on engaging your pelvic floor while “wringing” and “squeezing” the breath from the lungs…and then filling them back up to capacity. Don’t even get me started on the importance of a strong and flexible core for optimum biking! You know what? I could write another 10 pages on the lovely relationship between Pilates and cycling but let’s get moving.
Practice these 5 exercises first.
5. Tornado Single Straight Leg Stretch
My bike is my gym, my wheelchair and my church all in one. I’d like to ride my bike all day long but I’ve got this thing called a job that keeps getting in the way.
- Bill Walton
Now here’s an easy one since there are many Pilates exercises which take their names from swimming moves. The body awareness of Pilates works in tandem with swimming to activate muscles at the proper time within a certain movement. Swimming is a game of constant struggle against the water which is diligently pushing back and adding resistance. Also, having a strong and balanced core will keep the swimmer moving the arms and legs with clean, precise movements and keeping the pressure off the neck. Sore necks in swimming are very prevalent due to the unnecessary strain due to a weak and inflexible core.
I love swimming. I love it for the same reasons I love Pilates. In swimming every inch of movement is met with a vigorous counterpunch of resistance but is remarkable easy on the joints because of the cushion of h2o circulating around and against every segment of your body. Even though mat Pilates uses no equipment, resistance appears in the form of gravity, your own bodyweight and intense visualization of tension through the movement patterns. Have I said too much? Once I get on these subjects my eyes (or in this case, my fingers on the keyboard) light up and you better get ready for a spirited discussion on movement, tension, control and integration. Whoa, I just got chills!
Practice these 5 exercises first.
1. Scissors 100
3. Mudra Pulse
5. Swimming - of course!
*extra credit* Superman Banana
“I wanted to get really fit. I wanted to lose some weight. So I’ve been doing Pilates and yoga, trying to lean out my body so I won’t be bulky. … Pilates gave me results within a week.”
—Serena Williams, 15-time Grand Slam winner
Here’s another sport which I’ve delved into frequently over the past 30 years. In fact, my wife and I are fixing to head out this weekend to hit around and let Addie roam the court and chase the ball. She enjoys that.
Tennis is a stop and start sport. Hurry up and wait. It exists in two very different worlds: standing while preparing for the next serve and sprinting around the court to smash a wicked forehand, backhand or overhead shot. Pilates gives the gift of strengthening the core (we know that) and this translates to better body mechanics in your ground game and stroke execution. Not only must your core be strong but also flexible it must be able to withstand hundreds or thousands of twists, dips and leaps in a single game. I’ve always believed tennis to be one of the more demanding sports as it’s just you playing solo out there on the court (unless it’s doubles…then you can blame your partner for a loss) and your focus may start to slip after a set or two.
The Pilates method focus on breath and precision will help keep you frosty long into that third or fourth tiebreaker. Those are the worst!
Practice these 5 exercises first.
2. Tree Crunch
5. Ab Circles
Let’s finish with America’s favorite pastime - baseball.
Once again we find ourselves discussing the importance of a strong and balanced core for optimum pitching and throwing motions. Baseball is another hurry up and wait sport. Often when you picture a baseball game you visualize the players in the dugout nervously chewing gum and waiting for their next time at bat or in the outfield. It can be very stressful. Then very quick bursts of strength are required with batting, throwing, sprinting and sliding into the plates. Pilates is a sweet cross training integration for baseball players because it teaches you to always be in control of your body and keep it ready for any physical activity. Pilates movements emphasize a constant engagement of muscles while directing focus into the core. So, even if you’re waiting an eternity for your next turn at bat you are living that Pilates and digging into your breath, firing your core and getting ready for anything!
Practice these 5 exercises first.
4. Pendulum Double Straight Leg Stretch
5. Roll Up Saw