Peak Pilates: The Language of Pilates (Well-enlightened)

Advancements correct answers Challenges to an exercise that make it more difficult. This happens by performing the exercise on another apparatus, taking one foot or hand away, working with fewer springs, or raising the center of gravity. Alignment correct answers The placement of body parts in relationship to one another, as well as their relationship to gravity or resistance. Alignment is the foundation for proper execution. Joseph Pilates believed that all parts of the body interconnect and influence one another. Anchoring correct answers A concept that describes how each exercise is stabilized by the Powerhouse and supported by the critical connections. The entire body holistically provides an additional sense of stability, a feeling of heaviness or anchoring, to support the parts that are moving. For example, during One Leg Circle the entire back of the body stabilizes to provide a solid base from which the movement of the leg can emanate from. "Lying in wet cement" is an image often used to reinforce this sensation. Arms Move From the Back correct answers This phrase underscores the awareness that arm movements initiate the back of the Powerhouse. Ideally, the serratus anterior and trapezius depress and stabilize the scapula for correct arm movement, thereby eliminating over-recruitment of the shoulder and chest muscles. Articulate correct answers The act of stacking one vertebra at a time, lifting bone by bone, or rolling down and releasing the vertebrae onto the mat one vertebrae at a time. Spinal articulation prevents jerky, out-of-control movements and increases flexibility of the spine. Box correct answers Refers to the rectangle formed by the two imaginary lines running from shoulder to shoulder and from hip to hip (ASIS to ASIS) and completed by two lines running from shoulder to hip. In optimal position, the rectangle has four 90-degree angles. Building Blocks correct answers Simpler versions of an exercise. Building blocks are used when a student is not ready for the exercise due to inadequate strength or coordination. Building blocks lower intensity by shortening the lever (limb length) and/or the range of motion of an exercise. They have the same form and goal as the original exercise. Building blocks are differentiated from modifications to keep the perspective that it is a stepping stone and not a permanent adjustment. C-Curve correct answers The shape that the spine and body assume during many Pilates exercises. It is created by the deep pull of the transverse abdominis wrapping like a girdle around the spine and the opening of the spinal column in flexion, deepening the spine into a lifted curve, such as in Spin Stretch Forward. Centerline correct answers The line running downward from the nose, navel, and pubic bone to the heels. Pilates exercise demands constant activation into the Centerline of the body, whether the legs are together or apart. Use the Centerline during the body scan to view alignment of the head, torso, and extremities in every exercise. Contraindications correct answers A symptom or health condition that makes a particular exercise inadvisable or unsuitable for a student to perform.