Pilates vs. Personal Training

By Kristen Matthews

I recently took a workshop on “The Science of Pilates.”  We discussed the parallels and differences between Personal training and Pilates, and how we (Pilates instructors) fit into the gym world.  Pilates has been around for many years, but it’s really only been the past few that it’s become more mainstream.  With that being said, it can sometimes be a challenge making gym members see the benefits of Pilates.  My goal is to help people realize that Pilates can be an important foundation to any type of physical activity. Both Pilates and PT take clients through workouts that are based on their level from beginner up to advanced.   And in both you work on hypertrophy (changing the muscle), muscular endurance, and muscular strength.  The goal in any type of exercise is to change your body and variety in your workouts will help to reach that goal.

Personal training focuses mostly on concentric motion, which occurs when a muscle shortens in length and develops tension.  An example of this is the upward movement in a bicep curl.   In a training session you typically tear muscle fibers, which creates muscle soreness, lactic acid build-up, and degrades flexibility.   On the other hand, Pilates focuses mostly on eccentric motion.  This is the development of tension while the muscle is being lengthened.  Picture the lowering of the arm in a bicep curl.   Pilates typically stretches muscle fibers because of the focus on eccentric motion and the goal is to find symmetry between strength and flexibility.   Pilates will restructure your body from the inside out, starting at your core.   It’s an all over workout, with many muscle groups working for each exercise.

When putting together your own workout schedule, think about how you can vary it.  As much as I love doing Pilates I’d get bored pretty fast if that was the only type of physical activity that I was doing.   I mix it up by going to yoga classes, hiking with friends, and working with my Personal trainer, Laura Hebert of Santa Monica Sweat.  In every one of those activities I am engaging my core. My yoga is stronger because of my Pilates practice.  The training I’m doing with Laura is helping me see weaknesses that I wasn’t noticing when doing Pilates.  And hiking is a way to get my cardio in and spend time with friends.  Who said working out should be boring!   Remember that the more you do something, the faster you will see results.  If you’re thinking of adding Personal training or Pilates to your routine, aim for doing each two times a week.  You can even start with doing Pilates two times a week and training one day a week or vice versa.  Your body will thank you and so will your health.

This entry was written by kmatthews, posted on March 9, 2010 at 12:54 pm, filed under Fitness, Los Angeles, Pilates and tagged , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.

CHANGING RELATIONSHIPS: TO WORK, BODY AND MIND

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Part 1: The Beginning

by Janet Rifkin, Ph.D.

On June 30, 2009, I retired from a 35 year career at major public university. I started my life there at the age of 27 and left at 62. While I can say that I accomplished many good things during my professional life, I felt tired and cynical and found it harder and harder to believe in what I was doing. I had been the Dean of a big college for 8 years, I had helped many people start their academic careers, I had taught many hundreds of students, built relationships with faculty, students and alumni, raised money, built interesting programs and more. But I was finding it harder and harder to believe that what I had done and was doing had much value. I had seen too many people get to this point in their careers, but couldn’t let go because of fear of loss of status, power and fear of a future without the professional identity that had given their lives meaning and security. I knew it was time to make a change, but like others before me, I was uneasy and conflicted. I had several things going for me that helped me embrace this moment of change. I have a husband who wasn’t conflicted and wanted us to change our relationship to work and place and pursue adventures that we had imagined; we have a son, daughter-in –law and 15 month old granddaughter who were living 3000 miles away in Los Angeles and even though another son is in NYC, the pull was strong to come out west; and we are lucky enough to have the means to live more than decently. So on August 20, 2009, we packed up our car and headed to LA.  While we were both feeling a sense of liberation and excitement, we also realized that we had no idea how we were going to organize our lives on a daily basis. We did however know two things. First, we had signed up for a 9 day rafting trip down the Colorado River which would require us, among other things, to hike down the Grand Canyon with 30 lbs packs for 7 and ½ miles. Second, that while both of us were relatively active, we wanted-and needed to find trainers who could help us get ready for this challenging adventure.

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I found Scott Crawford.  I don’t think Scott knew exactly what he was getting into when you started working with me. What he did know was that I had two and one half weeks to prepare for the trip. What he also saw was a woman who couldn’t touch her toes, whose hips are extremely tight, whose right Achilles tendon was swollen and sore, whose hamstrings are like concrete and whose shoulders were hunched over and knotted. What I knew from the moment I started working with him is that he believed in my ability to change my body. Maybe more importantly, he was intent on helping me to change my attitude.

This entry was written by scrawford, posted on November 10, 2009 at 12:53 pm, filed under Bodywork, Fitness, Life is Fitness, Pilates, Santa Barbara and tagged , , , , , , . Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.