Pilates for Trail Runners

Trail running is one of my favorite forms of exercise. I love running through woody trails, going over technical footing and really testing my body awareness. I really discovered trail running after going on a hike with my dad. Once we got to the top of the peak, we decides to run back down. I ended up building so much speed over a very technical part, that my dad made me stop so that he could tell me to slow down. He said I had "happy feet" but he didn't want to bring me home to my mom with a rearranged face. So for those of you that know me, that's how I got the name happy feet.




So even though I love trail running sometimes it can be pretty challenging. My calves get tight and quads get sore and sometime over tight and tricky footing it's hard to stay centered. But I want to enjoy it while I run so I turned to Lauri Ann Stricker who wrote the book, Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete. She said: "A strong core  provides stability for the pelvis and support for the lower back. Flexibility in the legs, hips, torso, and shoulders improve range of motion and promotes forward lean on ankles and not the waist" (Stricker, 92) Learning these key points to strengthen you body to gain better performance is very helpful. If you have the correct muscle balances all around your body, it is able to improve your outcome to the exercise and help prevent injuries every athlete dreads. Stricker also recommends that finding your right stride, shoes, and training practices will help clear up some injuries that many runners are prone to. (Stricker 92-93) She really encourages runners to understand their body. She also pushes runners to have consistent training practices. If you have a schedule or consistent routine that is appropriate to your level of endurance.







So should I boost core strength? Stricker suggests having a routine of exercises to get the best outcome. One of the exercises that targets specifically the core is called "Roll Up" (Stricker 98)












1. To begin, lay on your back with feet flexed and arms by your head.








2. Inhale, and raise your arms to the sky and point your head to look at your feet. You should be curled, as if you were peeling each section of you spine off the mat. Keep you heals touching the fool as you roll up.








3. Exhale, and curl forward reaching towards your feet. Hollow your stomach as if there was something on you that you want you torso to lift over.








4. Inhale, and roll back down one vertebra at a time. When you have reached the bottom, exhale to complete the movement. Repeat 6-8 times.
(Stricker 132-133)

What time of running do you like best? Trail, road, track running?

Stricker, Lauri Ann. Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Pub., 2007. Print.

Pilates for Cyclists

As I have grown up, bikes have always been around me. My Dad was a bike racer before I was born. He was getting very skilled and to this day still loves to ride bikes. We will go on long rides and it's usually very fun, (except when he goes too fast). Through out the many different rides I've gone on, I've noticed something happen again and again, lower back pain when going up hills. Cycling can become a fully body work out if it's done properly. Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete by Lauri Ann Stricker mentions, "A rider must posses core strength, flexibility, and good alignment. Technical skills such as standing, sprinting, and hoping require upper-body strength." (Sticker 61) Stricker is saying that because this is a full body sport you need to be prepared and fit in all places of your body. The tricky part is to prevent any muscle imbalances. If one area of muscles is stronger than another it may cause injures.
So how should I deal with this back pain? Back pain is usually caused by weak hips and core, so Stricker suggests an exercise, called Swan Dive, to strengthen just that. It's purpose is to strengthen the back and shoulder muscles and to stretch the abdominal muscles and hip flexors.

1. To begin lay on your stomach with you palms flat on the ground and in line with your shoulders. Elbows will hug your side. Keep your legs together and engage your core.
2. Inhale and press up through the palms of your hands as if you were a seal.
3. Exhale and lift your arms up next to your ears, with your palms facing up. Imagine your body is like a rocking chair. Rock down onto your chest and then back up keeping your legs together.
4. Repeat for six reps. (Stricker 146)

 

What are some good back strengthening exercises?

 Stricker, Lauri Ann. Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Pub., 2007. Print.

Pilates for Hiking

Hiking is a great way to get out and have fun. But sometimes it's not fun and extremely frustrating when you can't go as long as you wanted to. This can be caused by a number of things. For example if you add too many miles and increase the terrain difficulty too quickly, or don't rest enough between hikes. (Sticker 73) A combination of these things can cause injuries or overuse of some muscles. So how do we avoid this? How can we go on an enjoyable hike? One way is to improve your posture; standing up taller. Stricker says that, "Standing up tall and aligning your body improves joint range of motion, takes pressure off your back, and improves your breathing" (72). Something as simple as standing up taller can greatly improve your experience. It engages core muscles but overtime it will become increasingly difficult to sustain that tall posture. So the benefit of having a strong core is huge, "A strong core helps you stay light and lifted over your feet. Boosting your core strength also improves your balance and agility" (Stricker 72). So knowing that there are so many positives for maintaining a strong core, Stricker gives an exercise called "Double-Straight-Leg Stretch". It's purpose is for strengthening the core.

To begin lay on your back with both legs pointed to the sky with your arm behind your head. Your head should be raised so that the base of your shoulder blades are off of the ground. Inhale. Then lower your legs to a 45 degree angle keeping your spine flat on the ground. Exhale and lift your legs to a perpendicular position but keeping your tailbone on the ground. Repeat for 6 reps.

What are some of your favorite hikes?

Stricker, Lauri Ann. Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Pub., 2007. Print.

Pilates for Skiing

I have being learning to cross country ski ever since I was about 3 years old. My parents have taught my sister and I through out the years and now I've been able to go longer distances with a faster pace. So now that I know the technique I want to start getting more efficient. One thing that I have always struggled with is keeping balance. Sometimes you get unsteady or get off rhythm which causes you to get off balance. Injuries can occur from falling or straining muscles that are used to catch yourself when you fall. So how do we prevent this? As Lauri Ann Stricker says, "In the off-season, you may want to consider trail running. It will not only keep your legs strong, it will keep your cardiovascular fitness tuned and improve upper-body strength." (Stricker, 112) Trail running not only keeps your fitness up but it creates a mind body awareness which can improve your balance and rhythm. But although trail running is important, strengthening smaller less obvious muscles is highly important as well.

An exercise called "Hug a Tree", that Stricker recommends, will help strengthen shoulders, arms and the chest area. It will help improve polling for skiers and allows them to have a stronger foundation of strength in their arms.


To begin, sit with legs crossed and bring your heels close to the bottom of your thighs and have your back straight as if you were up against a wall. Bring both arms out as if you were resting your arms on a counter top but holding dumbbells. Then exhale and bring your arms in front of you as if you were hugging a friend. Then inhale to open the circle and exhale to move to hug position. Do 10 reps.( Stricker, 200)






What do you do to get your fitness ready for the ski season?


 Stricker, Lauri Ann. Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Pub., 2007. Print.

Pilates for the Outdoor Athlete

Ever since I was a kid, I have always been doing something in the outdoors. It would range from hiking to running to cycling basically anything that had to do with being outdoors. As I have gotten older I've been curious as to how I could get better but simply being stronger. That's when I was introduced to Pilates. But this isn't just normal Pilates that is for the sole purpose of getting more fit. These exercises are for specifically outdoor athletes and they accommodate different exercises for different sports. As Lauri Ann Stricker states "Pilates and outdoor sports both require the following skills: concentration and awareness, control, core centering , precision, proper body alignment, natural flowing movement, efficient breathing and a body mind connection." (2) Pilates and in this case focusing on the sport running, both share these skills. The way the Pilates help, is to enhance the skills so you can apply them to the sport you're passionate about. When you understand these similarities you can start to work on your areas of weakness to help build a strong foundation for your body.


One of my weaknesses is in my hips, which can cause injury for runners. So to help gain strength I have begun to do an exercise called "One-Leg Circles". The idea of this is to strengthen your hip flexors, abdominals, and quads, while stretching the hip extensors, IT band, and hamstrings. (Stricker, 136)


To begin lay on your back and extend one leg on the ground and flex your foot. Lift the other leg up pointing to the sky and point your toes. (Stricker, 136)

Next Inhale and rotate your leg across your body, then down. Inhale and circle back up to the point where you started. (Stricker, 136)

Repeat these 5 times, clockwise and counterclockwise on each leg.




What are some good exercises that you know for strengthening your hips?