Pilates Podcast

I am quite excited today to have found a very cool website called the Pilates Podcast. It has a lot of informative podcast episodes in which the host shares with the audience her experience in starting up her very own pilates studio and a lot other really technical stuff. There is also a forum for her audience to discuss anything about Pilates. I am truly inspired by this podcast, and it makes me wonder when can P-Latte become just as interesting and interactive?

Now I am listening to the podcast while I am writing this entry as if I am listening to the radio.

Injury Prevention for Runners - Part 2

Continued from Part 1 (where I shared about Piriformis syndrome), here I continued with information about other common injuries caused by running (frankly I myself suffered from all these problems before). As before click on the hyperlinks to find out more in-depth details. So let me start this Part II with the Iliotibial Band Syndrome or the ITB Syndrome, one of the leading cause of lateral knee pain in runners:

Iliotibial Band Syndrome

Signs and Symptoms: Pain/ tenderness on the outside part of the knee or lower thigh, often worsened by weight bearing movements such as going up or down stairs, or getting out of a car.

Possible cause: Running too much, too soon, without sufficient fitness; a tight ITB which is brought on by 'bowing' the knees and/or foot pronation or flat feet, (which can turn the lower limb inwards).

How to prevent: Stretch the ITB; run shorter distance; avoid running too much up or down hill; gradually build up your training program to avoid overdoing it too soon.

How can Pilates help:
Doing Pilates regularly help maintain the ratio between the length and strength of the muscles around the hip, particularly the gluteus medius and deep rotators.

Runner's Knee (Patellofemoral Pain)

Signs and Symptoms: Pain (maybe vague and non-specific) after exercise or long period of sitting; small swelling in the knee, feeling of muscle giving way; feeling of knee-cap 'giving-way' or knee joint movement restriction.

Possible cause: Imbalance of quadriceps muscles; over-training, -bending, -squatting and -kneeling may lead to the vastus medialis (one of the quadriceps) muscle wasting away meaning that the patellar bone drifts outwards and causes friction against the outside of the femur(thigh) bone; bow legs; knock knees; turning of shin outwards when running; misalignment of the lower limb; foot pronation/ flat feet; tension in ITB.

How to prevent:

Strengthen the quadriceps, particularly the vastus medialis oblique (the muscle inside inside your knee).

How can Pilates help: Pilates helps keep good sense of balance in the muscles (especially the single leg balance exercises) and maintain muscle control through the pelvis and pelvic stability.

Shin Splints

Signs and Symptoms: Pain in the inner side of lower leg, which may stop when u stop the exercise. Eventually the pain continues even after stopping the exercise.

Possible cause: Sudden increase in training; excessive jumping; running on hard surface; knock knee or bow legs (knee mal-alignment); imbalance of muscle in the lower leg especially around the ankles.

How to prevent: Proper footwear; increase flexibility of lower limbs; strengthen the lower limbs

How can Pilates help: Pilates balance and strengthen the lower limbs; impart proper limb alignment during movements.

Read on: Injury Prevention for Runner - Part 3

Injury Prevention for Runners -Part I

Nowadays there are more and more Singaporean take up running as their hobby. They can be spotted, both on weekends and weekdays, in parks or on scenic stretch of the city. My ex-colleagues back in Singapore Sports Council must be very happy as their assigned task to promot sports to Singaporean has taken off successfully. As the year end Singapore Marathon is drawing near, I am sure many runners are increasing their training mileage to prepare themselves for the grueling distances on 2 Dec 2007.

I myself had been preparing for my 2nd marathon too. Contrary to what my friends think, I am NOT a good runner. My body structure is really not meant for running, as my relatively wider Q-angle make my knees naturally injury-prone. But I can't afford to stop running, because running is a great aerobic exercise that keeps my heart and lungs fit. It is also convenient to do, I don't need any special equipment /court rental nor an exercise partner, I can run as & when I feel like getting a good workout.

As I am an injury-prone runner, I read a lot about injury prevention specifically relating to running. Running no doubt can cause injuries in lower limbs (calves, ankles, Achilles tendon, etc) and lower back. These problems usually occur due to poor technique, uneven surfaces, muscle overuse, excessive training or incorrect footwear. In this Injury Prevention series, I will talk about some common injuries related to running, and also how Pilates can help prevent or rehabilitate them.

*However, information presented in P-Latte is meant for your reference only, you should stop from training if you experience pain during or after exercise and seek medical advice*

Piriformis Syndrome

Signs and Symptoms: Pain or numbness felt in buttock that sometimes radiating down the leg, especially when the hip is externally rotated.

Possible cause: Relying too much on one leg (such as when running on uneven surface, poor running posture, or when one leg being longer than the other); minor twisting on one leg due to incorrect running style; and a weak piriformis muscles.

How to prevent: Stick to even running surfaces, avoid turning hips inwards when running, particularly when training on slopes; correct leg length discrepancy.

How can Pilates help:

1. Hip Opening - Strengthen the gluteus medius muscle.

2. Single Knee Kicks - Lengthen the psoas muscle

3. Piriformis stretch - lengthen and relax the piriformis

4. Knee Drops - Stretch external hip rotators, gluteus maximus, obturator internus, gluteus medius/ minimus, psoas,obturator externus and piriformis.

~ More "injuries" in Part 2 and 3,so read on! ~

Where to Learn Pilates, IN MACAU

My friend from Macau was inspired to learn Pilates, but she wonders if she can find a decent Pilates place in Macau.

I did a quick search and found Macau Pilates Practitioners Association on its government website.

I was quite impressed because there isn't any Pilates Association set up in Singapore yet.

However, there is no other useful information about Pilates in Macau on Google. :(

I will check with my Pilates friends for more information. At the mean time, can anyone out there help me and my Macau friend??

Where to Learn Pilates, IN SINGAPORE

In my entry, "Where to learn Pilates", I have given a brief on various types of facilities/venues where you can learn Pilates. Follow the hyperlinks below to find out where to locate some of them in Singapore:

Pilates Studios	Core Fitness Physiotherapy and Pilates (Orchard - Forum Galleria) Focus Pilates(Raffles Place & Orchard)
	Pilates Bodyworks(Raffles Place; Buona Vista)
	Sky Pilates(Orchard)
	Classic Pilates(Closed wef 1-aug-09, taken over by Options Studio, tks Karen for the info)
	Pilates Central (Tanjong Pagar)
	Jace Physio Pilates (Orchard Wisma Atria)
	PowerMoves(Bishan, Dempsy)
	Ivana Daniell Studio (Camden)
	iPilates(Orchard) Pilates Fitness (Telok Blangah)
	Options Studio(Bukit Timah, Dhoby Ghaut)
	Pilates-The-Studio
	The Pilates Inc.(Marine Parade)
	The Moving Body(Robinson Quay, Bt Timah)
	Elements Pilates(Orchard Tanglin)
	The Pilates Flow (Bt Timah) Breathe Pilates (Novena) Pilates Body Pilots (North Buona Vista)
Health Clubs/ Fitness Centers	Singapore Sports Council (Public Sports & Recreation Centres)
	People's Association (Community Centres)
	California Fitness Center
	Planet Fitness
	Fitness First
	True Yoga
	Amore
	Sky Fitness
	Creative Body
	The Body Clinic
	Hotel Clubs
	Country Clubs
Hospitals/ Chiropractic/ Physiotherapist	Singapore General Hospital
	Changi General Hospital
Dance Schools	Jitterbugs
	Tanglin Arts Studio for Dance
	Singapore Dance Theatre
Home Studios	Pilates By The Bay (Previously known as The Pilates Touch at East Coast)
	The Pilates Studio (Seletar)
	Uplift Pilates (Jelita )
	46 Degree Pilates Spunky Pilates (Bukit Timah)
Freelance Instructors	If you want to engage freelance instructor to teach at your workplace/condo/home, contact me for more details. I will try to provide instructor choices, besides myself, through my network of instructor friends :-p)

The above listing serves only as a limited reference for your convenience and it does not intend to endorse/recommend any of them. I have tried some of them so you can contact me to find out my personal views on them.

And if you know of any other facilities/venues to learn Pilates in Singapore (which I might have missed out), please share the contacts/ leads by dropping me a comment.

I will update this list every now and then and you may want to bookmark this page. Click the Bookmark button below and revisit this page. (Last updated on 17 April 2012)

Where to learn Pilates

Your personal preferences and lifestyle might determine what environment works best for you:

Pilates Studios	these businesses focus solely on Pilates, thus they can tailor your Pilates sessions to your special fitness or rehabilitation needs. A fully equipped and staffed studio can offer a larger range of appointment and class times, and many types of sessions, including private, small groups, and slightly larger classes (but not too large!) Typically on a pay-by-session or –class basis, not by membership
Health Clubs or Fitness Centers	offer Pilates along with many other fitness activities, such as yoga and aerobics. Usually membership is required. Typically only Pilates mat classes are offered because they rarely have equipment. These mat classes can be quite large and very mixed in level, which may not address your needs. Some clubs and centers consider Pilates to be an extra and charge an added fee, so ask for details.
Hospitals/ physiotherapy/ Chiropractic Clinics	Focus on rehabilitation or clinical Pilates, versus fitness. Usually offer only private one-on-one instruction, and only limited instructors and time slots available.
Dance Schools	Some offer private instruction or group classes
Home Studios	Some individual instructor set up shop in their home. Usually shops are intimate, personal, quiet, and can be informal (you might have to walk through the kitchen and share a bathroom with the family)
Freelance Instructors	Some instructors do not teach at fixed location, they teach mat classes at client’s premises, such as condominiums, offices or parks. Some of them can be contacted through Pilates studios where they get their certification from.

I have tried most of the options and realised the quality of instruction varies. Personally I like Pilates studios the most as the low instructor:student ratio is very conducive for learning. Most importantly you have to, basing on your very own preference and lifestyle, consider things like location, cost, available supporting staff, class structure and other services, of all your possible options.

Before you commit, try asking if you can observe some sessions and check out the following:

1. Do you like the atmosphere? Is it warm and inviting, also conducive for mental concentration?
2. Do the clients look like they're having good time?
3. Is the teacher focused on instruction, or is she answering the phone, eating and chatting away?
4. How's the condition of the equipments and overall cleanliness of the place?

Read on for "Where you can learn Pilates in SINGAPORE"

Learning Pilates: by yourself or from instructor?

There are great variety of books, DVDs and even online videos that show you how to perform Pilates exercise at home. So can I teach myself with these learning aids or do I need to learn from professionals?

My take is that, it is always good to start learning Pilates, especially the foundation & fundamentals, from certified instructor in a professional environment. This is because a teacher’s trained and watchful eye can ensure that you develop only good habits as you learn the Pilates method of body conditioning. Also, learning in a professional environment is a stimulating and educational experience. You learn by observing other people working out – seeing and hearing the teachers and other students in the process of learning and practicing Pilates.

As you progress, you can depend less on your instructor and practice more on your own. Learning aids mentioned above are good supplements to your guided lessons. They remind you of what your instructor told you so that you can practice at home. However no learning aids will beat the guidance of an experienced instructor.

No matter how advanced our Pilates training and experience might be, you’ll always find that an instructor’s guidance is valuable. Your Pilates workouts will change your body; and your instructor will make sure your Pilates exercises continue to benefit your development.

My Dissertation on Pilates

When I first started on researching for my dissertation, I knew it is not going to be easy, because there are many confounding factors.

But the more I read about it, the more I realise what kind of trouble I am getting myself into. My study will involve a lot of different fields (like sports physiology, immunology, motor control, exercise psychology etc) and I think this is going to be rather demanding for someone like me who does not have sports undergrad and at the same time totally sucks at statistics. There is really a LOT of reading to do.

It makes things worst that I am not a good writer. I cannot really express myself clearly in words, especially in English. So I am constantly stuck whenever I open Microsoft Word, and my brain just constipates with all the concepts and logic trapped inside.

So I hope that writing this blog can help "warm up" my organisational skills and let me synthesize my messy thoughts into at least a Chapter One of my thesis.

Resume Running!

I have stopped running/training after the 2006 marathon (shamefully that was more than 8 months ago), and I had hardly been active since then. I was too overwhelmed with both the demand of my new job and the super hectic wedding preparation. There was not any moment that my mind could completely calm down for more than 3 minutes, so practicing Pilates in my noisy home was quite impossible.

After months of disuse, my muscles are extremely weak. Resuming running is never easy, and frankly I hate to feel my heavy feet dragging on the ground, while my whole upper body struggled to keep itself upright. I decided to take it slow to build back my fitness, so I allowed myself to walk as and when I needed to during the first few slow jog sessions. Afterall exercise and training should be enjoyable, never torturous.

During the first few slow jog sessions, I ignored how far or how fast I had run but focused only on my own body. I made sure while I ran my tummy was engaged, my shoulders were properly organised, my neck stayed long and my chest was opened-wide. I also focused on breathing with my ribs to fully expand my lungs (which were so compressed by inactivity). It was tough to apply all these Pilates fundamentals to my weak moving body, but the hard work paid off. After just three re-conditioning runs (plus few short Pilates sessions at home), my muscle memory came back and I felt at ease running again. It was a wonderful feeling to know that I can actually run again!

Now I am more confident that I can complete the Triladies Triathlon on 23 Sept 07. It will be my "come-back" race since the OSIM tri July 06.

Translating P-Latte

I tried translating my blog by "Translate this page" function on the right sidebar, and below is my profile in traditional Chinese. I have re-translated the Chinese back into English in the brackets:

terrimonster -戶外情人 (Outdoor Lover) 我是脂肪和不適宜，因為年輕。(I am lipid and unsuitable, because of youth.) 我第一次把身體活動，為求虛榮，(I first time move my body, because of material wealth) 但品嚐後的好處留適合，我想分享我的經驗和知識，(but after savouring the advantage keep suitable, i want to share my experience and knowledge) 保持健康，誰得身體健康和生活質量。 (keep healthy, who get healthy body and living quality.) 正攻讀碩士學位運動和體育研究與本地大學。 (Currently pursuing a Master Degree "Exercise and Sports Studies and local university") 但畢業是延誤進度，我的論文是教練可笑緩慢。(But graduation is delay progress, my dissertation is coach ridiculously slow)

The Chinese translation was really hilarious! Go try the translating function if you understand Chinese and it will definitely give you a good laugh.

Apparently, Pilates (彼拉提斯) is not yet established or well known in Asia, such that Google had problem finding the right Chinese word for it. The word "Pilates" was translated into "Coach", "Art", "Uniform", etc. I thought by adding the translation function, I can reach out to non-English readers. I guess it is still a long way before I can share my Pilates journey with people who don't understand English.

Can Christians practice Pilates?

Recently one of my friend told me she can’t join in my Pilates class because her pastor told her she is not supposed to do yoga and Pilates (without explicitly explaining the reason why). I understand that yoga is discouraged by some Christians because, in its most original form, it involved meditation, and Christians are not allowed to practice meditation. As mentioned in my “Yoga VS Pilates” article, Pilates is an exercise system, thus differed from yoga, which does not involve any spiritual meditation.

Quoting from the book, “The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning – The Original Pilates Book” (2005, Friedman & Eisen):

“Unlike most exercise programs, Pilates follows carefully laid-out principles based on a well-constructed philosophical and theoretical foundation (with no mysticism or appeals to unseen forces, divine or otherwise).”

Pilates is a “mind and body exercise”, but it doesn’t mean it trains the mind through meditation. It actually emphasizes on neural muscular connection, that is, to control every muscular moment with mental focus and concentration.

So to all my dear Christians friends, please rest assured that Pilates does not have any conflict with your faith, so do join me in my classes to learn more about how Pilates can benefit your mind and body.

*Related post: Christian's View on Pilates

Do I need Pilates if I'm already Weight Training?

Yes! Weight trainers should also do Pilates, as they have particular benefits to draw from Pilates. Many weight-training exercises tend to concentrate on isolated muscle groups, where the muscle "bulk up" over time. Pilates simultaneously strengthens and lengthens your muscles uniformly, creating supple power.

Moreover, Pilates saves precious time by training all the small (but important) and deep stabilizing muscles along side with the large ones, which would otherwise be very time-consuming to train using traditional weight training method (imagine doing 3 sets of 15 reps of weights for each and every small muscle!)

By training the stabilizing muscles and teaching the body to move in good motor control, Pilates will make every movement more efficient and powerful, allowing the weight-trainer to train harder and reap more benefits from each weight training session. It also help to prevent injuries from weight lifting too.

Pilates VS Yoga

When I tell others about Pilates, most people would tell me, “Oh, I know! That thing that looks like yoga right?”, or “is it the same as yoga?”

In this geographical region yoga has been more established while Pilates is the up and coming "new" fitness trend. Pilates and yoga have exploded in popularity and have millions of enthusiastic practitioners throughout the world. They are both considered 'mind-body' fitness workouts; it makes it even harder for people to tell the difference when some Pilates exercises are actually strikingly similar to that in yoga. Many people would wonder: which is better? Well, as is often the case, there is no simple answer to this question. Both Pilates and yoga have many, many benefits associated with practicing them on a regular basis. Both will help you improve your coordination, flexibility, and posture while relieving stress and reducing 'imbalances' in your musculoskeletal system. But the real difference between Pilates and yoga are probably more philosophical in nature.

So, with my limited knowledge, I attempted to do a super simplified list of the differences between Pilates and yoga here:

Pilates	Yoga
Created about 80-years ago by Joseph Pilates, who was inspired by various exercise methods & systems including the ancient yoga asanas.	An ancient practice that was originally practiced in Northern India over 5,000 years ago.
An exercise system of effective but gentle, whole-body conditioning and corrective exercises. It was first practiced by dancers and gained mass attention in recent years because of its largely aesthetic body sculpting effects.	A lifestyle, rather then simply an exercise. It includes everything from physical postures and healthy diet to breathing, relaxation and meditation skills.
Mainly concentrates on cultivating core strength in the body, lengthening the spine. Also, Pilates is a valuable tool for increasing strength, definition and proper posture	Has a 'spiritual' focus and it aims to work the body equally and unite the body with mind and spirit; and it helps people find harmony and release stress
Pilates has a full complement of mat work, but it also incorporates work on Pilates machines, such as the reformer, cadilac and the barrel.	Yoga has many different styles, but all are generally performed in a group setting on a yoga mat with the aid of a yoga instructor.

In conclusion, although both exercise forms aim at connecting mind and body, Pilates is non-spiritual and takes a scientific approach towards bringing the parts of the body into control and balance. The breathing is different - in Pilates, you pull your stomach in to build abdominal strength, while in Yoga you allow it to expand as you breathe. Pilates is about the body in motion, while Yoga entails holding the body in a variety of poses.