PILATES FOR PAIN MANAGEMENT
After suffering from chronic or acute pain, you may be skeptical of “exercise” offering you lasting relief. In fact, the idea of moving your body at all, or in a way you haven’t before can be frightening for someone who never knows what will “make it worse.”
The reality is, we are moving organisms. Our bodies are designed to move in different ways, and adapt and respond to change. However, modern life has evolved such that we either stop moving enough and suffer the ill effects of a sedentary lifestyle, or we develop unhealthy repetitive movement patterns. These could result from our daily grind or chosen exercises, but quite frequently, it’s the result of compensating for pain or injury.
When we look at these patterns in Pilates, everything goes back to posture and alignment. What is working, what isn’t, and how do we address the problem, but also fix the origin?
If you have overused your left leg due to a right hip injury or surgery, you’re going to compensate on the right side. Now, in addition to the pain in the right hip, you will have back pain, radiating hip pain on the opposite side, and a whole host of other issues. What started as right hip pain has progressed over the months and years to your entire left side being out of alignment and the muscles “firing” inappropriately or not at all.
Many of our muscles aren’t firing because of only moving in one plane of motion. Pilates is one of the only forms of movement that addresses all 5 planes of motion. Unless you’re a professional dancer or gymnast, Pilates is the most accessible way for the average person to address functional movement limitations. With Pilates, peoples’ bodies become more functional internally and structurally. Your posture improves, functional movements become easier and even enjoyable, and chronic pain diminishes or disappears.
When Pilates principles are combined with medical expertise, you get safe, effective results.
Owner and Registered Nurse, Jen Mapalad says, “In the last 14 years, I have seen hundreds of people come to me with chronic pain, and after committing to the work, they have eliminated their pain and gained strength and flexibility they never had. This system works, and in the right hands, it can be life changing.”
Pilates allows us to connect the dots of what is wrong and look at that pattern to fix it. It shows us the origin or root of the pain, and allows us to work systematically to restore function and movement. Combined with the medical expertise of someone in the field for over a decade, Pilates can be the answer for so many who are suffering and want to avoid painful surgeries or ongoing and potentially addictive medication.
Have you tried to manage your pain unsuccessfully with other types of rehab or medication? It might be time to try a system proven to alleviate pain. The only side effect will be how much better you feel!