Category Archives: Pilates with Martin

Video 6 – Core Strength, Pilates, Upper-Body Combo 1. Roll-Down Push-Up, 2. Roll-Out, 3. Ball Russian-Twist

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In this Pilates Video you are going to learn three exercises, two Pilates, Core Strength Exercises and one Upper-Body Toning and Strengthening Exercise.
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Keep your core muscles, your TVA (Transverse Abdominis) slightly engaged throughout to make these exercises safer for your lower back. Always consult a GP / physician before starting a new exercises regime, especially if you haven’t exercised for a long time on a regular basis.

(1) Pilates Push-Up & Roll-Down >> Focuses on increasing upper-body strength (arms, chest), improves spin & back mobility a small bit.
Stand tall, arms, shoulders and the neck area are relaxed. Roll-down into a push-up position, place your hands wide, to the right & left of the mat, aim to keep you neck long, avoid dropping your head if possible to avoid tension in the neck. Keep your hip lifted, maintain ideally a straight line – ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, top of your head. Breath in as you lower your upper-body, breath out as you push away from the mat or floor. Roll up on the next breath out and come into a standing position.
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(2) Swiss-Ball / Gym-Ball Roll-Out >> Focuses mainly on increasing your “global abdominal” strength (it strengthens various abdominal / stomach muscles at the same time)
Kneel in front of the ball, your wrists rest on ball, your elbows are slightly bent. Maintain a straight line from your knees to your shoulders and the top of your head. Keep your shoulders and neck loose and relaxed. Breath out as you roll out, breath in as you roll back up.
Avoid dropping your hip and keep your TVA, core muscles slightly engaged to protect your lower back.
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(3)  Russian Twist with a Gym / Swiss-Ball >> Focuses on toning your waist / increasing oblique strength and gets your thighs, buttock / gluteal muscles and mid / lower back a bit as well.
Rest the top of your upper back and the back of your head on a gym-ball, lift your hip to create a straight line from your knees to the crown of your head, keep your hip lifted and your ankles below your knees. Reach with your arms towards the ceiling, palms facing inwards. keep the shoulder relaxed. Breath out as you turn from your waist to the right, remember to keep you hip lifted, breath in as your return to the centre, turn to the left on your next out breath, breath in returning to the centre.
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To-Do-List:
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(1) Do a brief warm-up of 5-8min including some rotational and loosening moves for your neck, back, shoulders and your lower back or do some cardio exercises for 5-8min e.g. brisk walking.
(2) Do each exercise up to 10 times, assuming your back, neck, shoulders, knees and other joints etc. agree with the movement and there is no pain. Do three sets of each exercise.
(3) I suggest to keep an exercise and activity diary, which will allow you to recognize progress.
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Make a note of
(3.1) when you exercise time/date/duration,
(3.2) how many reps / sets you do,
(3.3) how the exercises are getting easier over time. I came up with a rating system.
I use a scale from 1 to 10 ( 1 = very very easy; 10 = extremely hard, nearly impossible).
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Let me know how you get on and if you have any questions.
Martin

Video 4 – Back Loosening, Stretching & Mobilizing Pilates Exercises

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Mid and Lower Back Loosening, Stretching and Mobilizing Pilates Exercises.

In this video you are going to learn two simple Pilates Exercises, that will allow you to
(1) loosen, (2) stretch and (3) mobilize mainly your mid and lower back.
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(1) Pilates Shoulder Bridge
The shoulder bridge will allow you to stretch mainly your mid an lower back, if correctly executed. Over the years I met a lot of people with lower back issues, pain and stiffness. This is one of the Pilates moves, that should help to loosen the lumbar spine (lower back) and bottom of the thoracic spine (mid back). Always consult your GP or physio therapist / physical therapist before starting any new exercise regime, especially i you have back issues. I would also consider it one of the very safe exercise, as there shouldn’t be any sudden, rushed or jerky move. Focus on ideally lifting and lowering vertebrae by vertebrae and controlling the movement.
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(2) Pilates Chest Opener or Crocodile
The chest opener mobilizes the spine in a rotational way, to the right and left. It focuses more on the thoracic spine and less on lumbar spine mobility than the shoulder bridge. The chest opener will also help you to  prevent rounded shoulders, as it stretches your chest or pectoral muscles. And to top it up it loosens tight neck muscles as well.

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To Do – List :
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(1) I recommend to do start with 5x Shoulder Bridges followed by 10x Chest Opener (Right/Left) – do 2-3 set. This could be done in the morning after waking up or after work, especially if you are sitting for hours on a desk or maybe if you do a lot of driving.
(2) Try to identify if certain areas of your back are looser than others, e.g. your lower back versus your mid back for the Pilates Shoulder Bridge.
(3) Be aware how far you can reach back with your arm and hand on your right versus your left (Chest Opener). Is it the same on both side or are there differences? Apply the same to your ability to turn your head and being able follow you fingers with your eyes.

Let me know how you get and what you have learned doing these exercises.
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Martin

Video 1 – Morning Pilates & Loosening Routine with Martin

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In this short Pilates video I’m demonstrating a sample Pilates routine that could be done:

  1. as a Morning Pilates Routine after getting up to boost you energy levels, wake up and loosen up after a good night’s rest.
  2. as a Warm-Up Routine before a work out or a run etc..
  3. in between when working at a desk / in a office  for several hours to break up the day (you might just do the Neck, Back and Upper-Body Stretches and Loosening moves).

I plan to create one video per week from now onward, where I demonstrate different Kettlebell, Pilates, Body-Weight Exercises, Resistance Training and other exercises. Nutrition and diet advice videos, with various tip, recommendations, food reviews etc. are also planned.

Please let me know if you are interested in particular routines, exercises or have any specific questions. 

Yours in Health & Fitness
__ Martin

6 over 8 week South Dublin Pilates – Special Offer – June, July, August 2016

Pilates South Dublin Summer 2016 Special Offer Rathfarnham Sandyford Dundrum Leopardstown Cabinteely Foxrock Dublin 16 Dublin 14 Dublin 18For the months of June, July and August 2016 we are going to run our “6 over 8 Pilates Class Summer Special” again. Meaning you can choose to pay for 6 classes and use them over an 8 week period. This allows you to book a class and at the same time have the flexibility that’s needed if you go on a two weeks holiday break. Terms and Conditions apply, see below.
This applies to the following fitness and exercise classes:
 1. Morning Pilates Classes 
 2. Over 60s Pilates & Fitness Classes
 3. Men Only Pilates / Core Strength Classes

• Beginners are welcome ! 
• Small Classes, there is a maximum of 8-10 class participants
• Various Pilates equipment is provided (Pilates Rings, Balls, Foam Rollers,  Gym Sticks etc.).
• Cost: €75 for 6 classes
• Cost: €100 for 8 classes (book this if you can do 8 consecutive weeks)
• 13 Years teaching experience
• Parking is free

• Find our Full Pilates, Fitness and Exercise Class Time Table for our
_ South Dublin Classes here, close to Dundrum, Leopardstown, Sandyford, Terenure, Rathmines, Rathgar, Churchtown, Bellarmine, Stepaside, Kiltiernan etc..
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Yours in Fitness and Health
_ Martin
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Terms and Conditions:
1. Your six-week class booking is valid for 8 consecutive weeks from
your first class onward.
2. A health screening form must be filled out before the start of the class,
find a link to the health screening form here (print and bring along to the first class please) www.PilatesDulbin.ie – Health Screening Form.

Mens Pilates, Men Only Pilates in South Dublin, Sandyford Aiken’s Village Belarmine Ticknock Stepaside Leopardstown D14 D16 D18

Click here >>> For Updates --- on *local In-Person Classes* - Register here.

View a Mens Pilates Sample Program below.

> A *new* set of Men Only Pilates classes start during the week of Monday 7th March 2016. << Mens Pilates classes for men, taught by a man. 
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I generally mix up the Mens Pilates and Core Strength Classes ( in the various South Dublin based venues ) in different ways to keep the classes interesting and motivating. This will give you ideas what you can do at home or as part of your own exercise and fitness routines.
Some class participants do three or four variations of exercises at the end of their own workouts, runs, resistance or weight training, or after a game of golf or tennis, or they incorporate it into their club training at the end of a ruby, GAA, or soccer training session.
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This includes the use of various fitness and exercise props e.g.
(1) Foam Rollers
(2) Pilates Rings
(3) Resistance Bands
(4) Smalls Balls
(5) occasionally Swiss Balls or sometimes called Gym Balls

Pilates Exercises can be combined in Duos, Trios, or just done as an ongoing sequence. There are various ways of teaching and incorporating these Pilates and Core Strength moves into your general daily or weekly workout routine and other exercise programs.

Knowing is not enough; we mus apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.
                                                   
                                                  Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Pilates Sample Program for Men:
Exercises were picked in a way to maintain balance in the body, avoid overuse of one particular muscle group and therefore injuries. I see it over and over again that people work only on their abdominal, stomach muscles and neglect back strengthening and mobilizing exercises, which will ultimately lead to back trouble and possibly injuries.
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(1) Warm-up: Various neck, shoulder, upper back, and spine mobilization, loosening and stretching exercises (these are generally good as most of us sit for hours in front of various screens and build up tension in the neck and shoulder area), sometimes a few simple body-weight moves e.g. squats, Pilates Push-ups, etc..
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(2) Main Section:
These Core and Pilates exercises are generally done in sets of 10-12 moves.
(2.1) Shoulder Bridges – to give the back and spine another good stretch before more core and abdominal exercises. This exercise is also good for glute activation.
(2.2) Single Legs Stretches – focus mainly on abdominal / core strength, rectus abdominis.
(2.3) Pilates Swimming or Superman – works on lower back strength and lengthens the back and spine at the same time, if done correctly, without putting pressure on the lumbar spine.
(2.4) Straight Arm Plank – mainly core / abdominal strength, plus a bit of upper body strength.
(2.5) Back extension – a mid and/or lower back strengthening exercise, depending on which version you do.
(2.6) Side Bends or Elbow Side Planks – another move to maintain balance in the body, it focuses mainly on the waist, the mid-riff also called obliques.  I generally recommend that you keep moving during this Pilates movement, to get more out of it.
(2.7) Roll-Up – an exercise that works on your straight abdominal muscles, a bit spine mobility/mobilization and adds in a very good hamstring/back of the leg stretch, all meaning is a great combination exercise (flexibility and mobility).
(2.8)  Check opening or Crocodile: a pure mobility and loosening exercise for your spine, mid and lower back. This exercise can stretch the neck muscles as well depending on how the exercise is done.
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(3) Cool Down and Stretching:
We focus here on loosening and stretching the muscles we used during the Pilates and Core Strength exercises, of the main section. This will include a lot of back, neck, hip flexor and hamstring, etc. stretches.

Contact Martin with any questions you might have and or to book a class.

>> The *New* set of Mens Pilates and Core Conditioning Classes start: <<
[1] Tuesday 8th March 2016 6-7pm Sandyford Community Centre, Lambs Cross, Dublin 18, D18
[2] Tuesday 8th March 2016 8.15-9.15pm Taney Parish Centre, Dundrum, Dublin 14, D14, close to the LUAS Bridge.
[3] Wednesday 9th March 2016 6.30-7.30pm IrishFit Shop, Running.ie Shop, Sandyford Industrial Estate, 5min walk from the Stillorgan LUAS stop, a view minutes drive from Stillorgan Village.
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Please contact Martin before paying online, to check class suitability and availability.
Class fees are €100 for 8 consecutive weeks (classes last for 1 hour), €14 Drop-in, Trial, or Pay-As-You-Go.