Core & Reformer

Core & Reformer.

Today we discover how the reformer helps in the development of the core. The term core is used in sports to refer to the central area of the body, where our centre of gravity is located.

Joseph H. Pilates, created his method by establishing the concept of the powerhouse or energy centre, as the motor of all the exercises that make it up and from where the necessary strength is generated and directed towards the rest of the body. Often, due to a lack of knowledge, it is associated exclusively with the muscles of the abdomen. But the powerhouse is a wider area, stretching from the lower rib line to the lower hip line, like an “active girdle”. It houses the deep abdominal, lumbar, pelvic and gluteal muscles. It is the area responsible for maintaining balance and posture for any action and movement.

The reformer is the apparatus on which most of the time is spent in a Pilates class and all the exercises performed on it revolve around this energy centre. The strength of the centre is responsible for initiating and controlling the movement of the parts of the body that, depending on the exercise, we aim to move, giving stability to other areas of the body that in this case carry out support work. In this way, all the muscle chains are worked from this central area in a symmetrical way, enhancing the functionality and ergonomics of the body. In the reformer we use the strength of the centre to move the carriage held by springs, with which we work as if they were our muscles. This powerhouse is used to lengthen the muscles which, in turn, contract by holding the strength of the springs and stabilising the joints. If we have ailments or injuries to rehabilitate such as: lumbar or cervical pain or any joint in the extremities, the work of the reformer, by means of this central force, helps to exercise the muscles, gain tone and balance the forces necessary to improve the injured structure and provide movement, stability and control.