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March 2004

The Basic Pilates Posture

For Helping Golf

To practice this you need to be on the floor, on your back with your legs straight, reaching your heels further than your toes away from your body. Arms by your side with your palms down, reaching your fingers toward your toes , tuck your tailbone under a little. Breathe deep thru the nose to the sides and backs of your lungs , keeping your ribcage down toward the pelvis.
This is easier when you breathe out thru your open mouth , relax your jaw, don't hold your breath, relax your tongue. Keep breathing like this all the time.

Now bend your knees so your feet are hip width apart, keep your shoulders away from ears, down and together at the back. imagine you are looking from behind your pelvis and there is a clock on your lower belly. 12 oclock is your is your belly button 3 oclock is your left hip bone at the front, (you can feel it both sides) 6 oclock is at your symphysis pubis ( pubic bone right in the middle above your privates) 9 oclock is the right side hip bone at the front you have to keep this clockface level as if its got a cup of coffee on it and if you tilt anyway it will spill. The pelvis sits with all these level .

You move to 12 oclock by rocking your pelvis up to your belly button ( feels like flattening your back onto the floor) You move to 6 oclock by rolling your pelvis to feet direction by arching your lower back. Keep going. These positions are the extremes you try and stay with your spine in neutral, which is right between the two. And stay in the middle of 3 and 9 oclock too. Use this as a practice breathing position and get to learn where neutral pelvis is as you will need to keep this thru your golf training.

Stand with your feet hip width apart, stand up tall through the back of your neck with your chin tucked in, pull your shoulders tips away from your ears, with the shoulder blades at the back coming closer together. Make sure you breathe deep in thru your nose as you , keep your ribcage funneling toward your pelvis, don't let it lift up out. So breathe in to the backs and sides of your lungs. Keep your pelvis neutral that means not too arched with your lower back and not flat either but right in the middle of both. (you remember the earlier description that you practice and practice on the floor, so you can instinctively find it while standing.) Keep your knees slightly bent. And stay tall as you swing back and thru.

As you lift your backswing keep your shoulders away from your ears. Eyes on the ball, chin in just enough to keep a peach there under your chin. Just don't take it too high yet. I need to see you for that.. Follow thru with your back leg gently as you come forward, weight even on both feet. So stay tall, all the way thru, gently back to start with and gently forward and follow thru.