Chances are that over the last 24 hours, you’ve played with your pets or children, lugged groceries from the car to the kitchen or climbed a flight of stairs. What these daily tasks all require is good core strength and solid balance — and below is how KX Pilates can help you improve both.
Let’s begin by understanding what both are and why they are significant.
Core strength is the ability of the muscles of our abdomen, lower back and pelvis to work together to facilitate or support movement. Balance is the ability to maintain control of our body’s position while both stationary and when moving. Core strength and balance are intertwined and can be vital for optimising daily movement. The benefits of a strong core and good balance can include efficiency in everyday activities and movements as well as the potential for reducing injury. And if you’re into sports, imagine being able to better manoeuvre your board on the waves or slopes, nail dyno moves on the rock wall or quickly change directions on the field to throw off your opponent? Improving your core strength and balance can contribute to your athletic performance in all these areas and more.
Strengthening your core requires the ability to master awareness and control in both static positions and dynamic movements. KX Pilates for core strength begins with learning to properly activate your core muscles. Your KX trainer, who is both industry-trained and KX Academy-qualified, will guide you through a supportive and empowering workout, ensuring effective movements through technique and form tips. Improving balance requires developing an awareness of and training your body through varying planes and motions.
What’s fantastic about core strength and balance being interrelated is that by training smarter, you can build both at once — this is where KX Pilates comes into play! KX Pilates workouts blend the principles of traditional Pilates with the dynamic and strength-building elements of circuit training. Our high performance classes are done on a spring resistance apparatus called a reformer bed; at KX Pilates, ours is called the KXFormer, a proprietary version tailored to our unique training style.
In every 50-minute KX Pilates class, you are getting a fast-paced, full-body workout. By targeting different muscle groups in various exercises, your core is trained to stabilise in a variety of static (like the plank) and dynamic positions (think leg circles). By performing Pilates core exercises with resistance from the KXFormer, or with accessories like the KX Toning Ball, Ultra-Fit Circle and Dumbbells, your core muscles are challenged to adapt to the greater load and thereby grow stronger.
The dynamic element of KX workouts, combined with targeted balance exercises, help enhance your balance. Jumping movements and single-leg exercises demand body control and coordination, engage the peripheral postural muscles and promote better balance. The KXFormer’s moving carriage adds another opportunity to develop balance (and is another reason why KX Pilates for core strength is so effective). The instability from the carriage means you need to activate your small stabilising muscles, many of which are vital for balance. As your body continuously adjusts to find equilibrium in unstable conditions, your balance and core stability improve. Additionally, the KXFormer can be utilised and customised to ensure optimal movement purpose. With a multitude of positions available, you can ensure you’re targeting the desired muscles and moving efficiently and effectively.
Through KX workouts, you can also cultivate emotional balance through reduced stress levels, better sleep, and a more positive mood. Our focus on the mind-body connection creates a mindful experience during KX workouts. By concentrating on your breath and precise movements, you can achieve mental clarity, balance and a sense of control. From the intensity of KX workouts, you’ll get a boost in mood through the release of those wonderful, feel-good endorphins. As you regularly complete your KX workouts you’ll gain a sense of accomplishment that comes with mastering challenging exercises, that will help to build your confidence and self-esteem — and all of this contributes to greater mental health.
