Wine Country CrossFit

Reminder that we now offer a 30 minute Power Pilates class at 4PM on Thursdays. In fact, you can even sign up online so we know you will attend by clicking here.

Someone asked us last week  if  Pilates is useful for everyone at Crossfit? Even Men? Our answer is a resounding YES. Please read on for why doing Pilates will make you an even better CrossFitter:

Though men have always been part of the Pilates scene, the surge of popularity that Pilates has enjoyed in recent years has been powered to a large extent by a wave of women participants and instructors, leaving some with the impression that the Pilates method is more for women. Or you may have seen a commercial on TV showing a roomful of ballet-esque women performing leg raises as if they were the Rockettes.  This is an unfortunate side effect of an otherwise positive development.  The misconception that Pilates is a female-only activity couldn’t be further from the truth.  In fact, Pilates was developed by a man for men back in the 1919.  Joseph Pilates was a boxer, acrobat, and gymnast, and developed his exercise program from the background first and foremost for men. It’s also been a training vehicle for elite athletes, both men and women, for over 50 years; and men have figured prominently as instructors and promoters of the Pilates method throughout its history.

Why Pilates Works Well for Men (and Women) at Crossfit

Core strength, flexibility, balance, uniform development, and efficient movement patterns – all are hallmarks of Pilates training and highly relevant to everyone’s fitness.  If you are an active athlete you will discover that Pilates is a natural cross-training resource.  It will heighten your coordination, balance your strength, and sharpen your focus. The integrative component of Pilates can be especially beneficial for everyone at Crossfit, who’s WODs often emphasize a part-by-part approach to muscular development.  But imagine if you could take the core stabilizing benefits of Pilates and apply it to your squat, or your pull-ups, or your deadlift?  How dynamic, efficient and powerful could your performance be?  What is your ultimate potential?

Pilates training strengthens the core of the body-the deep abdominal muscles, gluteus muscles and the deep intrinsic muscles surrounding the spine.  Without strengthening these connective muscles, we are a lot more prone to injury. Pilates elongates the spine, increasing the elasticity of muscles and the flexibility of joints.  It is this balance between strength and flexibility that reduces the potential for injury.

Pilates, by contrast to other exercise forms, emphasizes moving from the center of the body, the “powerhouse”, and developing core strength in the deep muscles of the center to stabilize the trunk and protect your back. This kind of core training makes Pilates an excellent technique for whole-body fitness, like Crossfit, as well as a foundation for cross training with other kinds of sports and exercise.  The powerhouse is the workhorse in Pilates. You feel your powerhouse tighten your waist when you cough.  No matter what exercise you perform in Crossfit, you have to initiate your Powerhouse or Core muscles.  For now, we won’t get into the real guts of the Powerhouse, but it’s important to know that you have one, and reconcile that it may take some time to shake the dust off of it. Over time, you will learn to tap into these critical muscles for more power, more strength and great flexibility.

Increasing flexibility is a goal that Pilates addresses in a way that men often feel comfortable with. Pilates works toward functional fitness, sort of like Crossfit, right? That is, the ability to have the strength, balance, and flexibility that allows one to move through daily-life tasks with grace and ease. Pilates exercises do seek to increase flexibility and range of motion, but you won’t find the kind of pretzel stretches in Pilates that you might find in yoga.

What should you expect during the first few classes? At the beginning, chances are you will not be able to perform every exercise proficiently, but eventually, as you gain more control over your core, you will see dramatic improvements.  Just like Crossfit, it’s practice, practice, practice!!!!  Joseph Pilates said: “In 10 lessons you will feel a difference, in 20 lessons you’ll see a difference, and in 30 lessons, you’ll have a whole new body.”

3 Tips for anyone (especially Men) who are new to Pilates:

• Don’t be intimated by being in a class with a bunch of women.  (or rather use it to your benefit!)
• The exercises for Men and Women are not necessarily different; but as a guy you may find at the beginning that your flexibility (especially hamstrings and hips) is not quite that of the girl on the mat next to you.  Remember, Pilates was developed first by a man for men.  Tami modifies everything to suit your body, and allows stretching to happen gradually.
• Pilates is a body/mind practice where part of the exercise is to bring attention to every movement.  We are aligning the spine, training the core which goes way beyond the superficial (global) muscles, and will require more attention and micro-adjustments than you’re used to in other forms of exercise.  You can’t “just power through.” In Pilates, controlled, well-aligned movement is the ticket to a deeper level of fitness.

So, mix up your workout, come discover how to move from your “Powerhouse” – Power Pilates: every Thursday at 4pm.

-Ruthlessly plagiarized from Forrest at CrossFit SouthBay and posted by Beth, with a few changes….

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Wednesday’s WOD:

Alternate Skills:
Wall Walks
Pull Up work of athlete’s choice (kipping/L/Strict/Weighted/Bar Muscle Ups)

3 rounds for time:
5 Wall Walks
50 Double-Unders
5 Shoulders to Overhead 135/95

*See 3/29 for approximate scaling of shoulders to overhead from Open WOD 13.4 C&J WOD.