Spring 2022 is full of promise as many of us emerge from historic lockdowns with plans to improve our fitness.
Whether you’re returning to an exercise regimen you enjoyed before the pandemic or have resolved to challenge yourself with new forms of movement, we recommend easing in.
Here, we outline a range of Pilates exercises that will help you avoid injury, incrementally build strength and improve mobility.
There’s something for everyone – from short routines targeting specific parts of the body to exercises popular with mindful movement veterans to recommendations on how a Pilates reformer can benefit recovery from illness.
Easing in
There’s a time and place for intensive cardio workouts that elevate your heart rate and so too your spirit. Whether or not your post-pandemic workouts will include high intensity training, when you begin increasing your activity level consider priming your body with this brief series of movements designed to help prevent injury.
The video, lead by Merrithew® Master Instructor Trainer Laureen DuBeau, demonstrates four simple exercises which can be easily done at home and with minimal equipment.
Another way to prepare yourself for an active spring is to incorporate the benefits of Pilates into your daily routine. Use simple techniques while you’re working from home to re-balance the muscles around each joint and restore the body to an optimal level of postural stability and functional mobility.
The great outdoors
With longer, warmer days ahead, it’s natural that more of our workouts will move outdoors.
This movement series does double duty as a standalone warm-up or as part of an intense cardio conditioning routine.
Merrithew Lead Instructor Trainer Jennifer Dahl demonstrates a dynamic series of exercises which focus on hand-eye coordination, and explore weight transfer and load with multi-planar and agility-based movements.
It’s a great routine to prepare you for seasonal activities like softball, tennis, swimming and soccer.
If summer for you means sunny days on the golf course, we’ve got you covered with this movement series which targets parts of the body that are engaged through every stage of teeing off and swinging. This series can also be completed at home and with minimal equipment.
Finally, if your summer season is likely to include outdoor runs, we recommend exercises which focus on integrating the whole body, rather than only looking at the lower body.
On the road to recovery
If the pandemic was particularly challenging for you, getting back into an active lifestyle can be especially daunting.
Consider a Pilates workout led by a professional who can assess your movement and offer targeted recommendations on how you can get on track for an active spring without aggravating aches and pains that may have cropped up during lockdowns.
A nice complement to physical therapy, Pilates can help you quickly restore mobility and strengthen parts of the body that have been dormant.
We take inspiration from those whose recovery from significant illness has integrated Pilates, including Merrithew Reformers now recognized in Europe as medical equipment:
As the warm weather approaches, we’re confident that incorporating Pilates exercises into your routine can help improve your strength and mobility while also avoiding injury. Easing into an active spring will position you to return to summer activities and sports that we’ve taken a break from during the pandemic.