Pilates exercises for slimming thighs

Pilates technique

Pilates classes have no age restrictions. The technique is often used to restore the spine after various types of injuries; it is also important that Pilates can make the figure more slender and toned.

To practice Pilates, it is not at all necessary to attend group training; the technique can be mastered on your own.

It is important to remember that breathing during exercise should be rhythmic and smooth, and the movements themselves should be slow and as conscious as possible.

It is also worth noting that in order to strengthen your health and form a beautiful body, you need to perform a Pilates gymnastics complex, which will include exercises aimed at working various muscles.

To summarize, we will dispel the popular myth about the uselessness of Pilates

The difference looks impressive, but this is where we often forget about the fundamental difference between Pilates, which is a gentle technique. This means that you will not only lose weight, but strengthen your joints, make your muscles more elastic, and make your body’s immune defense more stable. Yes, the process will be a little slower, but remember - whoever drives quieter will definitely be further along.

By the way, Pilates is a great way to get in shape for those who started training for the first time or returned to training after a long break. By performing simple movements that force every muscle in your body to tense, you will gently prepare your joints and ligaments for further stress. For the same reason, Pilates with a weight loss ball is suitable for pregnant women, as it very gently and gently helps control weight.

By exercising, you learn to breathe correctly, develop endurance (both physical and internal), and most importantly, shape your figure with pleasure, without exhausting yourself with strength training. Strengthened immunity, a great mood and, in a good sense, a smooth emotional background are a bonus for everyone who discovers Pilates gymnastics.

On the pages of our website we have already talked about the effectiveness of the Pilates method for losing weight and improving body quality.

In this article, we offer you a unique selection of Pilates exercises for problem areas that will help you strengthen your muscles, tighten your stomach, and improve the shape of your buttocks and legs.

Pilates exercise for the abs and for the formation of an elastic abdomen

1. Lie on your back and try to stretch your body as much as possible, with your arms lying along your body, palms down.

Now bend your knees and point your chin towards your chest so that your fist can pass between them.

At the same time, stretch your arms parallel to the floor, while it is extremely important that your shoulders are level; in this exercise you should never slouch.

Particular attention should be paid to breathing: one inhalation and exhalation should be approximately 10 seconds.

The essence of the exercise is to make sharp vertical movements with your arms after each breathing cycle, while your head and body should be fixed and your stomach should be retracted.

If the exercise is performed correctly, you will feel your abdominal and shoulder muscles warm up.

It's optimal if you can do about 100 arm swings, but to achieve this result, constant practice is required.

Exercises for breast enlargement. Take note of this material.
How to take carnitine /nutrition/dobavki-nutrition/kak-prinimat-karnitin-dlya-pohudeniya.html. Useful recommendations and recipes.

Advantages and disadvantages

Main positive aspects:

given even to people without sports training, whose abs are very poorly developed;
works to strengthen all abdominal muscles, as well as muscles from other groups;
like all techniques in Pilates, it uses not only superficial, but also deep muscles;
There is almost no chance of injury while performing.

When people talk about abdominal training, crunches are most often mentioned. A hundred is much more effective, the result becomes noticeable much faster.

The difference is in the duration of the effect; in this case, the target muscle groups remain under tension longer.

Despite all the advantages, there is a significant drawback. People with good physical training will quickly stop getting results, since a trained body has the ability to adapt to stress. This is why athletes use the hundred exclusively as a warm-up technique. However, this minus has nothing to do with beginners.

Pilates exercises for buttocks and thighs

1. Lie on your stomach, rest your head on your arms bent at the elbows. Now, as you exhale, lift both legs off the floor and vigorously hit your heels against each other in the air.

This movement must be repeated for one breathing cycle, that is, about 10 seconds.

To feel the results of the exercise, it must be performed in 3 approaches, each of which must have 3 repetitions.

Such heel strikes not only train the muscles of the thighs and buttocks very effectively, but also perfectly strengthen the abs and influence the formation of beautiful posture.

2. This exercise is aimed at developing the muscles of the inner thigh, which are rarely given due attention during regular training.

To perform it, lie on your right side, stretch your body, place your right hand under your raised head. Bend your left knee so that your foot is on the floor.

Now, as you inhale, slightly lift your right leg off the floor, and as you exhale, lower it back into place. During training, at least 10 movements must be made on one side.

Emphasis on the buttocks

Speaking about Pilates for the buttocks, experts note that it is designed to strengthen the “center of strength” as well as flexibility. All of them are performed in a side lying position and, in addition to the area under consideration, strengthen the inner and outer sides of the thighs.

What exercises did Joseph Pilates provide for the buttocks? First, lift to the inner thigh. To do this, in the indicated position, raise the leg located on top to an angle of 45 degrees. Then smoothly raise the other leg towards it, hold for 5-10 seconds and lower.

Secondly, "Bicycle". Maintaining the starting position, the leg on top is brought bent at the knee back so that it touches the buttock. Then they are brought to the chest, straightened and bent again, imitating the movements of riding a bicycle.

Thirdly, leg swings and circular movements. The first are carried out in a large arc from the maximum reached point in front of the chest to the extreme point behind the back. The second - with one leg located on top, in a small circle.

It is worth noting that with regard to the buttocks, the system in question places more emphasis on their joint training with the hips or legs. And this makes sense, because... simultaneous load on two zones promotes the development of coordination.

In conclusion, it remains only to emphasize that it is better to begin your first experiments in the world of Pilates, especially when it comes to the muscles of the legs, buttocks and thighs, under the supervision of a trainer and only after mastering the technique to proceed to independent exercises.

Pilates for the back: spine stretching exercise

It is recommended to move on to stretching after performing the previous exercises, since in this case excess tension is removed from the spine.

Sit on the floor, spread your legs at a distance equal to shoulder width, straighten your back. Next, as you inhale, pull your stomach in a little and slowly lower your whole body down, vertebra by vertebra.

Now exhale and stretch forward, but not with your head, but with your chest and arms, and then, as you inhale, carefully return to the starting position. After this, also smoothly lower your body towards your right leg, clasping your foot with your palms.

Straighten your back and repeat the movement on the other side.

In this case, slowly performing the exercise is of fundamental importance.

It is much more important to do a good stretch than to simply bend over more times.

Pilates for the abdomen: 9 best exercises

Pilates for the abdomen is considered one of the best options for losing excess fat, regardless of volume, weight or build. The fact is that almost every movement, every step or turn in Pilates is aimed at a specific muscle group. So if your main goal is a perfectly flat stomach, then Pilates is definitely one of the best ways to achieve it. (Moreover, this does not require any gym conditions or special equipment.)

Pilates = flat stomach 19451

So, try these few exercises and you can lose belly fat with Pilates in record time!

Focus on breathing: Pilates for the abdomen (video) 18469

Exercises: Pilates for the abdomen

These nine Pilates exercises will literally sculpt your belly in no time. Follow these nine exercises step by step and in a couple of weeks you will be surprised at the results.

1. Hundred 19922

1. "Hundred". Lie on the floor, stretch and squeeze your legs, and also extend your arms to your sides (A). Raise both legs a few inches off the mat, squeezing your glutes, but in such a way that you also feel a strong tension in your lower abdominal muscles. Raise your head, extend your arms, palms down, parallel to each other, and look at your toes (B). Then raise your hands above your hips and begin to vigorously lower them and raise them up and down. At the same time, hold a long, steady inhalation for five such movements, and then an equally long and steady exhalation for the next five movements (C). The first exercise must be performed in at least two approaches (usually 2 to 5 approaches are performed first, each with 10 repetitions). Over time, you need to reach 100 such “jerks” (hence the name of this exercise in Pilates).

2. Saw 20001

2. "Saw". Sit on the floor with your back as straight as possible and your waist muscles tense. Spread your arms straight out to the sides at shoulder height—extend them so far that you feel like you could literally “crack a nut” between your shoulder blades. With your feet wider than yours, bend them from the ankles so that they are flat against the mat rather than in the air (A). As you inhale, you need to turn your torso as far as possible to the left and hold your hand, palm down, directly above your left knee (B). Exhale and slide your right hand along the outside of your leg in three progressive forward motions, simulating a “sawing” - you should feel tension in the muscles of your lower abs. As you do this, keep the weight of your lower body even on the mat, even though your upper body is trying to lift your lower body off the floor (C). Inhale and return to the starting position. Repeat the sequence, but this time to the right. Perform three approaches (1 exercise counts as a turn to both the left and right sides).

3. Leg stretching 19356

3. “Stretching your legs.” Lie on the mat, hug both knees, pressing them with your hands to your chest, while stretching your head forward and spreading your elbows as wide as possible (A). Breathe with control: inhale as you pull your legs forward and arms back - the limbs should stretch in maximum opposition to each other, only in this way the abdominal muscles will work deeply to support the spine (B). Now exhale slowly and, trying to return to the reverse “hug” position, use the pull of your knees. As you exhale, use your stomach and chest to force more and more air out of your lungs (C). Repeat this exercise 6 times.

4. Crisscross 19480

4. "Criss-cross" Lie on your back, place your hands behind your head and place them palm to palm at the back of your head. Lie with your head up and your knees tightly closed, bent closer to your chest (A). Now slowly inhale and twist your torso to the left until your right elbow connects with your left knee, while straightening your right leg forward (it should be kept 7-10 centimeters above the mat). Exhale and twist to the right, bringing your left elbow as close to your right knee as possible while extending your left leg (B). Continue alternating sides, performing the exercise 6 times (1 time = left + right).

5. Corkscrew 19674

5. "Corkscrew". Lie on your back with your arms extended as far as possible, pressing them tightly to your sides. Tighten your legs throughout your inner thighs, pressing them tightly together. Start lifting your feet off the floor. Inhale slowly as you lift your legs overhead, bending them to the side, balancing your center of gravity in the middle of your back, between your shoulder blades (A). Exhale as you bend your legs and torso to the right (B). When your right gluteus maximus touches the mat, begin to circle your legs back to the left and inhale slowly at the center (C). Tightening your abs, keep your legs off the floor and slightly diagonally in the opposite direction (D). Perform the exercise three times in each direction.

6. One Leg Circles 19511

6. “Circles with one leg.” Lie on the floor, squeezing your legs tightly and extending them to their maximum length. Place your arms at your sides, while your back and shoulders should be pressed to the floor. Extend one leg up toward the ceiling, keeping it as straight as possible and as close to perpendicular to the floor as possible (A). Start drawing circles in the air with this leg according to the pattern: (B, C and D). Keep your breathing under control - synchronize it with your movements. Perform a full five circles in each direction and then switch legs.

7. Difficult task 19538

7. "A difficult task." Lie on the floor with your arms thrown back and extended above your head (biceps should be at ear level). Also stretch the entire length of the leg strongly: the fingers of the lower extremities should be in opposition to the tips of the fingers. Keep your back straight by squeezing your legs tightly together (A). Now begin to sharply lift your limbs off the floor, keeping your back and buttocks on the floor. Keep your hands shoulder-width apart and only then begin to lift your legs (B). Inhale as you move your arms forward. When your arms are parallel to your hips, lift your back off the floor, bringing it towards your legs. At the same time, try not to twist the pelvis - stretch through the vertebrae (C). As you begin to lower yourself to the starting position on the floor, exhale slowly. Do this exercise three times.

8. Swimming 19499

8. "Swimming." Lie on your stomach, lower your head with your forehead down, your stomach and pelvis should be pressed tightly to the mat, and your legs should be pressed together along the entire inner surface of your thighs. Keep your arms extended forward, palms down, and your legs extended even to the toes. Raise your arms, legs, chest and head in one jerk and hold them in this position for several seconds (A). Now inhale and exhale as you begin to “row” with your arms and legs, alternating your right arm and left leg (B) and your left arm and right leg (C), but without touching your limbs to the mat. Perform this exercise for several minutes: slowly, raising your limbs higher and higher.

9. Tilt to the sides 19577

9. "Tilt to the sides." This is the most difficult exercise in Pilates for the abdomen. Sit on one hip with your hand on one side for support and your legs slightly bent to the side on the floor with your ankle stacked over your ankle (A). Inhale as you lift your hips up off the mat and extend your arm overhead, forming a high arc through your torso (B). Move your hand back to your outer thigh and turn your chin toward it (C). Exhale slowly as you lower yourself back down to the floor. Repeat 3 cycles (6 exercises in total - 3 in each direction).

Bonus: Pilates for the stomach and sides (video) 18473