fokus tips for athlēts: runners

Often, it's the small competitive advantage that makes the difference between a good performance, and a great performance. The best athletes understand that it's not big improvements that make a great day, but small, steady improvements over time. Consider as a runner, stride length.

At 170 strides per minute, at 44 inches per stride, a runner will cover a mile in 8:30.

At 160 strides per minute, at 46 inches per stride, a competing runner will run the same 8:30 pace.

At 170 strides per minute, at 46 inches per stride, the winner will run the same mile in 8:10.

That's a 5% improvement in stride length - and most runners would agree that 5% is a small improvement. This small improvement in stride length is largely a function of core strength (power in alignment) and flexibility (increasing range of motion through the rear ankle, knee and hip), both of which are core concepts of the Pilates Method. However, the Pilates Method goes further towards increasing your competitive edge. You'll train your body to react to athletic demand with control: alignment and breath control both reduce fatigue.

classical pilates

The Discipline:

Pilates at reform bode The Pilates Method is an interesting, adaptive discipline like no other. While it's well-known for creating the slim lines and strong core that are sought after by models, actors and dancers, Pilates is a powerful corrective tool for regular human beings. Since application of the method is designed to vary with individual needs, each and every session will focus on 'Your Work': slumping shoulders; a weak leg; tight hamstrings; and old injuries are just a few.

For athletes, Pilates is a great complimentary training tool to help focus on the small things that give you a competitive advantage. For a runner, abdominal strength can help increase stride length. For cyclists, abdominal and inner thigh work can help keep you tucked and aligned longer into your ride. For triathletes, learning to regulate your breathing through repeated exertions will improve endurance. And for ex-athletes, particularly collegiate athletes who worked too hard for too many years to build muscle, and sustained injuries that never healed, Pilates can help lengthen, strengthen and slim.

Single, Duo, & Trio Sessions:

Single, Duo and Trio sessions. We offer private Pilates sessions for singles, duos and trios on equipment orginally designed by Joseph Pilates. You'll come to crave the energy and invigorating feel of the 'internal shower' (ask: we'll loan you a book), and enjoy the counter- syncopated rhythm of breathing and motion that is unique to Pilates. Pricing varies based on schedule and availability - we believe in the law of supply and demand: come at an off-peak time, and we'll cut you a break.

Mat Classes:

Pilates is unique in another aspect, when compared with other disciplines, in that group classes are both the most simple and the most advanced implementation. Why? As your skill increases, your ability to provide a more challenging experience for yourself improves, and the difficulty advances to a new level in correlation with your skill. While our Pilates Mat classes are geared for beginners, our advanced Pilates clients enjoy them side-by-side with beginners and claim (often, loudly and with exhausted grunts) that, done properly, mat is harder than work on a reformer. Mat classes are $12 each, with significant break for multi-class passes. See our class schedule for more information.