In my Miami Half Marathon race report, I mentioned that Pilates was an integral part of my strength training regimen for the race. Here’s why I did it and how.
Why Pilates is great for runners Pilates benefits runners in many ways, but these are my top five and the specific benefits I had in mind during my training:
- Core strength = all over strength. Being strong through my “Powerhouse” – in Pilates, defined as the band of muscles located from breast bone to knees and wrapping around the body, mainly referring to the abdominals and back – dramatically improves my performance as a runner. Training your body to initiate movement from its “energetic center” makes all of your movements more powerful.
- Hip, knee, and ankle stability and alignment. This one was key for me since I’ve had some issues with knee pain. Pilates – particularly work on the Reformer – is excellent at identifying and correcting imbalances in alignment. Remembering that our ankles are connected to our knees are connected to our hips should give any runner the motivation to train the leg muscles and ligaments to best support these joints and allow them to support each other through proper alignment.
- Body awareness and control. Pilates makes the mind/body connection like no other fitness modality I’ve tried. Being aware of your body gives you a sort of early warning system of impending injuries…and being in control of your movements allows you to adjust on the spot to prevent mishaps.
- Flexibility and injury prevention. Flexibility training – an inherent part of the Pilates system – has been shown to increase range of motion and prevent injury. Why wouldn’t you want to at least decrease your odds of sitting out a season due to an injury?
How Pilates is great for runners Some specific exercises I added or modified for my training:
- Squats with Roll Down Bar. Muscles trained: quads, hamstrings, glutes.
- Footwork with heavy springs. One-leg and two-leg variations. Muscles trained: quads, hamstrings, soleus, hip flexors.
- Side Leg Series on the Reformer (ouch!). Muscles trained: glutes, quads, hamstrings, hip flexors, hip adductors/abductors.
- Leg Springs (Cadillac). Muscles trained: hip flexors, hip adductors/abductors, glutes, hamstrings.
- Going Up Front (Chair). Muscles trained: quads, hamstrings.
- Going Up Side (Chair). Muscles trained: quads, hamstrings, adductors/abductors.
In addition to all of the above, I included standard Pilates core training (via matwork and/or other apparatus work) in both of my twice-a-week Pilates sessions. My injury-free season and strong race performance are due in large part to Pilates. (The rest of the credit goes to my amazing coaches and Team in Training teammates.). 🙂
Any other Pilates devotees + runners out there? Please add to this list with other Pilates exercises you like for runners. Always looking for more…Lake Placid Half Marathon training starts very soon!
