Improve Your Technique of the Pilates Chest Lift

[@mariemaroszova1040]

Why is it important, to keep the pelvis neutral and avoid pelvic tilt/work from ribs up only (especially muscle/alignment vise)? You mentioned we dont want the rectus abdominis to work, could you elaborate? Thank you for your videos, they really deepen my practice.

[@PilatesEncyclopedia]

Hi Marie! Great question. It's actually not totally necessary to keep the pelvis neutral, but what it does achieve if you choose to do the Chest Lift with a neutral pelvis, if that it teaches you (or your student) isolated thoracic flexion as well as lumbopelvic stability. Both of these movement skills are very important to master in order to attempt the more intermediate or advanced Pilates repertoire. So while it doesn't necessarily make a huge difference for the effect of this particular exercise, it WILL help you make much better progress lateron on your Pilates journey. In terms of the rectus abdominis, it's a spine flexor and for round back exercises it will work, but in Pilates we're mostly looking for "core strength" or "core stability" and the rectus abdominis is not one of the muscles helping with that. In order to stabilize your trunk (or core) you need to train your transversus abdominis and your obliques. Hope this helps.

[@SuperMexicola]

The rectus abdominis works : you are keeping the lower abdominal engaged: as you pull the lower abdominal inward and upward along the back all that way to the crown of the head

[@SuperMexicola]

The rectus abdominis works : you are keeping the lower abdominal engaged: as you pull the lower abdominal inward and upward along the back all that way to the crown of the head