Pilates Classes Denver CO

By Carrie McCulloch

Carrie McCulloch is a 4th-year medical student at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Co-Director of Kinected , and Co-Director of the Functional Anatomy for Movement & Injuries (FAMI) Workshop .

Degenerated discs, prolapsed discs, bulging discs, herniated discs—these terms float around Pilates studios quite freely. Indeed, these conditions are some of the most common reasons why clients with back pain seek help from Pilates instructors in the first place. Despite their familiarity, however, these terms—and the medical jargon surrounding them—can get quite confusing. Here’s a look at the particulars of three common disc problems.

ANATOMY REFRESHER
Before delving into what goes wrong with discs, it’s best to start with a general anatomical review of what they are and do, when functioning properly.

The Intervertebral Disc
Commonly likened to a jelly doughnut, an intervertebral (IV) disc has two layers: an inner gelatinous mass (the nucleus pulposus), and an outer fibrous casing (the annulus fibrosus) . The content of the nucleus pulposus is mostly water, affording it the ability to act as a modified hydraulic shock absorber every time the spine moves. The water composition, however, decreases with age, and contributes to the progressive decrease of one’s height over time. The tougher annulus fibrosus surrounds the inner pulposus with fibrocartilagenous concentric layers, increasing the disc’s shock absorption capability. In addition to shock absorption, the two components of the IV disc work together to provide intervertebral stability and an axis of rotation for spinal movement.

So what happens when our discs go south? What causes the problem, exactly, and what causes the pain? Here’s a look at three common disc injury scenarios:

DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE

What is it?
As mentioned above, as bodies age, so do their intervertebral discs: the nucleus pulposus dries out and loses its shock-absorbing abilities, while the annulus fibrosus becomes brittle and subject to tears. Whether we like it or not, these changes seem to be part of the spine’s normal aging process. In many people, this process goes unnoticed; in others, it causes back pain, the condition known as Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) and a host of other consequences.

According to the working theory of DDD, which is based on studies of the lumbar spine, the aging process can provoke a degenerative cascade of events. Put as simply as possible, as a disc begins to tear and dysfunction, instability and inflammation ensue, and the spine attempts to compensate by producing more bone in the form of spurs (also called osteophytes). These changes occur on a continuum and can lead to other problems such as arthritis, disc herniations and spinal stenosis.

What causes the pain?
Some contr...

How to help pregnant clients have a smooth delivery

By Debra Goodman, MSPT

Pilates can be a wonderful tool to help women feel great during and after pregnancy. A modified Pilates program with emphasis on diaphragm and transversus abdominis strengthening will help to support the growing uterus, prevent low back pain and improve posture. Many people don’t realize it, but core strengthening also helps pregnant women during the pushing phase of delivery.

Prenatal Pilates instructors are in a great position to help pregnant women obtain the strength for pushing as well as to educate women on how to push properly.

The Typical Hospital Push
Many of us have heard this story at one time or another. A pregnant woman is positioned on the bed. Attendants are holding her legs. As they see the uterine contraction occurring on the monitor, they coach her to hold her breath as they count, “One! Two! Three! Four! Five! Six! Seven! Eight! Nine! Ten!” The pregnant woman’s face turns bright red as she performs this push. The monitor indicates that the contraction has ended, and the woman rests for a moment. The monitor lights up again as another contraction begins. Again, the pregnant woman is coached to hold her breath and bear down. This time she releases some air in the middle of the push. “Don’t let your air out as you push!” reprimands the nurse. This situation continues for over two hours. Concern begins to arise because the baby’s heart rate begins to drop. Eventually, the doctor decides to do an episiotomy in order to get the baby out more quickly. After the episiotomy, the baby eases out, and everyone is relieved that mom and baby are OK. The birth is deemed a success.

This is a typical example of a delivery situation in a United States hospital. Although the mother and baby were OK, was this really the best method for delivery? Could the episiotomy have been avoided?

In this example, the medical team coached the pregnant woman to push out her baby using a technique called a Valsalva maneuver. The definition of Valsalva maneuver is to forcibly exhale against a closed airway. Interestingly enough, this specific technique is contraindicated by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists because it is dangerous and can temporarily cut off blood supply to the uterus and affect the oxygen supply to baby and mother. So, it is very surprising that medical professionals are instructing women to push in this manner for, in most cases, several hours.

The average pushing time is two hours for first-time mothers. Pushing while using the Valsalva maneuver has the effect of creating a great deal of pressure, but aside from the issue of the temporary reduction in oxygen supply, this method of pushing has other negative consequences to the mother’s body:

1. Increased likelihood of diastasis recti . The Valsalva maneuver places outward pressure on the abdominal w...

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Yoga’s Navasana or “boat” pose, courtesy of AsthangaYoga.info Joseph Pilates doing the Teaser, courtesy the Pilates Method Alliance By Sherri R. Betz, PT
 
Ever had a client ask, “What are the differences between yoga and Pilates?” As you stammer out a hopefully intelligent-sounding answer, unconvinced even in your own mind as to the difference, you probably just hope the client doesn’t ask again! 
 
You may have heard this joke: The difference between Pilates and yoga is that in yoga you close your eyes and think about god and in Pilates you keep your eyes open and think about your abs! And one guru said the purpose of yoga is to become more flexible so that you could sit comfortably to meditate. Yoga certainly is more than that.
 
I write this in trepidation of offending the beautiful yoga and Pilates practitioners around the world. I hope to distill some of the information about yoga and Pilates looking at some of the differences and similarities between them to help practitioners understand these popular forms of movement.

My yoga practice began in Louisiana (when no one did yoga there!) at about the age of 15. At the local library, I happened to pick up The Sivananda Companion to Yoga and started trying out some of the poses and breathing. (Actually, I skipped the breathing and avoided it for many years until I did my Pilates training and was forced to learn to breathe!) Now I am devoted to my Ashtanga/Vinyasa yoga practice and my Pilates work to keep my body in shape and to add a spiritual component to my life. It has been very interesting to compare a movement practice that has been around for 2,000 years with one that has been around for only about 80 years. 

[ Click here to jump to background descriptions of common form of yoga practiced in the United States. ]

[ Click here to jump to a background description of Pilates. ]

Range of Motion
One of the main differences between contemporary Pilates and yoga is that Pilates begins with small range of motion and progresses toward end range joint movement while yoga tends to hold postures at end range of joint motion and muscle length. This tends to make yoga postures more risky for the beginner or injured student. There seems to be an easy fix to this dilemma in that the teacher might suggest to the yoga student to go to 75 percent of their range of motion and hold there. This would build strength in the musculature that supports the joints, protect joint structures, such as capsules and ligaments, from getting overstretched, thus, reduce the risk for injury.

Postures and Poses
Another interesting difference between Pilates mat ...