Osteoporosis Pilates

Loyal readers of this blog know that I have written extensively about exercise and osteoporosis. Low bone density is a reason to do weight bearing exercise, but is crucial that you exercise correctly so as to reduce your risk of vertebral compression fractures and other injuries. NY1 recently posted a great article about Pilates for Osteoporosis, mentioning the importance of doing modified Pilates.

"'[W]hat is not understood is that three-fourths of classical Pilates mat exercises that you would encounter at the typical Pilates mat class, say at the gym, involve these dangerous movements of forward bending.'

Experts say exercises where you bend forward or twist your waist like doing sit-ups actually compress the bones in your spine and can lead to fractures when bones are weak. High-impact exercise like jumping, running, or jogging can also put you at greater risk."

Through modified Pilates, you can stabilize or even reverse low bone density. Just make sure your teacher knows what s/he is doing.

Tags: Pilates, Osteoporosis, lynda lippin

Pilates Stories

I love just spreading the word of Pilates to people who need it and haven't done it. In teh past few weeks I have seen clients with hip replacements, reconstructed knees, osteoporosis, ruptured lumbar discs. I have seen people with limited use of an arm, a knee that won't bend, and scoliosis. Pilates has helped all of them! They have all felt better and left with studio referrals for home. Good biomechanically sound exercise with a focus on spinal stabilization and core strength will help anyone. I have yet to see somebody who didn't feel better and stronger after Pilates.

Tags: Audio Pilates Downloads, Exercises, Pain, Osteoporosis, scoliosis, lynda lippin

Weight Loss and Bone Density

An interesting fact about osteoporosis is that fatter adults tend to have better bone mineral density. Basically, bones strengthen and become more dense in response to stress and load, and more weight adds more load. The question has always been the effect that obesity has on teens, since we actually gain most of our lifetime bone density as teenagers.

Science Daily reports on an interesting study in the journal Obesity from researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia which reported that 62 obese adolescents (ages 9-17) who succeeded in losing weight in a year-long medically supervised weight control program also saw their bone mineral content increase over that period.

"The growing pediatric obesity epidemic raises important clinical and public health questions about the effects on lifelong bone health of early onset obesity and its treatment," said Nicolas Stettler, M.D., M.S.C.E., pediatric nutrition specialist at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and lead author of this study. "Although fractures due to low bone mineral content are mainly a problem for the elderly, the amount of bone mass acquired during puberty is the key determinant of lifetime fracture risk."

Tags: weight loss, News, Osteoporosis, bone density, lynda lippin

Painful Pilates? Lynda rants...

I was just reviewing my website statistics for pilatesandreiki.com and noticed something pretty disturbing.

In the top 5 search phrases were these two--
"pilates and osteoporosis fractures" and "can pilates make your back hurt"

When will people begin to understand that Pilates works on the deep stabilizers of the body in intense movements that must be learned slowly and properly? That Pilates can and should be modified for different bodies and conditions because every exercise is not necessarily good for every body? That it is important to learn from properly trained and certified teachers to avoid injury? That learning Pilates from a DVD is inappropriate and should only be undertaken if access to a Pilates teacher is impossible? And even then a well done MP3 audio would be better so you don't strain your neck.

While I still do support the freedom that the Pilates community now enjoys after the landmark 2000 decision that make Pilates a generic term, the consumer needs to be aware that anyone can say s/he teaches Pilates, even after learning from a video or taking an online course (yes, you can now be certified to teach Pilates without ever teaching another person during your training!). And with the proliferation of poorly taught Pilates teachers and home videos comes the increase in Pilates related pain and injury.

My business on this island is still impaired by poorly taught (and in one case uncertified) teachers that either hurt people, ridiculed them for not being able to perform every exercise,
or generally behaved unprofessionally. People are and have been injured and think that Pilates was the problem. I've heard people say that they were told they shouldn't do equipment before mat (even though Joe Pilates invented the equipment for people who couldn't do mat); I've even heard people say that I couldn't possibly be good because I charge less per session (it is so expensive to live here that I decided to make quality Pilates accessible)! feel free to pay me more of it makes you feel better!

It is absolutely horrifying that people are still being taught that spinal flexion is OK for osteoporosis, that a flat lumbar spine is healthy, and that they should be able to perform every Pilates exercise; Joe Pilates himself never even did that! He taught according to the best beliefs and knowledge of his time and that's all anyone can do.

Clients should never settle for anything less!

Tags: Pilates, Osteoporosis, Prices, Spine, Audio Pilates Downloads, reiki, pilates, lynda, lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

The Neck Hump

Question:
I am 52 and have noticed lately that the base of my neck in the back is somewhat humped.I have noticed this on others as well. Is there any exercise that can prevent this from getting worse or, better yet, repair the damage?

Answer:
Thanks for your question!

The "neck hump" to which to refer is common in the population due to bad posture and the tendency of gravity to pull us down towards the earth's center. The cervical vertebrae of the neck begin to compress down, the head juts slightly forward, and suddenly you have a hump where there used to be just a little rise.

This is the junction of C7 and T1 where your neck connects with the ribcage, and is the first outward dorsal curve of the spine's natural "S" shape. When the multifidus muscles that connect the vertebrae to each other shorten the bones push together unnaturally and create the extra bump. This can also be the first signs of the osteoporotic "dowager's hump", so it does bear watching and working on now.

How can you help? It's actually quite simple :-). First, make sure you do some kind of weight bearing (on your feet) cardiovascular exercise daily (walking is the best). Second, here are some exercises that should help restore your natural spine curve and help to lengthen your neck out of your ribcage and improve posture.

Lie on your back with your knees bent , your feet hip bone width apart, and your arms by your sides. Pay attention to your breathing and to the muscles in your torso. The abdominal muscles are not just in front, they actually wrap around your torso from your spine to the front, around your ribs, waist, & pelvis, forming the round sides of a cylinder.

Feel your ribs move to the front, side, and back as you breathe--the abdominals are helping to move your ribs! Now pay attention to your pelvis. Make sure that you are not pushing your lower back into the floor; your pubic bones should be in the same horizontal line as your hip bones--you may have an arch in your lower back and that's OK, you are supposed to!

Now as you inhale let your ribcage, abs, and pelvis relax. As you exhale contract your pelvic floor as though you had to stop peeing, feel your abs wrap tighter around your ribs and waist like a corset, and feel your diaphragm under your ribcage pull up and under the ribs. Make sure again that you are not flattening your lower back into the mat. Do this conscious breathing a few times.

Put your hands on your belly and notice that now it pulls in (it may feel soft, but you are going for width and depth, not for tightness!). Repeat 10-15 times.

Now add a small rocking of your pelvis--tipping it back on the exhale (hipbones back and tailbone up) and forward on the inhale (arching the lower back). Repeat the tilt/arch 8-12 times.

Then add a curl up of your upper body on the exhale. Nod your head and then pretend you are holding a large egg or small orange under your chin (in other words keep space between chin & chest); then let your ribs drop in and down (don't shove them down!) as you curl up towards your pelvis (do not pull forward from your head at this point--use the ribs).

Stay there for a moment and consciously breathe as above, making sure that you have not tucked your hip bones back to the floor--get your pubic bones back down towards the
mat and see if you can get as deep and wide in your belly as when your head was down. Repeat 4-8 times.

Always work with pulling the belly in and not pushing out! Pushing out or bearing down at all is bad.

Arm Circles--
Still on your back with the pelvis neutral, lift arms up to ceiling, overhead, and circle around to the sides and back to your hips. It is important that your ribs stay down; it is not important that your hands touch the floor. Do 4-6 in each direction. This can also be done standing against a wall.

To add back strengthening--

Prone Hip Extension--
Lie on stomach with forehead on hands and do the same breathing as above. On exhale push your pubic & hip bones into the mat and lift one straight leg off the ground keeping the hips still and not moving your back. Alternate legs 6-8 times and then do both at the same time 6-8 times.

Flight--
Then place arms by your sides with palms down. Set up pelvis the same as above but this time lift and lengthen your head & chest while at the same time reaching your hands towards your feet and then lifting your hands/arms. Keep chest open & feet down. Repeat 6-8 times.

Do these 2-7 times per week.

If these work for you I have a 30 minute neck/shoulder Pilates MP3 that you can download and play on your computer, your ipod, or burn onto a CD.

More about osteoporosis here.

Tags: Osteoporosis, OsteoPilates, reiki, pilates, lynda lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, turks and caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, and Pilates

Thanks to my handy Google Alert I found the About.com CFS/Fibromyalgia page which has little blurb on Pilates...

"The Pilates method is not just a set of exercises but a complete approach to developing body awareness. It is a conditioning program that focuses on subtle movements to improve muscle control, flexibility, coordination, balance, strength and tone. Its application will strengthen and stretch the body’s core muscles. By taking weak abdominal muscles and strengthening them, the body becomes aligned. Since these core muscles support the spine and protect the body’s organs, as they become stronger the body as a whole becomes stronger. This result is reached over time as part of a natural evolution rather than other exercise programs that force the results.

[OK, the body does not simply become aligned simply by taking weak abdominal muscles and strengthening them! It becomes aligned through balanced strength and tone in all muscles around all joints. And the core muscles are not just abs, but include the diaphragm, pelvic floor, glutes, inner thighs, and back muscles. Realistically, other exercise programs do not have to force the results either.]

By practicing Pilates a person becomes more aware of their body as an integrated unit. By also practicing proper breathing techniques, as the body becomes more aligned you develop an increased efficiency of movement. The final result is a heightened sense of awareness.

[Proper breathing helps strengthen the abdominal muscles, unload the spine from the forces of gravity, and strengthen the diaphragm & pelvic floor. It's not just about awareness.]

Unlike weight bearing exercises, Pilates is designed to stretch and strengthen the muscles, open joints and release tension. Thus, the muscles grow longer and leaner. Blood flow is increased and energy begins to stream into specific areas of the body. Those who practice Pilates feel more energized and find their movements less restricted."

[Yes, yes, yes to what Pilates is designed to do. But that doesn't magically lengthen the muscles. It is the actual stretching in the closed kinetic chain environment of the equipment that allows for length & space. And Pilates when standing or working against the spring resistance is in fact weight bearing and can be properly modified for osteoporosis.]

I have done a lot of Pilates for CFS, Chronic Pain, Fibromyalgia. Equipment is better than mat; breathing and efficient movement are key; extension helps more than flexion; stretching between sessions is crucial! Pilates mat is NOT the best venue for people in chronic pain. Go slow, work with a good teacher, and you will feel better in about 6-8 weeks of 2-3 times per week sessions.

Tags: Pain, Osteoporosis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Pain, reiki, pilates, lynda lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, turks and caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

Pilates & Osteoporosis in Portuguese

As I posted a while ago, Karen Dela Coleta in Brazil has translated my article on Pilates & Osteoporosis into Portuguese for her studio's website. The translated text follows...

Pilates e Osteoporose Texto escrito por Lynda Gene Lippin, proprietária do Estúdio www.balancenter.net no Caribe. Traduzido para o português do Brasil por Karen Dela Coleta. O problema da Osteoporose Você sabia que os riscos de uma mulher ter fraturas ósseas é maior do que câncer de mama e colo de útero juntos? Mesmo com todas as discussões da mídia sobre Osteoporose e o fato de saber que uma em duas mulheres de 50 anos terão uma fratura por osteoporose, as pessoas ainda não levam o problema a sério. O problema da Osteoporose aparece freqüentemente no meu estúdio de Pilates. Nossos clientes são a maioria mulheres brancas acima de 50 anos, muitas delas sobreviventes de câncer de mama. No geral, essas mulheres bonitas e ativas parecem muito saudáveis. Elas tem boa postura, jogam tênis e golf, caminham muito e realmente tentam se alimentar saudável. Elas tem acesso aos melhores médicos, aos tratamentos mais modernos, às academias de ponta, personal trainers e Estúdios de Pilates. Mesmo assim, a maioria delas tem baixa densidade óssea- osteopenia e osteoporose- e a maioria estão em movimentos contínuos de alto risco de fratura. Meu propósito aqui é educá-los sobre Osteoporose para que vocês saibam o que fazer e não fazer. Definição de Osteoporose: Basicamente, osteoporose significa ossos porosos. Em grego significa "passagem através do osso". Isso faz sentido se você olhar nas imagens de um osso com osteoporose comparando com um osso saudável. Osteoporose é uma doença silenciosa, não existe alguma sensação física associada a ela. Algumas pessoas experimentam dores nas articulações, nas costas, pescoço, seguidos de fraturas, mas a grande maioria não. Nos U.S.A, cerca de 1,5 milhões de pessoas fraturam os ossos por osteoporose ao ano. Nossos ossos estão em constante mudanças. Este processo é chamado de remodelação óssea, onde ossos velhos são absorvidos pelo corpo com a ajuda das células chamadas de Osteoclastos, ao mesmo tempo que ossos novos são repostos pelos Osteoblastos. O esqueleto humano alcança o seu máximo de massa óssea e densidade óssea por volta dos 20-30 anos, depois disso a remoção dos ossos começam a ser maior do que a produção. A densidade óssea é medida em comparação ao um adulto jovem saudável e é chamado de T-score. Densidade óssea normal é definida pela Organização Mundial da Saúde como densidade de -1 standard deviation (SD) para um adulto jovem de 20-30 anos ( 10 a 15 % de perda óssea). Osteopenia, ou baixa densidade óssea, é definida de -1 a -2.5 SD ( 15-25% de perda óssea). Osteoporose é definida por estar abaixo de -2.5 SD ( mais de 25% de perda óssea). Você já pode ter escutado sobre Z-Score, que é a comparação da média de densidade óssea em indivíduos do mesmo grupo de idade. Primariamente Osteoporose é causada tanto por uma deficiência natural de estrógeno ou osteoporose secundária a idade é causada por condições médicas. Osteopenia deveria ser tratada como Osteoporose em termos à prevenção de fraturas. Assim que estiver sido diagnostica com Osteoporose, você teve documentado severa perda óssea. Observe que enquanto a densidade óssea está sendo testada é tipicamente feita em alguns pontos como quadril, punho ou coluna, mas esses achados devem ser generalizados para o seu sistema esquelético inteiro. Muitos clientes pensam que pelo fato da Osteoporose deles serem apenas no quadril, eles não devem se preocupar com a coluna. Isto está totalmente errado. Se você está com perda óssea, você deve se preocupar. Prevenção e Tratamento de Osteoporose Todas as fontes estão de acordo que ingerir cálcio, magnésio e Vitamina D suficientes com exercícios apropriados é necessário para prevenir Osteoporose. Se você já tiver sido diagnosticado, esses fatores ajudarão a diminuir o risco de fratura e a prevenir mais perda óssea. Em relação à medicação, Bifosfonatos como Fosomax e Actonel tem sido mostrados por aumentar a densidade óssea e reverter a perda óssea. Nossos ossos contem 99 % do total de cálcio do nosso corpo. Se nós não ingerirmos cálcio suficiente para ajudar no processo de remodelação óssea, nosso sistema acaba tirando Cálcio dos nossos ossos. Por tanto, adultos acima de 50 devem ingerir de 1200-1500 mg de cálcio todos os dias, junto com 600-750 mg de Magnésio e 400-600 mg de Vitamina D para dar assistência à absorção. Além de remédios e nutrição adequadas, o melhor que podemos fazer aos nossos ossos é exercitar-se de forma correta. A lei de Wolf diz que nossos ossos tornam-se mais fortes em resposta ao estresse gerado neles. Ex: exercitar-se. Atividades como caminhar ou dançar que são feitas em pé requerem de nossos ossos total resistência da gravidade. A manutenção dessa densidade é acompanhada por rotinas de exercícios, os quais reverterão quando o exercício é descontinuado. Dicas: Faça exercícios com a gravidade atuando todos os dias. Não realize rolamentos de coluna, pois há uma acentuada flexão. Trabalhe seu equilíbrio ao máximo. O quanto menos você cair, menor é o risco de fraturas. Exercícios de Ioga, Pilates ou Pilates em Pé são muito úteis. PhysicalMind´s Standing Pilates®. Faça trabalho de resistência, trabalho cardiovascular e treinamento de flexibilidade, desde que esteja sendo realizado com assistência e de forma segura. Foque o trabalho em Extensão, conforme nosso corpo resiste à gravidade, a tendência é ombros rodados e coluna em flexão. É crucial que trabalhe sempre em boa postura, com leve resistência entre as escápulas e com tórax aberto. Tenha cuidado ao espirrar e ao tossir. Muitas fraturas ocorrem durante muita força. Tente se posicionar contar algo para suporte. Procure não se dobrar para amarrar sapatos ou para pegar algo do chão. Cuidado ao levantar-se da cama. Flexão de coluna é muito saudável, mas para ossos saudáveis também. Flexão de coluna é completamente contra-indicado para ossos de baixa densidade. As micro-fraturas ocorrem na parte anterior da coluna e são irreversíveis. Não faça rotações forçadas. Seja gentil com sua coluna. Rotações podem machucar. Não faça exercícios normais de abdominais. Lembre-se que mesmo pequena, ainda é um tipo de flexão de tronco. Um bom professor de Pilates pode te passar vários exercícios para os abdominais que não requerem flexões de tronco. Cuidado com as abduções, ou seja, afastamento das pernas para longe do corpo. São nesses movimentos que muitas fraturas de quadris ocorrem. Existem pessoas que fazem todos os movimentos que acima disse para não fazer, mesmo que tenham osteoporose. Mas, por que abusar? O índice de morte decorrido de fratura de quadril é de 20% para mulheres e de 30% para homens. Uma fratura por Osteoporose custa nos USA $14 bilhões por ano entre os custos médicos e espera um aumento para $62 bilhões no ano de 2020. Possivelmente com todas essas informações, você ainda deve estar pensando que apenas tem um pouco de Osteoporose ou que apenas tem no quadril e que talvez não queira parar de fazer coisas que fazem você se sentir bem. Fico aterrorizada em pensar que nunca mais poderei fazer exercícios de Pilates que amo, mas prefiro pensar que posso me manter mais saudáel fazendo movimentos seguros e continuar por longo tempo. Cuidem-se!

Tags: Lynda Lippin, Osteoporosis, articles, News, reiki, pilates, lynda, lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, turks and caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

Pilates After Menopause

I love getting Google News Alerts as there is so much fodder for review every day. Since as you may know most of my clients are women over 45 I have a keen interest in anything I see related to Pilates for that demographic.

Today I had a link to a Prevention Magazine article,

How to Stay in Shape Post-Menopause

This article is written by a Pilates teacher, Chris Freytag, and has pictures of several exercises for women to try at home. It is here that the problem lies.

A large percentage of post-menopausal women have low bone density (osteopenia or full on osteoporosis). For these women certain movements are completely contra-indicated as they put one at risk for spinal compression fractures, the two main categories being--

forward flexion of the spine (rolling up, bending forward)
and
rotation of the spine (twisting)

Out of the 5 exercises given in this article, 3 are in forward flexion (full body roll up, rolling like a ball, and double leg stretch with ball) and 1 is in rotation (seated spine twist), leaving only the kneeling spinal balance as an appropriate low bone density exercise.

Putting information like this on the web is just inviting trouble for women who will see an expert Pilates article backed by Rodale & Prevention Magazine and think that these exercises are appropriate to their situation. While fine for anyone with normal bone density, these exercises are NOT fine for osteoporosis/osteopenia.

For a great safe Pilates exercise program with bone density in mind buy this book--

Tags: Osteoporosis, OsteoPilates, Bone Density, Prevention, Google, reiki, pilates, lynda, lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, turks and caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

Ezine Articles

I listened to a webinar the other night with Chris Knight, founder of EzineArticles.com where he suggested that any writer on or for the web should publish shorter 250-500 word articles. He suggested taking longer already completed articles and cutting them down into segments.

Since March 2006 I have had 2 articles on his site, one on Pilates & Osteoporosis and one on the History of Pilates. Both, as it turned out, were huge--close to 2000 words each.

So I cut them down into coherent wholes and resubmitted them. All were accepted and because I am an expert author with over 10 articles I was upgraded to "Platinum" status, which means my articles get approved within one day for web distribution.

Go to my Ezine page or click on on my Expert Author button in the sidebar and check it out. If you are an expert and want to get more internet exposure for your writing, drive more people to your website, and possibly have your work noticed and picked up by a larger publication, it's invaluable!

Tags: ezine, articles, author, marketing, writing, chris knight, expert, reiki, pilates, lynda, lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise

My Pilates & Osteoporosis Article in Portuguese?

I received an e-mail last night from a Certified Pilates teacher in Brazil by the name of Karen Dela Coleta who was searching the web for some Pilates articles dealing with osteoporosis. Apparantly the misinformation being spread by supposedly knowledgeable Pilates teachers is not limited to North America and Europe, as she sees osteoporotic clients all the time who have been given forward flexion exercises with weight bearing on the thoracic spine!

Since I always thought of my job as one where I should be making people move in ways that are BETTER for their bodies, I cannot even begin to understand how or why anyone would do this. And who is certifying these people?

Anyway, Karen liked my article on Pilates and Osteoporosis so much she is translating it into Portuguese for posting on her website in Brazil. YAY Karen!

Tags: turks and caicos, lynda lippin, osteoporosis, osteopenia, bone density, reiki, pilates, lynda, lippin, caribbean, turks, caicos, turks and caicos, providenciales, energy, healing, fitness, exercise