Pilates is an exercise method that places emphasis on alignment, breathing, core strength and control, coordination, and balance. It is popular because it is low impact and generally safe for most people to participate in. The difficulty and intensity of the exercises can also be adjusted to be as low or as high as required. Regular Pilates training can help to improve strength, endurance, coordination, balance and posture.
At Balance Core, we have physiotherapists who are trained in Pilates with DMA Clinical Pilates certification and Polestar Pilates certification. Combining professional physiotherapy background with Pilates concepts, a suitable exercise programme can be designed to suit each client’s unique needs. We incorporate clinical Pilates as a form of exercise therapy that is used in conjunction with other therapeutic techniques to help our clients achieve their goals.
Common Conditions and Concerns That Do Well With Clinical Pilates
It is important to note that no one single form of exercise can solve pain or injury. Clinical Pilates is often used in conjunction with a holistic physiotherapy treatment plan that includes a complete assessment, and a combination of therapeutic techniques. As a form of exercise therapy, we have found that people with the following issues benefit the most from Clinical Pilates:
Scoliosis
Postural errors
Low back pain
Hip pain
Knee pain
Shoulder pain
Foot pain
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Frequently Asked Questions
At Balance Core, Clinical Pilates is incorporated into our Integrated Balance Approach. After a systematic assessment and analysis of your challenges and needs, we will include a specific Clinical Pilates assessment to determine the best set of exercises to suit your needs. Your progress will then be measured using the same set of assessment tools over the next few sessions.
Pain can be a result of an injury, but it can also be your body’s signal that something is overloaded or out of alignment. At Balance Core, all our clients will undergo a comprehensive assessment before we design a treatment programme that best suits them. If Clinical Pilates is not suitable, we will advise you accordingly and will prescribe other more effective and suitable treatment methods.
If you are in pain, we will first determine the source of pain. If you have an acute injury such as a sprained ligament or spinal disc injury, Clinical Pilates will unlikely be our first choice of treatment. Instead, we will facilitate the healing of your injury through manual therapy and/or through the use of modalities. When your injury has stabilised and is adequately recovered, we will incorporate Clinical Pilates as part of your exercise programme depending on your needs and the root cause of your problem that resulted in the injury in the first place.
If your pain is due to postural or movement errors, we will typically start by managing the pain through joint mobilisation or reducing the overload in your overworked soft tissue using manual therapy. Once the imbalances are corrected, we can start Clinical Pilates soon after to re-educate your muscles and neural system to improve your postural control and hence correct your movement errors.
As you will be working with a physiotherapist, rest assured that the Clinical Pilates exercises prescribed will be tailored to suit your needs and will be safe for you to perform even if you are experiencing pain.
Put simply, Clinical Pilates is the use of the Pilates methods as part of a clinical approach to assessing and treating patients with physical ailments. “Normal” Pilates is often used as a mode of exercise. When used by rehabilitation specialists to treat pain, muscular imbalances and movement errors, it is classified as Clinical Pilates.
With a systematic and standardised assessment approach, the Pilates exercises used in Clinical Pilates are selected specifically to address your needs rather than performed as a general exercise.
At Balance Core, we combine our Integrated Balance Approach with Clinical Pilates principles to design exercises that best suit your unique needs. For example, you may notice that the exercises prescribed for each side of the body are different, depending on your specific issues and directional biases.
A comprehensive assessment is essential in determining the best treatment options for each client. Hence, currently we are only offering Clinical Pilates as part of our holistic physiotherapy treatment sessions rather than a standalone therapy session.
The reason for this is to ensure that our clients receive the best care, and not generalised treatment and exercise therapy that may not benefit them.
We place strong emphasis on specific and targeted exercises to produce effective and efficient outcomes. Our physiotherapists may occasionally make use of Pilates equipment to design exercises that will help specific issues. You can think of it as a “physiotherapy exercise” instead.
Yes! Do let your physiotherapist know if you are pregnant and necessary precautions will be taken during your physiotherapy session.
Pregnancy is a time when you experience a lot of changes. With hormonal shifts and changes in your body shape and centre of gravity, aches and pains are common in all 3 trimesters. Physiotherapy is useful for managing musculoskeletal pain in the pre- and post-natal stages.
Clinical Pilates, in particular, is often used as a form of low impact exercise that can be safely performed during pregnancy. The low-impact nature of the exercise method is ideal for maintaining strength and endurance during this time. As you are experiencing changes in your body and your sense of balance is challenged, the use of Pilates equipment often provides external support and stability to make exercise easier and give you more security.
Again, every person is different, even in pregnancy. A comprehensive physiotherapy assessment is essential prior to starting any new exercise programme.