Pilates Technique Thursday: Are We Really Meant to “Push Out”?

Hands placed on pelvis, demonstrating awareness of abdominal support and neutral standing posture

There’s been a lot of talk lately about intra-abdominal pressure and systems like Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilisation. You’ll hear cues like “breathe into the belly” or “expand the abdomen” and, if we’re honest, it can feel slightly uncomfortable to hear, especially if you’ve spent years teaching lift, connection, and control.

So the obvious question is this. If we are pushing out, how is that creating strength?

The first thing to understand is that the body does not work in isolated parts. It works as a system. The diaphragm, the abdominal wall, the pelvic floor, and the muscles around the spine all work together. When they coordinate well, they create pressure inside the body.

That pressure supports the spine and prepares us for movement. This is not a new idea. It is simply how the body functions.

Now, when you take a natural breath in, the diaphragm moves down, the abdominal wall expands slightly, and the pelvic floor lengthens a little. That outward movement is normal. It is not something we need to force. The problem starts when this natural expansion is turned into a cue like “push out.” People then begin to drive the abdomen forward, drop the pelvic floor, and lose all sense of control, thinking they are doing the right thing. They are not.

They are just exaggerating one part of a much more subtle system.

At the same time, Pilates has not always helped itself. There has been a tendency to go too far in the opposite direction. Pull everything in, hold it, and do not let anything move. It can look controlled, but often it restricts breathing, creates unnecessary tension, and stops the system from working as it should. So we end up stuck between two extremes, pushing everything out or pulling everything in, neither of which reflects how the body is designed to function.

Real strength sits somewhere in the middle. It comes from control. When intra-abdominal pressure is managed well, the abdominal wall can respond without collapsing, the pelvic floor can react without gripping or dropping, and the diaphragm can continue to move without disrupting stability. The system works together rather than fighting itself.

A simple way to think about it is this. If you inflate a balloon, it expands and becomes unstable. If you inflate a tyre, it holds its shape and can support load. The difference is not the pressure. The difference is how that pressure is controlled.

As teachers, this is where we need to be careful. If a client hears “push out” and loses organisation, we have lost the purpose of the exercise. Equally, if we insist on constant pulling in and bracing, we limit how the body breathes and adapts. Neither approach supports long-term strength or efficient movement.

Pilates has always been about precision, control, and integration. When we look at intra-abdominal pressure through that lens, it fits perfectly. It is not about pushing out or pulling in. It is about managing pressure, maintaining alignment, and allowing the body to respond appropriately to movement.

Pressure on its own is not strength. Muscle contraction on its own is not strength. Strength comes from how the whole system works together.