Pilates Technique Thursday: Pilates Teaching Systems

Group Pilates class preparing through movement before structured matwork begins.

Every teacher develops a system, whether they admit it or not. The question is whether it is intentional. Over the years I have become clear about mine. It starts with mobility. Not because it sounds progressive or modern, but because without movement options, alignment is simply a shape people force themselves into.

When a client walks in, they are not a blank canvas. They arrive with their day in their shoulders, their stress in their breath, and often a pelvis that has not moved well for years. So I do not stand them up and immediately talk about switching on the centre. I start by getting them moving. Rotation in standing. Gentle flexion and extension. Shoulder rolls. Arm patterns that free the ribs. Small movements that begin to unlock tension.

Upper body restriction is common. Tight thoracic spine. Elevated shoulders. Shallow breathing. If I try to organise alignment before reducing that tension, the client will simply brace. They will look upright, but they will not be free. Mobility first creates space. Space allows better organisation later.

When we move to the mat, the principle stays the same. I often begin with shoulder bridge preparation, swan preparation, pelvic tilts, or thoracic extension work. These movements are not random warm ups. They are deliberate lengthening and opening patterns. They restore range. They give the spine and pelvis options again.

I do not see Pilates as placing someone in a fixed position and asking them to hold it.

Alignment is not something you impose. It is something the body earns through better movement. If a pelvis cannot tilt forwards and backwards with ease, how will it ever find a balanced neutral position. If the thoracic spine cannot extend, how will the chest open without gripping the lower back.

With many older clients, I see significant restriction around the pelvis. Years of sitting. Old injuries. Habitual holding. In those cases I often use simple pre Pilates work. A mini ball under the sacrum. Gentle rocking of the pelvis forwards and backwards. Small lateral shifts. Subtle circles. Nothing dramatic. The aim is simple. Restore movement. Let the nervous system feel that the pelvis can move safely again.

Only then do I talk about neutral. Neutral is not a command. It is a capacity. It develops over time. When clients understand that, they stop trying to force a position and start sensing where their body actually is.

There are also times when switching on the centre is not the priority. If someone comes in with a long term back problem and they are already gripping through the abdominals, asking them to activate more can increase tension. Some clients are over stabilised. They hold too much. In those cases I might focus on breath, mobility, and reducing unnecessary effort before layering in control. Stability without freedom becomes rigidity. Pilates should not create more holding.

One of the key messages I try to communicate is why we are working towards pelvic neutral in the first place. It is not about standing straight for appearance. It is about function. When the pelvis is better organised, the pelvic floor can coordinate more effectively. The deep abdominals work with less strain. The hip joints move with better mechanics. The internal structures within the pelvis are supported in a more balanced way. This changes how people move, not only how they look.

I make a point of explaining this to clients. When they understand the purpose, their engagement shifts. They stop thinking in terms of posture correction and start thinking in terms of how their body works. Education is part of the system. Without it, the exercises become shapes without meaning.

I also always finish standing. That is important to me. We bring the work back into an upright position. I ask them to notice their weight through the feet. The position of the pelvis. The feeling in the shoulders. The quality of their breath. They need to recognise the difference before they leave the room.

Because the system does not end in the studio. What matters is what they do between sessions. How they sit. How they stand. How they walk. If they can sense when they are gripping or when they have options.

For me, Pilates is not about telling someone to switch on their centre and hold it. It is about giving the body the ability to find better positions with less effort. Mobility first. Then organisation. Then strength. Then integration into daily life.

That is the system I return to again and again