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Dynamic Pilates – the new rugby training
Rugby has always been a game of power, speed, strength and stamina. Today, even at amateur level, it is played faster and harder than ever before. The forces acting on the body during tackles, rucks, mauls and lineouts, and the requirements of the body to deal with these forces continuously over the course of a season are demanding to say the least.
Unsurprisingly, injuries are more frequent – on average, a club can expect to have up to 1 in 5 players injured at any one time.
A large proportion of those injuries can be attributed to a discrepancy in the working of two different sets of muscles; global and local.
Global muscles are extremely important for rugby players as they are large muscles purpose-built for generating speed and power (think hamstrings, quads, chest and arm muscles) and they respond well to the traditional forms of strength training employed by most rugby teams.
Local muscles are small, usually attaching directly to the spine (think muscles at the base of skull, between the shoulder blades and underneath the visible ‘6 pack’ abs) and are purpose built to produce low levels of force for a long period of time. This provides a long lasting stability for the spine and joints of the body.
These muscles are often neglected by traditional forms of strength training, and as a result, they weaken, the nerves that supply them become increasingly inactive, and they stop working correctly.
However the body still requires the spine and joints to be stable– especially considering the amount of force acting on the body in a game of rugby; the muscle energy needed to provide this support now has to come from the global muscles. And if they’re having to provide stability as well as the force to move, this dual role reduces the power they’re able to generate and increases the propensity to injury.
The solution is to retrain both sets of muscle groups to work efficiently and effectively together as a unit. Which is exactly what TenPilates’ Dynamic Pilates programme does.
This innovative workout bridges the gap between traditional Pilates (not the most compelling discipline for the average rugby player) and circuit/weight training, and combines the best aspects of each form of exercise.
It combines highly focused Pilates moves designed to activate and strengthen local muscle systems, with dynamic functional movements (think squats and lunges using weights) for the global muscles – all performed under expert supervision on a state of the art Pilates reformer machine to improve core stability and flexibility, typically problem areas for rugby players.
The end result for rugby players will a retraining of local muscle groups to provide the necessary support and stability for the body, whilst easing the pressure - and improving the primary function - of the global muscle system, enabling them focus on producing speed and power which in turn leads to greater overall strength and performance.
Adam Kwasnicki, physiotherapist at Kinesis and a former England Under 18 international and London Welsh player is clear about the benefits:
“From my experience as both a professional rugby player and physio, the majority of rugby players are lacking in both functional flexibility and core stability. The TenPilates workout can categorically improve both of these in a controlled environment, and is a must for any player wanting to drastically improve performance and reduce injury risk.”
Rugby diehards with a, shall we say, ‘traditional’ view of Pilates will be in for a surprise; it’s a results-driven, effective - and intense – workout that will leave your heart hammering and legs shaking.
“Anyone who thinks Pilates is for girls has never tried TenPilates” grins Lane Gibson, a TenPilates Trainer and former professional rugby player himself, “but whatever your level, it means better speed and power on the pitch and less time spent off it due to injury.”
Call the studio to arrange a time to train individually or as a team.