4 Ways to Nix the Neck Pain in Pilates

You love your Pilates mat class and you want to strengthen your abs, but halfway through the stomach series your head starts to feel more like you’re lifting a bowling ball. It feels so heavy and uncomfortable you can’t even feel your abs working anymore. Sound familiar? You are not alone. Many people who take Pilates might have felt this annoying discomfort at the beginning of their practice. Here’s 4 ways to nix it.

Quit overusing your neck.

Seems obvious but when working the abs, you must lift the weight of your head with your upper ab muscles, not your neck.Try it! Lie on your back with your hands placed behind your head (one on top of the other with your elbows out) and let the hands hold the weight of the head. Use your upper abdominal muscles to lift so you don’t put any pressure on your neck.

Learn to relax your shoulders. 

Tight trapezius muscles can cause your neck to feel uncomfortable. If your shoulders are tense while working your abs, this can lead to a vicious cycle.To lose the tension, connect your shoulders to your back. Try it! Lengthen your neck, relax your shoulders, then roll the shoulders back so that the back muscles engage.

Evenly distribute your weight.

Pilates is meant to correct the postural balance of the body. To achieve this, it’s important that your weight is evenly distributed throughout your body during many exercises. Try it! While in your upper ab curl position, make sure the bottom of your shoulder blades stay down on the mat as well as your sacrum. The more the hips and sacrum drop the more you will be able to lift the weight of your head.

Less is more. 

Quality beats quantity in this case. Do only as many reps you can control. Once you start to lose your form you should stop. It’s possible that doing too many repetitions of exercises can put unnecessary pressure on the neck. In Pilates, we don't work to fatigue our muscles. We work efficiently, so that when we finish our workout we’re ready to move throughout the rest of the day.