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Pilates and muscle training

It was a German fitness trainer by the name Joseph Pilates who first introduced Pilates to us sometime during the 1930s-1940s. He had originally referred to it as contrology, but people later decided to rename it Pilates, after the very name of its inventor. The reason why Pilates works well in the treatment of bow legs is simply due to the fact that it helps in developing and maintaining proper body posture and balance.

On the other hand, toughening the muscles of one's bow legs with strength training is also important in the treatment of this condition. If the muscles of the leg, and specifically, the knee, are strong and well equipped to carry the load of the body, then there is less strain on the knee and other joints. There are cases where a person suffering from bow legs has developed incorrect body posture in an attempt to compensate for the debilitating effects of bow legs.

You can see that Pilates goes very well with muscle strengthening exercises. Pilates helps maintain correct posture and balance. At the same time, having stronger muscles helps put less load on the knees, which in turn, helps maintain the right posture and balance. You can see just how invaluable combining Pilates with muscle strength training can be. I'll now tell you a little about how to incorporate individual techniques into a holistic routine.

A Pilates routine
First you need to lie down on a flat surface, with your entire body in the supine position. Ensure that both your legs are straight, with their knees as close to each other as possible. Then, slowly lift your legs, keeping the feet together. Allow your legs to form a 90° angle with your abdomen. Then slowly bring them down to the start position. Repeat this around ten times during each session, and try to do two such sessions daily. You can always progressively increase the intensity and number of sessions as you become stronger with time.

During this Pilates routine, you can feel free to add another step to the exercise. For this, all you need to do is to try to raise your hips as much as possible in line with your legs, at the point when your legs are pointing towards the ceiling or sky. This vastly strengthens crucial muscles in the abdomen. These are also key to core muscle strength. You will find that this compound exercise not only improves your bow legs, but corrects a bad posture caused by the bow legs as well.

Strengthening your knee and thigh muscles
To work on the strength of your leg muscles, particularly that of the knee and thigh, the one-legged squat is ideal. For this, one would need the support of a chair or something sturdy enough to lean on. Hold this chair for support with the left hand, lift your right foot off of the ground and start bending your left knee slowly. Bend your knee and lower your body as much as possible without too much discomfort, ensuring that your right foot does not take the support of the floor. Lower your body this way as much as you can and return to the start position. Do this around 5 times in total, and switch legs. Repeat this exercise around 2-3 times daily.


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