Rib Cage Placement

Let’s focus on another one of the Basic Principles of Pilates!

RIB CAGE PLACEMENT

RIB CAGE PLACEMENT:

• All of your abdominal muscles attach at the bottom of your ribs
• You must use your abdominal muscles to keep your ribs from deviating forward when reaching overhead
• When lying on your back, try to maintain a sense of the bottom ribs resting heavy on the mat
• When breathing in, inhale into the back and sides of the rib cage so as not to lose the abdominal connection at the bottom of the ribs

EXPERIMENTING WITH PROPER RIB CAGE PLACEMENT

• Lie on your back with your arms reaching up to ceiling, the upper abdominals keeping bottom ribs heavy on the mat and gently cinching girdle
• Inhale to prepare, as you exhale reach arms overhead while keeping ribs on the mat
• Do not let your back arch and don’t lose the abdominal connection
• Inhale to reach your arms back up to the ceiling

Written by Autumn DawsonInformation generated from Merrithew Corporation (STOTT PILATES parent company)