The Brace and the Torque - Prologue
Going up these stairs in Peru! I needed my brace and torque!
Part one - The Prologue
Sounds like a soap opera, a dramatic novel, or an alternative music group. But nope, it is another layer I am adding into my teaching to create stability. This two part series (because I had way more to say than I thought) will explore these two principles as it relates to Pilates and strength training. As you all know, I love learning, and I am in the middle of reading Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett. It is catered to the cross fit community as well as olympic weightlifters, yes, SO not what I teach. But it has made a huge impact in my sessions to cue the brace and the torque in Pilates, walking, and strength training.
What is the Brace?
I thought bracing was ridiculous for a while because I don’t like to hold anywhere or create too much tension in the body while trying to move with freedom and grace. But it made sense as a means to train stabilization in the body. So, imagine you were about to get punched in the stomach. The probability you will activate your abdominals are high. Now take away that terrible image of someone punching you in the stomach because who needs that today or ever, and just tighten the upper, middle, and lower portions of your abdominal wall. What happens when you do that? Can you make it feel like 100% tension? If so, great! That 100% tension is needed when you need to stiffen (stabilize) the spine for lifting heavy things, or with olympic weight lifting. Now take that tension down to 20%. Experience this while walking around your current location. How does that feel? Add the Pilates feeling of lift with the abdominal brace.
Since I can only speak from my experience. I walk 3 miles 5-6 days a week, and focus on a 20% brace while I walk. That still gives me the freedom to swing my arms, and rotate my rib cage and pelvis freely in opposition to one another to help me propeI while walking. My alignment is better as the brace pulls my upper abdominals (rib cage) in line with the rest of the torso (a bad habit I have had my whole life). Not only can my abdominals fully engage with that better alignment, my lower back is so much happier that my ribs aren’t sheering forward for the whole hour of walking. And I can lift off of my hips much better. I also love the brace in basic movements like squats and deadlifts to create stability. The stabilization I have seen in my teaching sessions is visible. And now, cue in the torque…
What is the Torque?
Torque is a fancy name for the shoulder and hip joints stabilizing while in movement, using mostly external rotation, and some internal rotation as well. When it comes to the hip joints and Pilates, we use the Pilates “V”, a small, natural rotation of the legs to engage the lower gluts. Starret says to be in a more parallel positioning to create more effective torque. For the most part, it is a similar concept considering how small our “V” actually is (not like a ballet first position). Torque in the hips activates the gluts in order to load, or take the work when moving. In my practice, I usually see underworking gluts, so the act of torque helps. It takes excess work away from the knees and lower back into the hips, surrounded by the support of mover muscles and a part of the anterior, lateral, and posterior slings. We also bring the hips into extension (open) in Pilates, so the spiral of torque changes directions. When the leg is lifting behind you, internally rotate, or spin the inner thighs to the ceiling. This is important for extension work such as swan, and the single and double leg kicks.
How to apply them? Find out next week!