Table Of ContentPilates for
Rehabilitation
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Pilates for
Rehabilitation
Samantha Wood
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Wood, Samantha, 1969- author.
Title: Pilates for rehabilitation / Samantha Wood.
Description: Champaign, IL : Human Kinetics, [2019] | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018005342 (print) | LCCN 2017058453 (ebook) | ISBN
9781492556503 (ebook) | ISBN 9781492556497 (print)
Subjects: LCSH: Pilates method. | Physical therapy. | Sports medicine.
Classification: LCC RA781.4 (print) | LCC RA781.4 .W66 2019 (ebook) | DDC
613.7/192--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018005342
ISBN: 978-1-4925-5649-7 (print)
Copyright © 2019 by Samantha Wood
All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in any form or
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This publication is written and published to provide accurate and authoritative information relevant to the
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E7110
DEDICATION
I dedicate this book to my mom, Joni Gray. She always believed that you can do
anything if you just put your mind to it. She was a living example of courage,
strength, and love. Always my biggest fan, she was so excited to tell everyone
that her daughter was writing a book! It breaks my heart that she is not here to
see the finished product. I hope she is looking down with pride.
I would also like to dedicate this book to Rael Isacowitz—my teacher, my
mentor, and, most importantly, my friend. Without his teachings, encourage-
ment, and ongoing support, this book would have never happened. Rael’s ded-
ication to the Pilates method and his generous sharing of his knowledge and
experience through his courses and books is a true inspiration. For his gracious-
ness in allowing me to include his original exercises and eloquent words in my
practice and in this book, I am forever grateful. It has been an honor to study
under him and to work alongside him. I look forward to continuing our journey.
CONTENTS
Foreword ix
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction xiv
PART I THE CASE FOR PILATES
1
The Science Behind Pilates for Rehabilitation 2
Discover recent studies that show how Pilates can be an effective
tool for injury rehabilitation.
2
Guiding Principles of Pilates 14
Explore the foundation of Pilates as a unique form of conditioning
for the mind and the body.
3
Integrating Pilates With Rehabilitation 22
Guide patients from earlier stages of physiotherapy to long-
term conditioning by optimizing alignment and creating correct
movement patters with Pilates.
4
Methodology and Apparatus Needed for an
Effective Practice 36
Understand how the combination of Pilates methods, therapeutic
concepts, and usage of a variety of equipment options leads to
maximum movement potential.
vi
PART II EXERCISES
5
Mat Exercises 56
Learn the foundational mat exercises with proper technique and
alignment.
6
Reformer Exercises 87
Add variety of movement for strengthening and stretching on the
versatile reformer.
7
Cadillac Exercises 165
Challenge the body in multiple planes of motion with the stable
Cadillac.
8
Wunda Chair Exercises 195
Use the versatile, lightweight wunda chair to improve balance and
proprioception in functional movement.
vii
viii Contents
PART III PILATES FOR COMMON
INJURIES AND PATHOLOGIES
9
The Cervical and Thoracic Spine 222
Rehabilitate neck injuries and alleviate neck pain with exercises
that emphasize good posture and muscle elongation.
10
The Lumbar Spine 229
Reduce the high incidence of low back pain and disability from
conditions such as osteoarthritis and sciatica.
11
The Shoulder 238
Achieve scapular stability and build muscular coordination for
strong, healthy shoulders.
12
The Hip 243
Encourage hip joint mobility and strength with multiplanar and
open-and-closed chain movement.
13
The Knee 252
Improve dynamic stability and control through functional and
neuromuscular retraining.
14
The Foot and Ankle 260
Emphasize stability, control, and strength in rehabilitating sprains,
tendinopathies, and chronic conditions such as plantar fasciitis.
References 267
Index 273
About the Author 279
FOREWORD
I began delving into Pilates in the late 1970s. I cannot say that I immediately
became a devotee of the system; that did not happen for several years. However,
I immediately saw tremendous value in the Pilates method. Since an early age
I had been involved in athletic and movement pursuits. These included swim-
ming competitively, practicing yoga, and studying dance. I have always had a
deep love of nature and the outdoors, so surfing, windsurfing, mountain biking,
skiing, snowboarding, and, most recently, kiteboarding and standup paddling are
all dear to my heart. My bachelor’s degree was in physical education (Wingate
Institute, Israel) with a strong emphasis on exercise physiology and biomechan-
ics. I subsequently joined the faculty at Wingate for several years. I had a strong
fascination with the science of human movement, and this was the thrust of my
studies. Yet I became increasingly drawn to dance and the art of movement. This
led to a long career as a dancer and to completing my master’s degree in dance
studies (University of Surrey, England). By the mid-1980s I started recognizing
the immense and unique value that Pilates could have for extremely diverse
populations. It was this diversity that captured my imagination, and probably
that of many others, as witnessed by the astronomical growth of Pilates in the
early part of the new millennium.
I moved from England to Australia in 1989; after working almost exclusively
with dancers, I also started working very closely with top level athletes of other
disciplines. Inevitably, my path merged with physical therapists, physicians,
osteopaths, chiropractors, and others who were treating the dancers and ath-
letes. Pilates became the meeting ground, the common denominator, the com-
prehensive exercise program that all these professions ultimately longed for. It
was particularly with the physical therapists that I formed a very close working
relationship and bond.
Upon arriving in the United States in 1991 at the invitation of an orthopedic
surgeon, I strived to continue this exciting multifaceted approach to well-being.
However, I was witnessing an interesting and somewhat disturbing trend. Physical
therapists were adopting Pilates and integrating it into their practices. (With its
growing popularity, they could hardly afford not to.) Yet they were not embrac-
ing the system itself. They were taking select pieces of apparatus, choosing some
isolated exercises from the vast repertoire, and claiming to teach Pilates. Some
were even declaring that you needed to be a qualified physical therapist to study
and practice this “unique” type of Pilates. Joseph Pilates, the inventor of this
method, was not a physical therapist. Nor were the very talented first-generation
teachers I’d had the distinct pleasure and honor of studying with.
I longed to collaborate with a highly skilled and educated physical therapist
to create a two-way bridge between Pilates practitioners and physical therapists.
As the popularity of Pilates continued to grow, Pilates practitioners needed more
knowledge of injuries and pathologies. They needed guidance, and still do, as to
how to use the hundreds of exercises and build effective programs for specific
ix
