“How should I breath during this exercise” -a common question I get asked by those new to Pilates. Breath is one of the primary principles that Pilates is centered on. One of the things I tell my clients though is that breath is a tool not necessarily a rule. It’s one of the first ways I start to encourage autonomy, agency and trust with your own body. For myself I typically inhale to prepare a movement or when I am trying to create more length or stretch in my movement. As you inhale think about trying to widen into your rib cage (wide, fronty, and back like the belt example above) and feel it create more stretch in your torso as you do so. You could also think about using the exhale to support you in some more challenging positions. As you intentionally exhale try to push out every last bit of air out of your lungs. Your abdominal muscles and diaphragm will engage to help and pull towards your center (or away from the belt like in this video) Bookmark this video and so you can give it a try! Let me know in the comments or DMs what you noticed! #breathwork #diaphragmaticbreathing #diaphragm #fitnesstips #exercisetips #pilatestips #matpilates #abwork #corework #howto #wednesdaywisdom #wednesdaymotivation