Good Posture: everyone knows we need it, but do you know why we need it?   What causes us to have bad posture anyway?  The second question is easier to answer, it’s gravity.

From the moment we are born we have this force pressing down on us, compressing our joints and increasing the curves of your spine making you slouch and predisposing you to all sorts of pain and problems.  All you need to do is look at many older people who have been suffering under gravity for much longer to see the negative effects!

So why is it we need good posture?  Well our entire body is a complex system of muscles, bones, joints, fascia and organs, each element has its place and each element effects the functioning of the entire system.  Everything in the body is co-dependent and works synergistically, certainly not like I learnt anatomy at school or even university.  When the body has poor alignment and posture it compresses and impairs the function of the entire body. 

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Ankle injuries are usually thought of as injuries you incur from playing a sport, however ankle injuries especailly sprains can happen to anyone. All it takes is some uneaven ground or to land on your foot the wrong way and you can sustain an injury. The most common injuries are sprains andfractures which involve ligaments and bones within the ankle, more serious injuries can be a tear or strain to your tendon.

Bones, joints and ligaments of the ankle

The ankle is made up of four bones, the tibia and fibula which form your leg and the talus and calcaneus which form your foot. The interaction between these bones allows for movement of the joint in different ways. The bones are held together by connective tissue called liagments which along with muscles and tendons help the foot to move.

The ligaments of the ankle joint are comprised mainly of the collateral ligaments, both medial (inner) and lateral (outer). These are extremely important in the stability of the ankle itself.

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My challenge is to climb Mt Kinabalu in Malaysia and make it to the top to see the sunrise. I’ve put my gym membership on hold and I’m putting Pilates to the test to see if it can prepare me for the challenge. So I’ve enlisted the help of Kim who has put together a Pilates program designed for hiking and mountain climbing.

We always say that Pilates can be applied to any sport and activity so I’m putting this into practice. I’ve got a lot on the line if I’m not strong enough then at worst I won’t make it to the top or maybe I’ll injure myself and at best I’ll struggle to walk the next day (I’m guessing this will be the case anyway).

At 4095 m above sea level it is the 20th tallest mountain in the world. As far as mountains go it’s suppose to be quite an easy climb but I’m still convinced it will be tough even though we begin at 1866m.

For those of you who have had Kim as an instructor you’ll know that she is tough and accurate so I brace myself for a challenging session. This is the first time I have done a private session with an instructor so I’m looking forward to some one-on-one attention.

Bridging - we start the session by doing some bridging to warm up my spine.

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