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All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
If you feel like everyone is doing Pilates<\/a> nowadays, well, you might be onto something. According to ClassPass\u2019s 2024 Look Back Report<\/a>, that was the number one booked class globally. Among the crew of Pilates devotees? The Kansas City Chiefs.<\/p>\n In fact, their studio, Pilates By Kahley<\/a> in Overland Park, Kansas, went viral last year when ESPN shared a video<\/a> of a few Chiefs players putting in the work on the reformer. But it wasn\u2019t a one-and-done workout for the NFL stars: The players are still at it this year<\/a> as they gear up for Super Bowl LIX, where they\u2019ll be taking on the Philadelphia Eagles.<\/p>\n So what is it about the popular (yet surprising) exercise modality that has the Chiefs stretching for more? We tapped their instructor Kahley Schiller<\/a> to find out.<\/p>\n Before we get into the benefits of Pilates<\/a> for football players, let\u2019s take a step back into the how<\/em>\u2014meaning, how did these top NFL athletes find their way into the studio in the first place?<\/p>\n It all began about eight years ago, when quarterback Trent Green\u2019s wife, Julie, started taking classes at Schiller\u2019s studio. \u201cShe convinced him to start doing Pilates, so that was my first big Chiefs person,\u201d Schiller tells SELF. \u201cWord of mouth is everything, and it kind of grew from there.\u201d<\/p>\n Since then, she\u2019s trained both offensive and defensive players, including Tershawn Wharton, a defensive tackle who\u2019s been influential in introducing many of his fellow defensive linemen to Pilates over the last five years. As you can tell from a quick scroll of Schiller\u2019s Instagram<\/a>, you can also count on seeing players like Derrick Nnadi and Malik Herring frequenting the studio too.<\/p>\n When you think of NFL workouts, you probably think of agility drills<\/a> or super heavy bench presses. So if you\u2019ve never associated football with Pilates, you\u2019re not alone. Schiller acknowledges there\u2019s a misconception about who Pilates is typically thought to be \u201cfor\u201d\u2014and that NFL players are breaking these stereotypes.<\/p>\n \u201cJoseph Pilates came [to the US] from Germany in the 1920s and opened a studio in New York City,\u201d she says. Pilates soon became popular with dancers as a way to improve technique and rehab injuries. Initially most of the clientele were men, but as the modality grew, more women became involved. Now, if you take a quick scroll through social media\u2014say, for instance, the Pilates tag on TikTok<\/a>\u2014you can see they\u2019re heavily represented in that space. But tides are starting to change: \u201cIt\u2019s taken a while for it to become where Pilates is for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n And that includes football players. Because the reality is, Pilates is extremely<\/em> beneficial for performance on the field. In their everyday training\u2014mainly lifting and HIIT workouts<\/a>\u2014football players work their larger muscles (say, glutes<\/a> and quads<\/a>) that prime them for explosion and momentum, Schiller explains. \u201cPilates comes in and creates symmetry and balance throughout their entire bodies so that their anterior chain [front of body] and their posterior chain [back of body] are equally as strong, which would make them more powerful,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n According to Schiller, Pilates has helped Wharton feel more stable and strong when he needs to explode out of the three-point stance on the field (a position in which two feet and one hand are on the ground before the ball is snapped). Not to mention, a regular Pilates practice helped him recover from a torn ACL in 2022, she says.<\/p>\n What\u2019s more, Pilates may help prevent injuries in the first place \u201cbecause you\u2019re strengthening all your muscles versus just the larger ones,\u201d Schiller says. For instance, if you\u2019re doing a heavy back squat, your quads and glutes might go all-in, but if you do the Pilates clams hell exercise, it’ll help zero in on the small side-butt muscles (like your hip abductors<\/a>). As SELF has reported previously, by focusing on the small muscles that support a joint, you can better improve the stability there<\/a>, which allows for greater (and safer!) mobility.<\/p>\n Lastly, Pilates simply gives you a deeper connection with your body, according to Schiller. \u201cIt teaches you how to really work your body, and it teaches you an understanding of how to engage your muscles versus just going through the movements,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen you\u2019re more in tune with your body, you know how to efficiently work your body, and that brings confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n 1. Footwork<\/p>\n \u201cI put [the players] in different positions with their feet on the foot bar of the reformer, and then I align their bodies from the feet up,\u201d she says. \u201cIt helps them strengthen their feet, ankles, knees, and hips.\u201d On the field, this can help with running speed and tackling, for instance.<\/p>\n How to do it:<\/strong><\/p>\n 2. Pulling Straps<\/p>\n \u201cWorking on the posterior chain is important too, which is where pulling straps comes in,\u201d Schiller says. You\u2019ll help build strength in pretty much all your posterior chain muscles, which include the rhomboids (upper back), erector spinae (spine), lats (mid back), glutes (butt), hamstrings (backs of thighs), and calves (backs of legs).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n How to do it:<\/strong><\/p>\n 3. Abs on Box<\/p>\n \u201cYour core is your powerhouse,\u201d Schiller says. \u201cIt\u2019s essential for what [the players] do.\u201d Indeed, in order to generate power and explosiveness and prevent being knocked off balance during sacks and tackles, NFL players need a strong core. This exercise strengthens the rectus abdominis (top layer of your abs muscles), transverse abdominis (innermost abs muscle), and obliques (the sides of your abdomen).<\/p>\n How to do it:<\/strong><\/p>\n Alternate option:<\/strong> You can target your obliques by doing a side bend on the box. Sit on a Pilates reformer box on your right glute with the right side of your body toward the back wall. Place your left foot flat on the reformer (tucked under a strap) with your left leg straight and bend your right knee. Place your hands behind your head and lean your torso to the right. Then return to the starting position. Repeat for a set number of reps, then switch sides.<\/em><\/p>\n 4. Bridging<\/p>\n \u201cThis exercise targets the glutes, hamstrings, and calves,\u201d Schiller says. It works to create balance: \u201cIf you\u2019re a football player and you need to run fast, you need to have equal strength in your quads and hamstrings.”<\/p>\n How to do it:<\/strong><\/p>\n Related:<\/strong><\/p>\n Get more of SELF\u2019s great fitness content delivered right to your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission. If you feel like everyone is doing Pilates nowadays, well, you might be onto something. According to ClassPass\u2019s 2024 Look Back Report, that was the number one booked class globally. Among the crew of Pilates devotees? The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":14184,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[157],"tags":[155],"class_list":["post-14183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fitness","tag-fitness"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14183"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14183\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/promotinghealthnow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}There are actually a few good reasons football players should add Pilates to the mix.<\/h2>\n
\nSchiller\u2019s Favorite Pilates Moves for the Kansas City Chiefs<\/h2>\n
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