Quote Originally Posted by Crankin View Post
I guess my back hurt the most. And my neck. Like holding your head up doing 100s. I can do the abs part, but can't hold my head up without pain. The fact that no matter how long I kept trying, my back still lifted off the floor, out of "imprint" when doing some of that stuff.
The yoga classes I take are fairly easy, I guess. Yet, I have seen improvement since I started. I am very flexible, so that's not it. I'm just weak, lopsided, due to untreated scoliosis, and all my other assorted sports injuries. Heck, PT only helped me temporarily and I was religious about my "homework." I still do all of that, 4 days a week.
Maybe I would feel better if I stopped all of this exercise stuff .
I would venture that if you did a series of one-on-one Pilates sessions on the reformer and other apparati that your neck/upper back issues and your core strength would improve significantly. It would be pricey, but that's what I would do if i could afford it. I hope by next year that I can do that at least once a month while also doing the mat exercises.

I've found that yoga and Pilates, while having some similarities, are actually quite different in a number of ways. The breathing, for one, is really different. In yoga, the emphasis is on filling up your belly and relaxing those muscles, while in Pilates it's all about scooping and tightening the "powerhouse." I enjoy them both and get benefits from both.