History

The exercise Pilates has been catching on over the past few years and has become quite the fitness craze. In actuality though, Pilates exercise has been around for over 70 years. Joseph Pilates, a German health enthusiast, created exercises to help strengthen, lengthen, stretch, tone, and improve posture. He called this exercise Contrology. Mr. Pilates firmly believed that he was 50 years ahead of his time with his theory of "Contrology", a gentle and low stress form of whole body exercise. He quotes "Contrology is complete coordination of body, mind, and spirit. It develops the body uniformly, corrects wrong postures, restores physical vitality, invigorates the mind and elevates the spirit." He was initially motivated to create these exercises to help his own quality of life. He was unfortunate enough to live with scoliosis and rickets. It was his quest to achieve his optimum health. Later when WW1 injured soldiers needed rehabilitation he helped them by creating an apparatus with pulleys and springs where they could strengthen their muscles while remaining in bed. This contraption today is called the clinical reformer.

Over the years the original floor work has grown to a system of over 500 exercises that can also be implemented with this bed-like apparatus equipped with a sliding platform with pulleys, cables, and springs. Use of your own weight and resistance from the springs is what creates the total body strengthening without strain. Various positions can be performed on the reformer such as, standing, lying down, sitting, kneeling, and jumping. All of these positions are specific to targeting large and small muscles groups. In addition to the whole body workout, Pilates exercises are designed to increase core strength, tighten abdominal muscles, and protect and strengthen the back.

Pilates techniques are governed by 8 basic principles that are essential to achieving the maximum results. With some changes to the original method, these basic principles incorporated in the Pilates based methods still prove true. These principles are: Concentration, Centering, Breathing, Control, Precision, Flowing movement, Isolation, and Routine. Understanding these principles while performing the exercise routine will enable you to strengthen and stretch all of the major muscle groups in a logical sequence, without neglecting the less used and smaller muscle groups. Pilates can be customized for the individual and/or for most physical therapy needs.

When embarking on the new program, try to commit yourself to it for two to three times a week. The first two weeks will be the toughest, but quickly you will see and feel the difference that Pilates makes with your body. Remember that it took years to create the body you have today so it won't change overnight. Stick to it, you will be glad you did.