Pilates, A Brief History

Pilates was created by Joseph Pilates in the pre–WWI 1900s.

As a youth he suffered from ailments and conditions such as asthma and began a search for a way to improve his health and wellbeing.

Drawing from the realms of yoga, army drill, and anatomy and physiology he devised a series of exercises that he would perform religiously. By the age of 14 he had developed dramatically and was used as a model for the drawing of anatomical charts.

Pilates, A Brief History
Through his teens, Pilates became a great performer in physical pursuits, and was demonstrating self defense techniques in the Isle of Man, when the war broke out.

Interned through the war here, he worked within the hospitals applying his method (called Contrology) to rehabilitate the soldiers. It was here that he utilized the hospital beds and springs to form his first machine, the Cadillac.

Post war, Pilates took his method to America, establishing his first studio in New York. With so many dance studios being nearby, a large amount of clientele were dancers sent to both rehabilitate from injury or to improve with muscle control. Of course this is a very brief account, but as they say the rest is history.

Although the method was originally designed by Pilates for men, the suitability of the method for all has more than proven itself and today it continues to grow as an incredible exercise form to not only rehabilitate and get into shape, but also to maintain condition and wellbeing.

The use of Pilates, to keep in shape, by numerous famous actors and elite athletes, pays testament to its effectiveness for both health, wellbeing and physical fitness. The list of famous names that swear by the Pilates Method of exercise is large and includes movie and music stars Jennifer Aniston, Madonna, Megan Fox, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow as well as Man Utd football star Ryan Giggs, Australian rugby captain George Gregan, and numerous professional sports teams in the NFL and NHL.

However, Pilates is much more than a celebrity fad. The improvement in physical and mental wellbeing through intelligently and carefully prescribed and performed exercises, battles effectively against society’s main problems to date: fitness and stress. The Pilates method continues to assist people across the globe standing the test of time.