Pilates was developed over 90 years ago by a great innovator, Joseph H. Pilates (1880-1967). He was a German immigrant of Greek decent. At 87, the age he died, he was in robust health and exercised daily. Who knows how much longer he would have lived if he would not have succumbed to the effects of smoke inhalation, due to the fire that destroyed his studio.
My fascination with Pilates began 4 years ago, when I noticed the similarities of Joseph Pilates’ childhood and my own, shortly after I was certified in Pilates mat work. Joseph was a small and sickly child who suffered from asthma, rickets and rheumatic fever. As an adult he later became a boxer and taught self defense. He studied both Eastern and Western forms or exercise including Yoga, Zen and ancient Greek and Roman regiments. He put it all together to help WWII soldiers recuperating from wounds and injuries. Yet his greatest accomplishment was in developing numerous and unusual exercise equipment. The Pilates equipment being used today is identical to what Pilates originated. He developed his first apparatus from a hospital bed; later in NY he began physical therapy for injured Ballet dancers.
As a child I was also small and sickly. I turned to the martial arts and physical culture to transform my life. After many years of weight training and martial arts I accumulated many injuries. Pilates is a great source of physical therapy for my injuries. I believe that it is the missing link to a fitness program. Mostly everyone that is involved in a fitness program lifts weights for muscle endurance or they do cardio vascular work through aerobics and jogging. Some even do both which is even better. Yet most people, including the fit population, neglect stretching and breathing exercises. Pilates works muscle endurance, stretching and breathing and in its most advanced level it can even give you a cardio vascular workout.
Joseph H. Pilates designed more than 500 specific exercises using five major pieces of unique apparatus to develop the body uniformly. Pilates exercises routines can give you a firmer, flatter stomach, improve your posture and provide you with energy. It will give you the stretching benefits of a Yoga class with the control, balance and strength of a gymnast or a competitive athlete without having to sweat like one.
Today my wife Elena who is a fully certified Pilates instructor is the head of Anta’s Fitness and Self Defense Pilates programs. She is currently conducting private equipment and group classes.
