Joseph Pilates

The founding of Pilates can be traced back to the German born

fitness leader, Joseph H. Pilates, who developed the Pilates exercise system

in the 1920s. His interest in physical fitness stemmed from a determination

to strengthen his own body and improve his health after an unhealthy

childhood. With a background in yoga, Zen meditation and martial arts,

combined with success as a gymnast, diver and boxer, he was able to devise

a unique sequence of movements that worked the mind and body, in

harmony. Joseph was convinced that his philosophy of combining mind and

muscle, was one, many steps ahead of the times .

Joseph had the opportunity to fine-tune his wellness regimen while

interning in England during the First World War, claiming it helped him and

his fellow internees resist an influenza epidemic. Working in an infirmary,

he engineered a way to rig springs on hospital beds to offer light resistance

exercises to bedridden patients, and thus the seed for Pilates equipment was

planted.

After the war, Joseph Pilates moved to New York, where he and his

wife opened their first Pilates studio near the New York City Ballet in 1926.

It wasn't long before he drew a following of dancers, who took to Pilates for

its ability to create long, lean muscles and a strong, sleek physique.Legends

Martha Graham and George Balanchine were among his clientele. He

eventually published a book on his philosophical approach to exercise, "Return

to Life Through Contrology", and soon thereafter, some of his students began

opening studios of their own - often with subtle adaptations to the method - and

word of Pilates slowly spread.

However, it wasn't

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