Last Monday was the 50th anniversary of the death of Joseph Hubertus Pilates - an occasion for us to take a closer look at this form of training, which is currently totally in vogue, and to tell the story of its inventor!
Shortly before Joseph H. Pilates died of emphysema on October 9, 1967, he is said to have said, "I'm 50 years ahead of my time!" And he was to be proven right! But from the beginning ...
From weak child to successful fitness guru
When Pilates was a child, no one would have thought that he would one day become so successful. The man from Mönchengladbach was scrawny, constantly ill, had asthma, rheumatic fever, soft bones and was often the victim of other children. But all that changed when he was given an anatomy book as a gift and began to take an interest in muscles and the theory of movement. So he also studied yoga in detail - and above all began to exercise.
Of all things, the First World War was to be the beginning of his career. The British put him in a camp for enemies of the state, where he made it his goal to train other prisoners and keep them fit. As a result, he was used as a sort of athletic nurse and developed fitness beds made of springs, bed frames, and pull ups in which the sick could complete exercises.
Image source: Distilled Pilates
In all of his exercises, one thing was always important to him: slow, focused and deliberate movements to strengthen the center of the body - known as the powerhouse. According to Pilates, the powerhouse was the center of a stable, healthy body. He called his newly invented form of exercise Contrology. It was the original form of today's Pilates.
When Pilates returned to Germany, he was in great demand. He worked for the Hamburg military police and for the boxer Max Schmeling. In 1926, however, Pilates emigrated to New York and opened the world's first pure Pilates studio. By coincidence, there were several dance studios in the same building, so that numerous female dancers were invading his space. Thus the training, which was originally developed for men, became more and more perceived as female. From then on, his customers included dancers from Broadway, actresses, boxers, musicians and high-society ladies.
"I was 50 years ahead of my time!"
Pilates' statement shortly before his death was amazingly true. His form of exercise, which he practiced well into old age, has caught on and established itself worldwide. Pilates is more popular than ever today and is offered in many gyms, clubs or Pilates-only studios. In the USA alone, around 10 million people practice Pilates regularly, and in Europe, 80 percent of all fitness clubs offer this form of training.
What is Pilates all about?
Pilates is a mixture of yoga, acrobatics and ballet and revolves primarily around the powerhouse. This refers to the oblique and transverse abdominal muscles, the pelvic floor and the deep back muscles. This powerhouse, which supports the spine, is consciously tensed in Pilates before each exercise. "All strength comes from the center of the body," is the guiding principle of the fitness guru.
The most important thing in Pilates is correct posture, but breathing should also be focused on. Even then, Pilates urged his students to inhale and exhale deeply so that the muscles would be well supplied with oxygen.
Pilates' form of training also included modern training approaches at that time, such as Fascia training, functional whole-body training and relaxation skills.
Pilates with equipment: Ball, ring and "reformer"
Joseph H. Pilates invented many training devices, some with strange names like "Wunda Chair", "Reformer" or "Cadillac". Many of his devices were a kind of training furniture that his clients could use at home and incorporate into their daily lives.
Although Joseph H. Pilates developed a good 50 pieces of exercise equipment, Pilates is nowadays mostly used only on the mat and without equipment. Pilates accessories, which you can also buy at fitnessmarkt.de, are a great addition to the workout, because they intensify the exercises and protect the back and joints.
Great equipment like the "Reformer" can be found in good gyms and of course in Pilates studios. But there are also accessories for home use, such as balls, rollers, bands or rings. Take a look at fitnessmarkt.de, because here you will also find a lot of Pilates equipment!
Read more about Pilates trends from New York, Los Angeles and London!
Editorial fitnessmarkt.de (SIS)
Published on: 12 October 2017