What is Pilates?
Pilates is a unique method of body conditioning developed by German-born Joseph Pilates in the early 1900s. It uses specially designed, spring-based apparatus and mat exercises to increase flexibility, strength, balance, and coordination in a continuous workout requiring proper control and form.
The Pilates Method is instructed as a safe, continuous workout that follows proper form in a series of controlled movements initiated from the “powerhouse”:
■ Abdomen
■ Low back
■ Inner and outer thighs
■ Buttocks
6 Principles of Pilates:
Concentration Centering Control Precision Flow Breath
Joseph Pilates
Who was Joseph Pilates?
Joseph Pilates dealt with many illness as a child, and he dedicated his life to becoming physically stronger. He developed a series exercises to improve his health. He taught these exercises to his WWI command, successfully overcoming a flu epidemic and later improving rehabilitation of the hospitalized wounded. In 1926, he and his wife opened his Pilates Studio in New York City where devoted followers like Martha Graham and George Balanchine studied.
Who was Romana Kryzanowska?
Romana Kryzanowska, as a young dancer, went to Joseph Pilates and became a devotee. She became Pilates’ protégé, and with her daughter and grand-daughter continued to perpetuate the original Pilates system, certifying instructors dedicated to the work of Joseph Pilates.
Romana Kryzanowska