Author: Suzy Mitchell Category: Fitness, Pilates
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If I had a pound for every time I was asked the above question.  I would be writing this from a much warmer and sunnier location than North West London. 

The interesting thing is, no matter how often I’m asked, I’m always momentarily left lost for words, and its this that fascinates me and probably explains why I’m still captivated by Pilates 20 years after first discovering it.

I will often ask students new to my classes why they are there, in part because it helps me manage their expectations but more usually because I’m just curious.  Of course someone is inevitably there because they have read their favourite celebrity does it, some have heard it is good for backs, a common reason is people attempting to de-stress their lives.  Sometimes, however, the answers are more complex.   They are cancer survivors, recovering from miscarriages, broken relationships or bereavement.  All, however, want to leave the class feeling better about their bodies.  No pressure for me then!

Joseph Pilates (born; Germany, 1883) was a man of vision, his journey to overcome his own serious childhood ailments lead to a personal discovery and fascination with just how extraordinary the body was and he made it his life’s work to prove that with focus, dedication and effort everyone could improve there own state of health and fitness.  What I particularly like about Josephs’ journey was that he embraced movement and exercise in all its forms.  He simply wanted people to move more.

Other than his book: Contrology-Return to life, (he never called his work Pilates) very little appears to have been documented by himself about his work.  People that were once his students became so inspired by the technique that they went on to open their own studios across the USA and so the seeds were sown for the estimated 11 million people now practicing the technique globally.  Quite extraordinary for a man who died feeling he had not had the impact he had hoped for!

So back to the original question, in short it is all the things mentioned above.  The exercises, designed with a particular order, challenge the body physically, mentally and some times, emotionally.  We are rarely any of us good at everything in our first class and for some this is their biggest challenge.  The exercises require a strong centre (which includes the back) and good balance, co-ordination and control.  Whilst we all have strengths in some areas, Pilates requires us to master all of them at the same time.  Joseph was keen to ensure that exercises were not repetitive or laboured, but in truth any exercise done with all the aforementioned approaches and precision do not need endless repetitions to be effective.

For some a Pilate’s studio with equipment designed by Joseph is the best environment to work from, undoubtedly 1to 1 Pilates is the most effective way to benefit from his technique.  A class with more than 12 participants is quite simply not worth your time or money, as they say “the devil is in the detail” and in a class of 30, no matter how good the teacher is, this simply is not a Pilates class, Joseph himself would, I’m sure, be compelled to light a cigar and pour a glass of Schnapps out of shear exasperation at what is being taught under his name today.

So if you’re looking for an exercise regime that engages mind and body, one that takes time to get into the very bones and muscular body.  If you’re looking for a physical exercise routine that will have you asking as many questions about yourself as answers, then Pilates is waiting for you to discover it.

First you stop, take stock and breathe, and then you work your body into a stronger, suppler version of itself.  For me it’s about discovering what you are truly capable of achieving and never about focussing on what you think you never will.