((( Continued )))

Please read the original History page first - HERE

FACT ABOUT JOSEPH PILATES

Joseph Pilates Born 9th December 1883 in Monchengladbach near Dusseldorf, Germany

As a child he was sickly suffering with asthma, rickets, rheumatic fever and would of not been on best form most of the time.

He was taunted by other children and became determined to develop his physical side to overcome his weak physique.

The young Joseph self taught himself in wrestling, bodybuilding, anatomy, yoga, gymnastics and martial arts.

Acheived an Adonis like persona and at the age of 14 he was modelling for anatomy charts.

He was a very good and accomplished boxer, skier and diver.

He believed in the Greek ideal of a man balanced in body, mind and spirit.

He put our modern lifestyles as the root course of bad posture, inefficient breathing, lack of exercise and blamed these for poor health.

He set out to design a system of vigorous physical exercises to correct muscular imbalances, improve posture, coordination, inefficient breathing, balance, strength and flexibility.

He was a practical and creative inventor and set about creating exercise machines to aid his fitness regimes. Many of which became Physical Education aids we still use and recognise today.

He toured England as a circus performer and boxer, and even amazingly taught self-defence to the Scotland Yard police force.

At the out break of World W 1 he found himself interned as an enemy alien on the Isle of Man.

War time internment camps and bad health conditions spurred Pilates on to insist that everyone in his cell block participate in daily exercise, helping in maintaining physical and mental well being.

From these origins Pilates developed the system we all love and practice today. But as with most things, greater knowledge brought changes that have been slowly introduced to keep up with modern thinking.