The Pilates Principles

The Pilates Method follows carefully laid-out principles based on a well-constructed philosophical and theoretical foundation (one without mysticism or appeals to unseen forces, divine or otherwise). It is not merely a collection of exercises, it is truly a method, carefully developed and refined over a period of more than eighty years of use and observation. While Pilates draws from many diverse exercise styles running the gamut from yoga to Greek ideals and Chinese acrobatics, there are certain inherent ruling principles that bring all these elements together under the Pilates name. These are the Pilates Principles: centering, concentration, control, precision, breathing, and flowing movement.

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MIND OVER MATTER

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The central element of the Pilates Method is also its most paradoxical. The method?s goal (beyond slimming and strengthening) is to create a fusion of mind and body, so that without thinking about it you will move with economy, grace, and balance; you will hold yourself regally; and you will use your body to the greatest advantage, making the most of its strengths, counteracting its weaknesses, and correcting its imbalances. The paradox is this: to produce an attention-free union of mind and body, the method requires that you constantly pay attention to your body while you are doing the movements. This attention-paying is so vital that it is more important than any other single aspect of the movements or the method.

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BREATHING

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Pilates believed in getting the blood pumping so that it could awaken all the cells in the body and carry away the wastes that are related to fatigue. For the blood to do its work properly, it has to be charged with oxygen and purged of waste gases, and that means proper breathing.

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Full and thorough inhalation and exhalation are part of every Pilates exercise. Joe saw forced exhalation as the key to full inhalation. ?Squeeze out the lungs as you would ring a wet towel dry,? he is reputed to have said. ?Soon the entire body is charged with fresh oxygen from toes to fingertips, just as the head of steam in a boiler rushes to every radiator in the house.?

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Here, too, we?re concerned with concentration and control and precision. Breathing should be properly coordinated with movement. Each exercise is accompanied by breathing instructions. In addition, there area few general principles that will help when you?re doing something that doesn?t come with breathing instructions attached.

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?Breathe in on the point of effort,? Romana Kryzanowska advises, ?and out on the return or relaxation.? This is a rule that is sometimes modified by the form of the activity: If you?re doing something that squeezes your body tight, use the motion to squeeze air out of your lungs and inhale when you straighten up.

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And always remember the words of Uncle Joe: ?Even if you follow no other instructions, learn to breathe correctly?

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CENTER

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We have a large group of muscles in our center ? encompassing our abdomen, lower back, hips, and buttocks ? that are begging for attention. Pilates called this center the ?powerhouse.? All energy for the Pilates exercises initiates from the powerhouse and flow outward to the extremities. Physical energy is exerted from the center to coordinate ones movements. In this way a strong foundation is built upon which we can rely in daily living.

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CONCENTRATION

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You have to concentrate on what you are doing. All the time. And you must concentrate on your entire body. This is not something you?ll be able to do when you start, because it?s harder than you think. Once you begin really to pay attention to your body, you will find that a movement which may have seemed simple is actually quite complex.

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CONTROL

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Joseph Pilates built his method on the idea of muscle control. That meant no sloppy, haphazard movements. The reason one needs to concentrate so thoroughly is so that one can be in control of every aspect of every movement. Not just the large motions of your limbs, but the positions of fingers, head and toes, the degree of arch or flatness of your back, the rotation of your wrists, the turning in or out of your legs.

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PRECISION

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Precision is another vital partner of control. Executing precise motions in placing the body creates fine-tuning that carries over into everyday life as grace and economy of movement.

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Every movement in the Pilates method has a purpose. Every instruction is vitally important to the success of the whole. To leave out any detail is to forsake the intrinsic value of the exercise. Therefore, choose to focus on dong one precise and perfect movement over many halfhearted ones. Eventually, this precision will become second nature to you, and anything less will be just that.

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FLUIDITY

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Part of the uniqueness of the Pilates method comes from the fluidity with which the exercises are meant to be performed. There are no static, isolated movements because our bodies do not naturally function that way. Dynamic energy replaces the quick, jerky movements of other techniques. A focus on grace of motion is emphasized over speed, and ultimately the movements should feel as fluid as a long stride or a waltz. Uniformly developed muscles are the key to good posture, suppleness, and natural grace.

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Bibliography:

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Pilates' Return to Life Through Contrology (republished Paperback)

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by Joseph H. Pilates, William J. Miller,(Judd Robbins, Editor)

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ISBN: 0961493798

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Your Health: A Corrective System of Exercising That Revolutionizes the Entire Field of Physical Education (republished in Paperback) by Joseph H. Pilates, ( Judd Robbins Editor)

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ISBN: 096149378X

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The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning by Philip Friedman, Gail Eisen.

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Hardcover: 191 pages

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Publisher: Doubleday; 1st ed edition (May, 1984)

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Language: English

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ISBN: 0385144903

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The Pilates Body, by Brooke Siler

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208 pages

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Broadway; 1st edition (January 4, 2000)

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Language: English

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ISBN: 076790396X

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