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Eight Fitness Tips For The Combat Realist
Forget being the toughest guy on the planet. It's pretty easy for martial artists to adopt complacency and begin to rest on their laurels. Not you? Well, if the circumference of your waist is large enough to hide the knot of your black belt, this...
Home Gyms Provide A Great Environment
Home gyms provide a great environment
Are you the one who want some peace of mind during workout sessions? Use a home gym.
Home gyms are the best thing ever happened to the fitness world.
Home gyms provides us the luxury when to exercise....
Sportcraft treadmill a great investment for individuals in their health.
Sportcraft is an industry leader in treadmill and fitness products. Since 1926 Sportcraft has provided recreational treadmill products that offer quality and innovation at competitive prices. Sportcraft treadmill was introduced as part of...
The 7 Things To Look For When Joining A Gym
You've finally committed to getting fit and you want to join a gym, but which one? Unless you've been a regular at gyms in the past you really don't know a good one from a bad one. A good fitness center has their members as their number one...
What Type of Pilates Studio is Right for You? -
Studios are the best option for people who don’t want to work out in their home, but do want to undergo the rigors of Pilates exercises under the guidance of experts and on the appropriate equipment. There are studios in almost all major cities...
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Joseph Pilates: The Man behind the Movement
Joseph Pilates : The Man behind the Movement
Joseph Pilates was born in Düsseldorf, Germany in 1880. He was a frail young boy, who suffered from asthma, rickets, and rheumatic fever. In order to overcome his weakened state, he studied body building, skiing, diving, and gymnastics. In time, he developed his own series of exercises.
He moved to England in 1912, and spent much of his time working as a circus performer and a boxer. Eventually, he started teaching self defense methods to a group of police detectives from Scotland Yard. In 1914, at the outset of World War I, he was interned at a camp in Lancaster as an “enemy alien”. While in the camp, he spent a great deal of his time developing his exercise techniques.
After his release, Joseph returned to Germany and began teaching his method to dancers. He decided to leave Germany when he was asked to teach his exercise methods to the German Army. In 1926, he emigrated to America and took up residence in New York. He met his wife, Clara, on the voyage. Joseph and Clara opened a fitness studio in New York City, and shared an address with the New York City Ballet.
Joseph spent the remaining years of his life operating his studio. The nature of his work in those years was more akin to a physiotherapist for dancers than an exercise instructor for the masses. He also spent a considerable amount of time designing and constructing exercise equipment for use in his programs.
Joseph Pilates was one of the first fitness instructors to advocate the mind-body connection, which consisted of both physical and mental training
to achieve the desired results. His method consists of slow, deliberate movements combined with breathing and a focus on the abdomen, lower back, and buttocks.
As quoted from his 1945 book, Return to Life with Contrology, he states that “Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness. Our interpretation of physical fitness is the attainment and maintenance of a uniformly developed body with a sound mind fully capable of naturally, easily, and satisfactorily performing our many and varied daily tasks with spontaneous zest and pleasure.”
Joseph Pilates passed away in 1967. The studio is still in operation today.
About the author:
Harriet Spinzer is a history student and Pilates enthusiast. When she is not consumed with her studies, she likes to stretch and stuff. When she is not tangled up in her “Reformer”, she like to write freelance articles for websites such as http://www.pilatesinsight.com– a site that offers information about pilates - http://www.pilatesinsight.com/,pilates equipment - http://www.pilatesinsight.com/pilates-equipment/pilates-equipment.aspxand pilates chairs - http://www.pilatesinsight.com/pilates-equipment/pilates-chairs.aspx.
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