What is Pilates?

Pilates exercises are done with body awareness and a foundation of movement principles. These principles include powerful breathing, deep core strength, and stability in the pelvis, spine, and ribcage. This then extends into the limbs, placing the body in proper alignment during movement. Perfect safety, healing, and strength training with precision for your unique body are ensured. Pilates workouts improve total body strength/awareness, core strength, balance, and flexibility. This culminates in a total-body workout that heals as well as strengthens the body. All moves are done with complete body control, and in this lies the magic of Pilates!

Pilates as Rehabilitation

Pilates was originally established as a form of rehabilitation for soldiers in WWII, who were unable to move from hospital beds. Joseph Pilates began using methods that were unknown scientifically at the time, but have now been researched and transformed into Physical Therapy/Rehabilitation methods. He was the founding father of what we see as rehabilitation today, without even knowing it!  If you have back pain, joint pain, are overweight, pregnant, contemplating surgery, or seeing a Physical Therapist or Chiropractor— Pilates is highly recommended by doctors. It is a safe workout solution for individuals with chronic or temporary health conditions with astounding results, no matter what your level of fitness. The Pilates principles ensure your complete safety while releasing pain and gradually improving your strength and overall stability. Pilates focuses on the body as a whole, versus Physical Therapy/Rehabilitation which are centered more towards one area of the body. The body works together as a whole, and when one part is interrupted, it can transfer to different areas and create further problems down the road. Pilates is a more long term solution to total body fitness, and can keep the “trains on the track” (when one train goes off the track, the others will be effected)! The methods used, are today scientifically proven to provide the most rapid results in strength, flexibility and postural alignment which transfer into functional and daily living activities. Our Powerformer machines enhance the results of rehabilitation, and benevolently take you to the next level of post-rehabilitative longterm fitness.

Pilates for Athletes

Pilates and our Powerformer machines are an ideal compliment to athletic strength and conditioning regimens. These machines were originally invented to magically combine the two. This combination of both weight training and Pilates improves athletic abilities by strengthening functional movement patterns simultaneously. You can now gain all the benefits of a full weight training workout in the gym, on the Pilates reformer! Athletes quickly reap the restorative rewards of these special machines-- precise movement patterning, intense core focus, chain stability, and injury prevention techniques used are impossible to replicate in the weight room. The Powerformers keep you in proper alignment and decrease stress on joints to give you the ability to continue training - even if you have experienced an injury. Stay in the game, don't drop out for injury or pain! No matter what your sport is, Pilates is the greatest way to improve at your sport. Functional movement patterns used in all athletic training are enhanced, and increasing core strength extends into proper alignment of all forms of movement, decreasing the risk of injury and improving body awareness.

History

Pilates is an exercise style that was developed by German physiotherapist Joseph Pilates (1883-1967). The method combines elements of strength training, flexibility, balance and Physical Therapy, and it is a mind-body philosophy as well as a principled system of exercises. The Pilates method can be done on a mat or on special machines that Joe Pilates invented (like the Reformer or Cadillac). Most people gravitate to Pilates after injury or back pain, as a compliment to sports or dance training, postpartum, or after quitting or reducing high-impact exercise due to aches and pains (or fear of injury). Pilates instructors undergo a rigorous, multi-year certification process, and Pilates exercises are renowned for their rehabilitative qualities. With Pilates, you can expect to build a very strong core, stabilize your spine and hips, get strong and agile, and understand the principles of strength training that will rejuvenate your body to keep it healthy. Even if you have been completely sedentary, Pilates is right for you. The benefits are endless, guaranteed, and speak for themselves!