Joseph Pilates
Joseph Pilates was a frail and sickly child born in 1830 in Dusseldorf, Germany, whose parents were told that their son would not live past the age of seven. A progressive pair, they encouraged him to exercise and be outside in the fresh air despite his suffering from rickets, asthma and rheumatic fever. Instead of following a traditional and accepted exercise regime, he drew on elements from many disciplines such as yoga, martial arts, weight training, gymnastics, boxing, dance and circus training to develop his “Contrology” method - now simply called Pilates . Having proven the worth of his system on his own body, he began to work with detectives in Scotland Yard until the First World War broke out. There, because of his nationality, he was interned and began to help in the infirmary where he further developed his ideas while rehabilitating his fellow internees. Thus the benefits of his method went beyond simply exercising.
He emigrated to the United States in 1926, meeting his future wife Clara on the boat over to New York. With the same attitudes to health and fitness, they established a studio which soon attracted top dancers, boxers and athletes. Indeed, Pilates has been a part of traditional dance training for many years now and has become a useful complementary tool to athletes, dancers and Mr Average the world over.