Who would have thought then that the exercise that Joseph Pilates came up with will sweep the whole health world by storm? That this resistance exercise could strengthen the muscles of the whole body through proper stretching? And that with this exercise routine you can give yourself a gift of a lean and fit you? Joseph Pilates was born in Germany some time in 1880 and unfortunately then, he always suffered with asthma and rickets.
He was one of those boys who wanted to live a normal life.
And by normal, he meant active.
And so from then on, because of his incapacity to join physical activities, he started to have one goal in mind.
And that is to help other people overcome their disabilities.
To be lean and fit was his goal - and that you didn't have to be athletic or buffed just to have a fit and lean body.
He started helping the war veterans after World War 1 - he helped them recover from their injuries.
He started to use springs as his way of "resisting" to exercise the muscles.
And the moment he arrived in America, he opened his first Pilates studio with his wife's support.
Pilates, just like Yoga, promises a lean and fit body - by strengthening and toning the muscles.
Sounds easy, huh? And although the Father of Pilates died on the year 1967, his methods stayed and lived on.
The Pilates exercise focuses on resistance to stretch and strengthen the muscles of the entire body.
And yet, despite this wonderful contribution to the world of exercise, some people could not help but question its technique.
One of those criticisms is the fact that Pilates does not include cardiovascular training.
And certainly, if you want to grow muscles, then Pilates is not for you.
But if flexibility is what you aim for, you can always count on Pilates to give you that.
Pilates, despite all the raised eyebrows, could give you that lean and fit body you love and deserve.
So yes, feel free to check the Yellow Pages and look for your future Pilates instructor now!