HEALTH BACK CARE PILATES
“The Pilates Method of body conditioning develops the body uniformly, corrects posture, restores vitality, invigorates the mind and elevates the spirit” - Joseph Pilates
T
hese days everyone has heard of pilates and in recent years classes have popped up everywhere from village halls to gyms and leisure centres.
Joseph pilates first developed his technique whilst interned during World War I. Born in Germany in 1883 he had been a sickly child and determined to overcome his fragility. his mother was a naturopath and his father a gymnast and by the time pilates was fourteen years old he was posing for anatomical artists. Joseph pilates studied martial arts, yoga, gymnastics and circus skills amongst other things and by 1912 he was training scotland yard detectives in self-defence! a talented man indeed. In 1925 pilates sailed to new
york and met his wife to be, clara. They bonded over their similar ideas about exercise and general health and together they opened a studio and taught right into the 1960’s. There have been many interpretations of this work, and several formats have been developed for the general public in recent years – big classes, small classes, machines and all sorts of equipment. The remedial work has become renowned in the Fitness World and millions of people world-wide now practise this very intelligent exercise. my own experience with the pilates method has been and still is very profound. I can safely say that pilates changed my life. Back in the nineties, I ‘put my back out’ and spent the next thirteen years chasing a way to be out of pain. I couldn’t do the things I wanted to do, gardening hurt so much, shopping and carrying heavy bags was a nightmare. some mornings I would roll out of bed onto the floor and get to the bathroom on my hands and knees. I spent hundreds of pounds on osteopaths, acupuncture and anything else going, in order to live my life pain free. Then one day someone told me about this very different type of exercise – the pilates
method and my life changed. Over a period of about nine months of gentle and regular practise things started to change. I became present in my body and the pain left me, after a year I was totally pain free and able to do quite advanced exercises. I had become as I was supposed to be - longer, leaner, stronger, able to walk tall and be unafraid of going to the shops. I haven’t been to an osteopath now for sixteen years. I became passionate about pilates and started my teacher training in 1999. I have now been teaching Back care pilates for fifteen years. What makes pilates unique from
I became present in my body and the pain left me, after a year I was totally pain free
other forms of exercise disciplines is the application of several fundamental principles at the same time. The use of the core muscles and the alignment of the spine means that the right muscles will do the right job. The concentration of flowing movement coupled with the breath ensures relaxation and
therefore an enhanced presence in the body, which brings peace in the mind. These things combine to allow the body to re-form, and brings balance to the whole system. something that I have learnt from all my students over the years is that the most important thing whilst learning this method is persistent correction. I have found that the most rewarding way to teach and to learn is on a one-to-one basis and this is what I now concentrate on. By tailoring the method to suit our own individual bodies we can achieve lasting results that can then be taken out into the rest of our lives. By continually seeking precision in movement we can increase our overall health and our sense of well-being can only grow.
elaine Fenton is able to offer instruction to small groups and individuals. please contact her on 01803 770752 for more information.
BY ELAINE FENTON
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