To achieve the highest accomplishments within the scope of our capabilities in all walks of life, we must constantly strive to acquire strong, healthy bodies and develop our minds to the limit of our ability.
Joseph Pilates, b. 1883 (Germany), d. 1967 (New York)
The Pilates method has become a mainstream form of fitness, but too often overlooked are the principles on which Joseph Pilates based his lifelong work.
- Centering/Stabilization
- Control
- Concentration
- Flow
- Breath
- Precision
Centering comes from an internal source of awareness. Oftentimes our awareness tells us that we are standing up straight, not because we feel it but because we have become accustomed to long-term misalignment. Centering ourselves opens us up to awareness and enables us to initiate positive change.
Control leads us down the path to balance of body, mind and spirit because we become mindful of how we move and place ourselves in space and time.
Concentration is a mindful form of awareness that helps us steer our bodies in the correct movement patterns that we strive to achieve. Concentration and awareness allow you to develop a deeper sense of self, both physically and mentally.
Flow is the result of physiologically perfect muscle movement in time. When one experiences the sensation of energy flowing to create a desired movement, he or she is truly living the moment as a personal, unobstructed channeling of mind and body.
Breath is the first thing we do when we come into the world and the last thing we do going out. Unfortunately, most of us never learn how to breathe correctly. We basically tend to ignore it and let it be an autopilot function like digestion. Breath, purposefully coordinated with movement, can truly enhance our lives-it is what connects and links our bodies, minds and spirits.
Precision requires the integration of awareness, concentration and control. Fine-tuned muscle isolation leads you to perform each exercise with a committed focus-mindfulness. And mindfulness is what leads us to the perfect balance of mind, body and spirit, which helps us achieve our highest physical and spiritual selves.
“With body, mind, and spirit functioning perfectly as a coordinated whole, what else could reasonably be expected other than an active, alert, disciplined person?”
Joseph Pilates, Return to Life through Contrology*
* Joseph Pilates referred to his method of body conditioning as “contrology.” Contrology has been posthumously rebranded as Pilates.
