The Definition of Pilates Yoga Articles | Yoga

By: Darren Williger

Pilate’s yoga is a fitness trend that over 5 million people practice today. It is also an exercise system that deals with the connection between the mind and body. It combines elements of yoga as well as stretching and calisthenics, this in turn results in strength, flexibility, better posture, flatter abdomens, lower stress levels, endurance and improved muscle tone. People who tend to practice Pilates will inform you about the successful results that they have enjoyed from this sort of Yoga.

Pilate’s yoga was developed by Joseph H. Pilates sometime in the 1920’s. When Joseph was a child he was often sickly and quite frail. After watching other children enjoy themselves running about and playing sports he was determined to improve his health and strengthen his body too. This was how his journey to the popular Pilates yoga system started. He started out by overcoming his physical limitations through exercise and became a better and more accomplished as a sportsman.

During World War I, Joseph H. Pilates was detained as a German national and during this period he frequently trained with other detainees and helped bedridden patients too. On his release from detention, the exercise method that he developed became more popular in the dance world. He moved over to the United States and started his own fitness studio out in New York City along with his wife Claire. Most of his clientele were dancers and a large number of them from the New York City Ballet. A number of his students started their own studios and moved this form of exercise to other places outside New York. Pilates continued to teach his exercise form until he passed away at the age of 87.

Pilates supports a lot less repetitions and much more control over your body movement. It is a better method of conditioning your body training and strengthening the entire alignment of your body. Stretching and strengthening of the muscles also builds up endurance levels and restores and strengthen muscles as well. What it aims to create is the development of graceful bodies that move quite efficiently and do not result in bulky bodies. What Pilates believes is that change usually occurs through movement and movement heals as well. When you perform these movements, your body tends to learn from its actions. By following through with this exercise methodically you can stretch, strengthen and balance the body at the same time when you’re performing better breathing techniques too.

Pilates exercise can be done on mats or with certain aids as well. The One Hundred pose is a pose is one of the most common poses in existence. It starts with you lying on the floor with your back and waist placed in the floor. You should then place your arms at your side and keep your legs pointed into the air. Next you should lift your head, neck as well as shoulders together off the mat while you pump your arms back and forth like a bird. After this you should hold this together for a count of 100 or thereabouts. This exercise will end up strengthening the muscles of your abdomen and warm up your body in preparation for other exercises.

Pilates followed through by combining yoga together with stretching and making it the popular exercise that it is today. Pilate’s yoga produces core strength which in turn helps with the balanced development of the truck muscles which in turn helps in stabilizing movement. It also aids in controlling and safely expanding yoga poses. This exercise is used for exercise as well as rehabilitation.