Behind the Scenes with Joseph Pilates Himself
What You and I call Pilates, he called Contrology.
He outlined the art and science of Contrology in his two books: âReturn to Lifeâ and âTo Your Healthâ. He wrote them last year...
Just kidding! đ
He wrote them about 80 years ago, but I bet you wouldn't be able to tell. Why?
In âReturn to Lifeâ which he wrote in the 1940s he said:
âSince we are living in this Modern Age we must out of necessity devote more time and more thought to the important matter of acquiring physical fitnessâ - Joseph H. Pilates.
Hm⌠It sounds familiar, doesnât it?
Mr.Pilates, ahead of his time, knew what you and I need in order to live a healthy, fulfilling life.
In his own words: âContrology is designed to give you suppleness, natural grace, and skill that will be unmistakably reflected in the way you walk, in the way you play, and in the way you work. You will develop muscular power with corresponding endurance, ability to perform arduous duties, to play strenuous games, to walk, run, travel for long distances without undue body fatigue or mental strainâ.
Seems like a reasonable and promising solution to what plagues us in âOURâ Modern Age, donât you think?
How did he know that almost a century later our society will struggle with the same issues?
He really did not... but what he might have known was that the demands of living take a toll on the human body.
Neglected body ages faster. With age come injuries and complaints.
And the antidote to aging is movement. His movement.
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