Men do Pilates, don’t they?
When I look at my client list, one thing that strikes me is how the majority are women. Yet Joseph Pilates, who developed each and every exercise, was a man. His physique was strong, healthy and limber well into his 80s. Somewhere along the way, Pilates was marketed more towards women. This is probably because the dance world, with leaders such as George Balanchine and Martha Graham, was the first group to really embrace the method of Pilates (called “Contrology” in the beginning.) They would send their dancers over to Pilates’ studio for rehabilitation and strengthening. One of his favorite clients was Romana Kryzanowska, a ballet dancer who eventually became his world renowned protege. She went on to found the best certification program in the world, under which I trained.
Most men don’t think about Pilates as a good workout. If they think they need Pilates at all, it is only to build their core or gain more flexibility. They are not looking for Pilates to build muscles in their arms or legs. This is a false assumption, of course. Pilates is a total body workout. Each exercise does originate from your core, however, once you have that strengthened, you move on to the extremities. You then begin to strengthen your arms and legs in conjunction with holding onto the abdominal muscles. Of course, the flexibility is integrated right away. Unlike most workouts though, you are not taking 10 minutes to stretch before and 10 minutes to stretch after. In Pilates, the stretch is incorporated into the routine. Many exercises have you strengthening one part of your body and stretching another at the same time. This isn’t your mother’s aerobics class…
I used to teach a number of professional athletes. One time a baseball player came in and said, “Today I would like to work on my legs.” Clearly, I thought, he has no clue about Pilates! But because a “Pilates Instructor” in his past had responded positively to those statements, he didn’t know the true purpose behind this method. He didn’t realize that every Pilates lesson is actually a total body workout. You do not focus more on one part than another, everything works together.
Recently, an instructor I know applauded a new client for enjoying and appreciating Pilates, simply because he is a man used to hard workouts in a gym. I thought, of course he likes this method! This is the one workout that leaves you focused, challenged and energized! The exercise where you will work your entire body; stretching, strengthening and gaining control of your movements! The movements that employ your mind and body! So, yes, I suppose you could give him a pat on the back for realizing it…but I think rather that he’d be a fool to NOT realize it.
Tags: pilates benefits
