Rael Isacowitz

Pilates is so popular, and after decades of doing yoga, I felt a desire to do something a little different. Pilates class are so common I decided to check it out.

Pilates is exercises concocted by Joseph Pilates, born in 1880 “He was a sickly child, ... His drive to overcome these ailments led him to explore and practice body-building, gymnastics, diving and other physical pursuits.” (Page XIV)

Now comes the interesting part: “Over the course of his career Pilates developed more than 600 exercises for the apparatus that he invented.” (Page XV) Equipment? Yes, Equipment! The book goes on to say that most Pilates books only cover the mat work (done without equipment). The various equipments are somewhat large, and would take up the same or more space than the typical body builder racks that some people buy and then don’t use.

Chapters
1. Enhancing the Mind and Body: p. 1
2. Alignment, Posture and Movement: p. 13
3. Powerful Pilates Practice: p. 29
4. Mat Work: p. 47
5-11. Cover various pieces of equipment from page 119 thru 339

Many of the exercises look familiar, being similar to those found in yoga classes. The emphasis is somewhat different, and would matter if a person was highly competitive or was working on treating an injury.

It was disconcerting to read that it would take years to fully comprehend Pilates. This author simplifies it by breaking them up into blocks. They are:
1. Warm-up
2. Foot work
3. Abdominal work
4. Hip work
5. Spinal articulation
6. Stretching
7. Full-body integration
8. Arm work
9. Leg work
10. Lateral flexion and rotation
11. Back extension

The blocks that make up the mat system are as follows:
1. Foundation
2. Abdominal work
3. Spinal articulation
4. Bridging
5. Lateral flexion and rotation
6. Back Extension

For a further comparison of yoga versus Pilates, I found some Wikipedia articles interesting. I found the yoga article is much longer since yoga has a much longer history.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilates
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outline_of_exercise
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise#Exercise_trends

It took a while for Pilates to catch on: “Joseph Pilates died a disillusioned man, by many accounts.” (Page X) But saying it has caught on is perhaps an overstatement, since what has caught on is the mat work. The equipment he invented seems to be seldom used.

I’m glad that I read this book. Now if I sign up for a Pilates class, I have a pretty good idea of what to expect.… (meer)

Little-known fact about me: I used to be a Pilates fanatic. We're talking like an hour, hour and a half every day of contorting myself into crazy positions to improve my strength, flexibility, and posture. I stopped when I started working full time and because I realized that I was getting a little too obsessive about it.

Flipping through this book, I found a lot of my old favorite positions and some new ones that look really fun. I'm hoping that this trip down memory lane will inspire me to start back up with Pilates. Isacowitz provides photos of each position from start to finish, along with detailed descriptions of what muscles it works, what to visualize to ensure correct posture, and variations for those with joint problems or previous injuries. In addition to mat work, there are sections on how to use the apparatuses -- I've never used anything but my mat, but I was really intrigued by what's possible if I were to do a Pilates class at a gym.

All in all, it's a really great, descriptive book that I'd recommend to anyone interested in Pilates.

Thank you to Goodreads and the publisher for the free copy.… (meer)

"Pilates, 2nd edition" by Rael Isacowitz was given to me through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers free book giveaway. I absolutely enjoyed the thoroughness of this book. The history of Pilates and the anatomical descriptions provides just enough information without overwhelming the reader.

I was deeply intrigued by the idea of Pilates to enhance everyday activities. So often, we think of physical activity as a distinct exertion only to be done in the gym or home, without realizing that exercise should mimic functional activities to improve our daily lives as a whole. The mat work and apparatus exercise descriptions are excellent, and the use of imagery to help one visualize the correct performance of the movements is very worthwhile. In addition, the sample routines are a great benefit to assist one in the development of a regular Pilates practice. Plus, I found that the lists of resources at the end of the book are quite useful.

After reading this book, I am even more compelled to continue and advance my present Pilates practice and would love to visit a studio. In addition, I am very interested now in reading "Return to life through Contrology" by Joseph Pilates. This work has strengthened my desire to continue to learn more about Pilates and its history.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in starting a Pilates program and also to those who want to add to their Pilates exercise repertoire. Excellent, excellent book!!!… (meer)