The Pilates was made by the German Joseph Pilates during the First World War where he trained with his fellow detainees. But it was only in 1918, when influenza was becoming more prevalent that the Pilates became more popular because the people who trained with him were perfectly fine compared to the people who didn’t train with him using Pilates.

As the Pilates became more and more popular to help patients recover from several ailments and injuries, Joseph was unable to keep up with the demand of training people to use Pilates exercise. And so Joseph created the first ever Pilates exercise equipment.

After being release from prison, Joseph set out to the United States of America where he started to spread the amazing Pilates exercises, its health benefits, and the proper equipment to use when doing Pilates exercises. And on 2005 there were more than 11 million people practicing Pilates all over the world and in the United States alone there are 14,000 instructors. But don’t worry there are plenty of Pilates instructors and equipment you can find in Pilates Malvern.

Pilates Exercises and Tips for Beginners

If you’re relatively new to practicing Pilates whether you are at home or being instructed by a certified instructor here are some easy Pilates exercises for beginners.

Slowly but surely

When you’re practicing Pilates don’t rush through your exercises and warm ups. Joseph Pilates himself taught this principle, that you have to concentrate on everything you are doing right down to the breathing.

Breathing

This is the most basic principle of Pilates since it is considered as the link between mind and body. Although it might seem simple and dull, breathing helps you clear your mind from distractions and let you concentrate at what you’re doing.

Concentration

Concentration is one of the most important principles of Pilates simply because there wouldn’t be any point in the exercises if you weren’t concentrating on them. Joseph himself said, “Better to do a few exercises as long as you’re concentrating rather than doing a lot of exercises without it.”

Relaxation

Relaxation and concentration go hand in hand. If you can’t relax your mind and body you won’t be able to concentrate o what you’re doing.

Benefits of Pilates

Pilates has so many benefits and many people have testified to its health benefits and and the millions of people practicing it is a testament of its efficiency and health benefits that it gives. With the popularity of Pilates there are literally thousands of versions that instructors use but all of them still stick as close to Joseph Pilates’ principles.

Joseph Pilates emphasizes on the principle of strengthening your core or your “powerhouse” which is the center of your body. Unlike strength training which focuses on your muscles, core strengthening focuses on the muscular network that gives you the control and stability of certain parts of your body such as pelvic floor muscles, inner thigh muscles, and your diaphragm. Strengthening your core will help you use your muscles properly without overly stretching and stressing them out and the great thing about this is that it also tones your muscles.

Another benefit of Pilates is that anybody can practice it, even children 10 years old and up can practice it. Joseph himself as a child was very sickly and he designed Pilates can be done by everybody especially young people.

People suffering from physical injuries can greatly benefit from it. This is simply because Pilates helps prevent physical injuries by training and practicing how to properly use your muscles efficiently and not overburdening them when you move your body.

As stated earlier, relaxation is one of the key principles being used in Pilates and this helps you relieve stress and also gives you better concentration to do your daily tasks more efficiently. There are even clinics that use it to help patients recover from stress, shocks, and trauma.

As you can see Pilates is a very easy and effective way to keep up in shape without spending too much time and money on equipment. You can get simple Pilates exercise equipment such as the basic mat and other relatively cheap specialized equipment to start practicing Pilates. Alternatively you can go to gyms that offer Pilates sessions and get the full experience and health benefits from a certified instructor. If you’re in Malvern in the UK then you’re in luck since you can find a personal instructor that can offer Pilates in Malvern.

Malvern is a town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, governed by Malvern Town Council. As of the 2001 census it has a population of 28,749, and includes the historical settlement and commercial centre of Great Malvern on the steep eastern flank of the Malvern Hills, and the former independent urban district of Malvern Link. Many of the major suburbs and settlements that comprise the town are separated by large tracts of open common land and fields and, together with smaller civil parishes adjoining the town council boundaries and the hills, the built up area is often referred to collectively as The Malverns. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malvern,_Worcestershire