Pilates is a method of exercise invented by Joseph Pilates in the early 1910's. Joseph Pilates was a frail child, getting sick most of the time, he eventually got into exercising to improve his health. When he was detained in an English detention center for being an "enemy alien" in World War I, he used springs from hospital beds, for the resistance exercises that he used. It was these exact springs that inspired him to make the exercise machine that is now called the Pilates Reformer.
Joseph Pilates invented the Pilates technique of exercising to form a low intensity workout that is suitable for anyone in any condition. And indeed, Pilates has been successful both in the healthy and the slightly not well of population because of its low energy requirement. The Pilates reformer is just one of the many Pilates equipment that the technique employs and it is also the most popular of it all, with its simplicity and its economic size.
Essentially, doing Pilates Matwork would be the most ideal form of exercise that you can do, but reality wise, nobody can really do the demanding exercises of matwork without first experiencing less tiring methods; this is where the Pilates reformer comes in. But remember, it is really better to do Pilates of any form with an instructor. The Pilates instructor knows which part of the body to focus on, which exercise would benefit you most and which machine to really use.
But if you're hell bent on using the Pilates reformer, then to each his own, the truth is the reformer is one of the most effective equipment of all the Pilates machines. Just its name entails something that is a big claim on its own, "reformer" meaning something that reforms, and indeed it does, reform, reform your body.
The first basic exercise would have you, the exerciser lying face up on the carriage, as they call it. This is where the instructor comes in, he positions you to prevent strain on your body, and then you push your body, carriage and all, up and down or back and forth, depending on the type of Pilates Reformer that you are using.
The good thing about a Pilates reformer is that it doesn't even equal the leg presses that you usually do in a gym, it does something much more. The instructor guides you in order that you may maintain a neutral spine and pelvis, to prevent you straining them. And in addition you can even feel the movement come from your deep core muscles. Pilates aims to strength\then your core muscles, and this is just hat a Pilates Reformer does. Aside from this you must relax your quads, hip flexors and knees, these are the mostly tired parts of your body, what with all the walking, the Pilates reformer and with the help of the instructor, helps these parts of your body relax more, and put the other parts, such as the back of your legs and your hips in a way that can absorb most of the strain instead of the knee.
The Pilates reformer exercise progresses into much higher intensity ones, once your instructor has given the go for the removal of the foot bar, to circling your legs and to more complex movements. This is for increased intensity, and this is also where things get complicated, that is why it is really important to have an instructor. AS time goes, step by step all the mechanical support for your body are removed and your body will have to do more to compensate, this is what is good about a Pilates reformer, you only need one machine for increased intensity.
After every session, your body becomes stronger, your core harder, and with the Pilates reformer, you're sure to be able to do strengthen yourself more and do more challenging workouts for a very long time.
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Authored by Michael Bens - For more great information on how to lose weight, get in shape, and live healthy, visit Gabae Weight Loss for great resources, training and motivation!
Written By: Michael Bens
