The Truth About Pilates

Joseph Pilates was born in Germany in 1883. He appears to have been a frail child suffering from asthma, rickets and rheumatic fever. In 1912 while working as an orderly in a hospital on the Isle of Man he started to help the patients who were unable to walk by attaching bed springs to the beds to help support the patients' limbs.

In the early 1920s Joseph Pilates emigrated to the USA with his wife Clara, and together they developed and taught the method in their 'body-conditioning gym' in New York in 1926. By the late 30s, New York City had become a mecca for dancers. During this era, Pilates developed a reputation for his ability to “fix” dancers’ injuries. Many dancers, including luminaries such as George Balanchine, Martha Graham, and Hanya Holm, studied with “Uncle Joe” and referred injured colleagues to him.