Joseph Hubertus Pilates was born in Düsseldorf/Germany in 1880 at a time where life wasn’t that easy, especially if one is not as well-developed as a child as Pilates was, suffering from asthma, rickets, and rheumatic fever. Nevertheless, this disadvantages Pilates had in his early years of his life, provided him with the will and “burning desire”, to overcome his physical weaknesses. Long before Pilates could ride a bicycle, he yearned for that strong healthy body that he didn’t have. That body that would make him stand up to the other kids, who often ridicule his fragility.

That determination ignited Pilates to go deeper into himself to discover the first  holistic fitness  system that combines eastern and western philosophy of movement, originally called Contrology, but today known as the Pilates Method, which comprises the series of more than 500 exercises to strengthen and elongate muscles without adding bulk. Pilates defines fitness as, “The maintenance of a uniformly developed body with a sound mind fully capable on naturaly, easily, and satisfactorily performing our many and varied daily task with spontaneous zest and pleasure”.

J H Pilates studied yoga, Zen meditation, and Greek and Roman exercise regimens. By the time he was 14 years, this sickly child had become strong and agile enough to become an accomplished skin diver, gymnast, and skier. His favorite motto was, “A sound body in a sound mind”.

In 1912, he left Germany to train as a boxer in England, trapeze artist and an instructor in the art of self defense to the detectives at Scotland Yard. As a German national, Pilates was imprisoned in Lancaster during the I World War. While in prison Pilates taught his exercise system to the inmates with great success. This led to the authorities sending him to the Ilse of Man to work with patients immobilized by war injuries.

In 1926, Pilates opened the first studio in New York. He developed a specialized training program for the mat and constructed and built special training machines, e.g. the Universal Reformer, the Barrell, the Wunda Chair, the Cadillac. Soon the studio became a hot spot for many well known actors and dancers; among them George Ballanchine, Hanya Holm, Martha Graham, Ron Fletcher and Ted Shawn. Today the Pilates method constitutes one of the most popular training methods in the world.