“Contrology is designed to give you suppleness, natural grace, and skill that will be unmistakably reflected in the way you walk, in the way you play, and in the way you work. You will develop muscular power with corresponding endurance, ability to perform arduous duties, to play strenuous games, to walk, run or travel for long distances without undue body fatigue or mental strain.”
Joseph H. Pilates “Return to Life Through Contrology”
Let’s Get Moving
In an era where medical procedures and solutions dominate the media, “fixing the body,” continues to infiltrate the Pilates’ world. As can be seen in the above ideas from Joseph Pilates it was designed to promote ease and grace in movement. It is exercise to enhance movement, not analysis as movement therapy. (My personal opinion)
Having recently just participated in summer camp at Vintage Pilates in Los Angeles I’m even more appreciative of Pilates as exercise. Vintage has the unique leadership of Jay Grimes, a Pilates elder, assisted by Karen Frischmann and Sandy Shimoda with a host of like-minded teachers. Understanding one can never really “know” exactly what Joe Pilates intended since his death, we rely on the words and wisdom instilled in his former students.
Jay is one of the few Pilates’ elders still actively teaching. He definitely promotes the philosophy that Pilates (Classical Pilates) is exercise not therapy. Having myself been teaching some form of movement; dance, yoga, physical fitness and Pilates for most of my life, I wholeheartedly agree. This is not to say that Pilates does not beneficially improve injured or chronically impaired bodies, it does, but through exercise not therapy.
In my opinion, straying far from the notion of Pilates as exercise negatively impairs the ability to get bodies moving. I love one of Power Pilates slogans; “movement heals.”
Simply said a Dutch person does not learn how to ride a bike through a book or verbal analyses. Youngsters are put on top of bikes to ride with adults as babies and soon alone with simply a hand on the shoulder as they traverse city streets. Thus, riding a bike is learned through moving.
As a former professional dancer the thought of maniacally dissecting each and every movement before moving sounds like water torture to me. One must try actions out, practice, rehearse, try again, and repeat this process over and over. It’s an endless journey.
Promoting Pilates as therapy inhibits individuals from daring to experience trial through movement. It perpetuates the notion that all movement will be perfect, will be totally free from any effort and one will from Day 1 have all the knowledge needed. This is unrealistic and unachievable.
One needs the empathy, both as a teacher and practitioner, that it will not look spectacular in the beginning, or as Jay Grimes says, “you will see a lot of bad Pilates.” This is very different from dangerous. The goal should always be safety first. The rule at our studio is “if it hurts, we don’t do it!”
Pilates as therapy also creates the notion that instructors are physical therapists or experts in rehab. Yes we do positively create change in bodies but it is through movement not because we are some “medical gurus.” As an instructor with both a B.S. and M.S. in Kinesiology I do not teach anatomy to clients, I teach Pilates.
In fact the more I study anatomy the less I teach it. I let the body learn through movement and the clear design of the exercises laid out by Joseph Pilates is the teaching tool.
Use Your Thinking Cap
In Denise Minger’s Book “Death by Food Pyramid” which by the way is an excellent read, she highlights the void in critical thinking on diet and nutrition. She highlights the reliance in the US on “experts” to tell us what to eat. Minger points out the diminishing return on health this has created. Could this have occurred in Pilates?
In our quest to find the “perfect” exercise system one defers to experts that will fix ailments. Individuals then rely heavily on therapeutic remedies that offer temporary solutions. They shy away from experimenting with exercise.
While certainly questions pertaining to diet, nutrition and overall health may not be exactly the same as physical exercise, it’s time to apply critical thinking to our field. As Minger states, “Above all use your gut.”
My gut tells me Mr. Pilates got you moving, and then made his assessments, not the other way around. Moving is a great teacher, how I move today is vastly different from twenty years ago. So is my eye as a teacher, because I’ve seen so many different bodies pass before my gaze.
Find Movement That Speaks to YOU
I totally understand that Pilates may not be the movement experience that speaks to your body. Exercise is a personal quest. My hope is that more and more individuals let the movement do the talking.
Experiment with teachers and studios that are experienced in teaching movement. Apply critical thinking skills and listen to what your body tells you about the moving experience. Exercise is hard work, it requires effort, and if told differently more than likely it’s not exercise.
“The body says what words cannot.”
Martha Graham
