Pilates and Kung Fu – by Reiner Grootenhuis

Issue #402 – Wednesday, June 7, 2023 Pilates and Kung Fu by Reiner Grootenhuis Some of my V-bed observations are listed further below if you have time and interest. Reiner started his professional career studying psychology, all the while studying Weng Chun, the martial and healing arts of the South […]

Pat Guyton Remembers Bruce King

Issue #373 – Wednesday, June 22, 2022 Pat Guyton Remembers Bruce King “Movement in correct alignment produces correct muscular development.” Bruce King  As students we meet our teachers at one point in their teaching life. We are influenced by our teachers and by their practice of Pilates. Each of our teachers […]

Pilates: More than Just the Exercises – by Miguel Bengoa

Issue #368 Wednesday May 11, 2022 Pilates: More than Just the Exercises by Miguel Bengoa Before I became a Pilates teacher… I was a language teacher.  A very “learner focussed” teacher one: Students of language were “learners” learning skills, not studying “rules”. We studied what the learners brought in and […]

Wall Of Fame Fridays – by Cathy Strack

Issue #366 – Wednesday, April 20, 2022 TheWall Of Fame Fridays by Cathy Strack Joe Pilates taught his method to many famous men and women during his lifetime. The walls of his studio at 939 Eighth Avenue in New York City were covered with photographs signed by many of his students […]

Lost in Translation, Part II – by Amy Alpers

Issue #363 – Wednesday, March 23, 2022 How the Pilates Method Has Changed Over the Years by Amy Alpers In my last article on this subject, I discussed several key differences between the way Romana taught certain Pilates exercises in the 1980s/90s, versus the way they are shown on archival […]

Pilates History – Pehr Ling and Knockaloe Camp – by Jonathan Grubb

Issue #361 – Wednesday, March 2, 2022 Pilates History – Pehr Ling and Knockaloe Camp by Jonathan Grubb There are many references in Knockaloe Camp newspapers to ‘free exercises’ being performed at the Camp and usually these references describe parts of gymnastic festivals which were held there. Free exercises are more […]

Some Pilates History and a Pilates Myth

Issue #355 – Wednesday, December 15, 2021 Some Pilates History and a Pilates Myth A myth and some science from Adam McAtee Back when I was a novice Pilates teacher, I came from a belief that Pilates was limited to “the order” and “real teachers” not only knew the order and […]

Let’s Talk Springs – by Reiner Grootenhuis

Issue #350 – Wednesday, November 3, 2021 Let’s Talk Springs by Reiner Grootenhuis For us Pilates apparatus fans, springs are an essential part of the method. For each exercise and client, we try to choose the best spring setting for the body in front of us. Depending on the apparatus, […]

The Side Way Sitting Stretch – by Reiner Grootenhuis

Issue #325 – Wednesday, February 17, 2021 The Side Way Sitting Stretch by Reiner Grootenhuis   ”The Side Way Sitting Stretch” is the original name used by Carola Trier I first discovered this exercise in the archive pictures of Joseph Pilates‘s student Carola Trier. Shortly afterwards I was taught the […]

Pilates Wisdom from Jay Grimes – by Ana Caban

Issue #318 – November 18, 2020 Pilates Wisdom from Jay Grimes by Ana Caban When I sat down in Balanced Body Headquarters over 2 ½ years ago, I had no idea what an amazing and historical ride I was in for. I entered a conference room with managers of several […]

Review of Caged Lion – by Reiner Grootenhuis

Pic: Author John Steele with Joe and Clara Issue #316 – Wednesday, November 4, 2020 Review of Caged Lion by Reiner Grootenhuis As a Pilates Intel regular, you probably read the excerpt from John Howard Steel’s recently published “Caged Lion” here a few weeks ago. Time for a review and […]

Pre-Pilates and Beyond – by Christina Maria Gadar

Issue #312 – Wednesday, September 23, 2020 Pre-Pilates and Beyond by Christina Maria Gadar   “I give people homework, like exercises to do in bed before you even put your feet on the floor in the morning. We don’t pop ‘em into a class and command them to do a […]

Mary Pilates – by Bonnie Hubscher

Issue #310 – Wednesday, September 9, 2020 Mary Pilates by Bonnie Hubscher Early in my Pilates career, and full of enthusiasm to share it, I held workshops to bring Pilates to people’s attention. Mary Pilates LeRiche was invited to be our honored guest speaker at one of these workshops and […]

Pilates at School A Dream Has Come True! by Eva Obenaus

Issue #309 – Wednesday, August 26, 2020 Pilates at School A Dream Has Come True! by Eva Obenaus I was a teacher of physical education and history at a Commercial High School in Austria from 1978 until 2017. In 2004, I started my Pilates education with Juliana Afram in Hamburg, […]

Joe’s Breaststroke by Reiner Grootenhuis

Issue #301 – Wednesday May 20, 2020 Joe’s Breaststroke by Reiner Grootenhuis There are certain exercises in our Pilates system which seem to be difficult when you do them for the first time … and they often stay difficult even when you keep on practicing them. For many of us, […]

Coming into the Zone with Pilates – by Suzanne Martin

Issue #300 Wednesday May 5, 2020 Coming into the Zone with Pilates by Suzanne Martin Breathing is a major principle in our Pilates tradition. Mr. Pilates continually emphasizes breathing in Return to Life. I believe we can all agree that all movement starts with a breath as movement emanates from […]

Engage Deeper into your Teaching – by Clare Dunphy Hemani

March 12, 2020 Engage Deeper into your Teaching by Clare Dunphy-Hemani I think most Pilates teachers today share the belief that our lineage has value because the connection back to Joe, either directly or through one of his students (our elders), helps keep the tradition alive.  It wasn’t that long […]

To Be or Not To Be a Teacher – by Kaisa Marran

Issue #289 – Wednesday, February 5, 2020 To Be or Not To Be a Teacher by Kaisa Marran Pilates teachers rock, they change people’s lives! Joseph Pilates may not have been a great teacher, but he was a genius, no doubt. He had an obsession where nothing stopped him working […]

Airplane on the Cadillac – by Reiner Grootenhuis

November 6, 2019 Airplane on the Cadillac by Reiner Grootenhuis Setup: Attach traditional leg springs at a height of 80 – 85 cm / 31.5 – 33.5 inches. The higher the spring attachment, the easier raising the body into the diagonal becomes. Supine position with the head pointing toward the […]

The Amazing Chest Expansion – by Clare Dunphy-Hemani

October 9, 2019 The Amazing Chest Expansion by Clare Dunphy-Hemani I guess if I had to pick one universally effective, versatile Pilates exercise (which in my opinion, should be taught in every session and for nearly every person), it would be Chest Expansion. It includes all the essentials of total […]

The Order – Learning from Romana By Tricia Dean O’Donnell

November 21, 2018 The Order – Learning from Romana By Tricia Dean O’Donnell In 1997, none of us realized we were observing history, while undergoing our teacher certification for The Pilates Method of Body Conditioning under the supervision of Romana Kryzanowska and Bob Liekens. There were many apprentices, sometimes nearly […]

In Memory of the Great Bob Liekens

November 7, 2018 In Memory of the Great Bob Liekens (this is the Pilates Intel edition from Nov 7 in its entirety) Hello , For the few of you who have not heard the news, you now most likely have guessed from the title that the wonderful Bob Liekens passed […]

A Hybrid of Many Masters – by Jillian Hessel

Hybrid of Many Masters By Jillian Hessel If you are a teacher, or even an avid student of Pilates, you can trace your lineage back through a special mentor or formative teacher.  We each discovered Pilates traveling our own unique path, and this is how the living chain of lineage […]

A Strong Woman – Carola Trier – by Eva Rincke

A Strong WomAn: Carola Strauss-Trier by Eva Rincke     Carola Strauss-Trier was the first person to open a Pilates studio – other than Joseph Pilates himself. She contributed significantly to establishing the Pilates method in the field of rehabilitation. The story of her life is just as interesting as […]

Joe Pilates’ Childhood In Poverty – by historian Eva Rincke (Part 2)

Source: Stadtarchiv Mönchengladbach Joe Pilates’ Childhood In Poverty – by historian Eva Rincke (Part 2) “Perfecting the knee bend and many things to commend, his youth was gymnastic to the end.” – Joachim Ringelnatz, Setting up the Equipment (First Draft) Alongside his secret outings into the woods, the only other thing Joseph […]