Pilates for Men

With Pilates becoming so popular, people often forget that Classical Pilates was created by a man, for men. Originally called Contrology, Pilates didn’t start as a trendy fitness class—it actually came out of rehabilitating injured soldiers during wartime, and the story is pretty amazing.

As a child, Joseph Pilates had asthma, rickets, and other health issues, which pushed him to study anatomy, movement, and different exercise systems (like gymnastics, boxing, and yoga).

When World War I broke out, Joseph Pilates was living in England. As a German national, he was interned in a camp along with other Germans. While there, he began to teach fellow internees exercises to stay strong and healthy. And he developed a system focused on controlled movement, breathing, and core strength. Then, he worked with injured soldiers, many of whom were bedridden. He attached springs to hospital beds so patients could do resistance exercises while lying down. And that is the origins of Pilates!

His goal wasn’t aesthetics, it was rebuilding strength after injury, improving mobility and control and preventing further physical decline. In the beginning, Pilates was heavily used by men - both soldiers and later on by athletes. That is why many football players, baseball players, surfers, golfers, dancers and more do Pilates all over the world. So rest assured, Classical Pilates is definitely for men!