Pilates 101 - an Introduction to the practice

In this lesson, Derek introduces us to Pilates with the help of Pilates instructor Moira Scott-Merrithew and her husband, Lindsay Merrithew. They designed a line of equipment, Stott Pilates, based upon the original designs of Joseph Pilates. This video is a good introduction to what pilates is (overall body conditioning) and how it varies from other forms of exercise (initial focus on core stability followed by rebalancing muscles around joints). It is a good primer for someone considering Pilates classes. Pilates was originally designed for dancers and is appealing to many people who would like to achieve fitness with a physical body aesthetic that is more like a long and lean dancer than a muscle-bound athlete. It is also appealing because it is a destressor. The focus of the lesson is on Pilates practice overall and shows usage of various types of equipment-based (versus mat-based) Pilates exercises. The lesson also discussed how often Pilates should be practiced and how it should be balanced with cardio workouts.

Derek Duke Noble (www.bodynoble.com), the host and creator of Urban Fitness TV (www.urbanfitnesstv.com), is a world-renowned celebrity lifestyle and fitness guru.

As a personal lifestyle fitness guru and trainer, I have had the good fortune to work with some of Hollywood’s hottest celebrities (John McEnroe, Demi Moore, Maria Shriver, Tatum O’Neil, and Michael J. Fox) and most recently, I got the opportunity to serve as both host and executive producer of Urban Fitness TV on the Fit TV channel. After working with an extensive list of high performance athletes, high fashion models and actors who have little time to work out, but still have to look as if they live at the gym, I created the ‘focus touch’ visualization technique that can boost the effectiveness of any exercise. This technique is part of the Body Noble Method, which is a safe,...

Great overview on Pilates!

02/09/2009

~ nachan

I have only done pilates with dvds. I had no idea that there were so many different machines and workout routines. This is great lesson that explains the difference between pilates from yoga and aerobic exercieses, and also explains the purpose of pilates. I would love to take a class now!

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