Meet the Method: A Brief History of Joseph Pilates and Why It Still Works

Pilates has become one of the most popular fitness methods in the world — but it didn't start in a bright, airy studio with reformer machines and grip socks. It started with one man's lifelong obsession with the relationship between body and mind.

Who Was Joseph Pilates?

Joseph Hubertus Pilates was born in Germany in 1883. A sickly child plagued by asthma, rickets, and rheumatic fever, he became determined to transform his health through physical training. By adulthood, he had become an accomplished gymnast, diver, and boxer.

During World War I, Pilates was interned in England as a German national. It was there, working with fellow internees — many of them injured or ill — that he began developing his method. He rigged springs to hospital beds so patients could exercise while bedridden. Those beds would eventually evolve into the reformer.

Coming to New York

In 1926, Pilates emigrated to the United States and opened a studio in New York City. His location — conveniently in the same building as several dance studios — meant that dancers quickly discovered his work. Martha Graham and George Balanchine were among those who sent their dancers to him for conditioning and injury rehabilitation.

For decades, Pilates remained something of an insider secret in the dance and performance world. It wasn't until the 1990s that it began to enter mainstream fitness culture.

Why the Method Has Lasted

Joseph Pilates called his method "Contrology" — the study of control. His foundational principles — concentration, control, centering, flow, precision, and breath — are as relevant today as they were a century ago.

The method works because it addresses the body as an integrated whole, rather than a collection of isolated parts. Modern research has validated much of what Pilates understood intuitively: that deep core stability, spinal mobility, and functional movement patterns are essential to long-term health and injury prevention.

At The Pilates Body Studio, we've spent over 25 years teaching this method. The equipment has been refined, the research has deepened — but the heart of what Joseph Pilates built remains unchanged.