Philip Friedman and Gail Eisen, two students of Romana Kryzanowska, published the first modern book on Pilates, The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning, in 1980 and in it they outlined six "principles of Pilates".[9]
These have been widely adopted—and adapted—by the wider community. The
original six principles were concentration, control, center, flow,
precision, and breathing.
Concentration
Pilates demands intense focus: "You have to concentrate on what
you're doing all the time. And you must concentrate on your entire body
for smooth movements."[10] This is not easy, but in Pilates the way that exercises are done is more important than the exercises themselves.[10] In 2006 at the Parkinson Center of the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon, the concentration factor of the Pilates method was being studied in providing relief from the degenerative symptoms of Parkinson's disease.[11]
Control
"Contrology" was Joseph Pilates'
preferred name for his method and it is based on the idea of muscle
control. "Nothing about the Pilates Method is haphazard. The reason you
need to concentrate so thoroughly is so you can be in control of every
aspect of every moment."[12]
All exercises are done with control with the muscles working to lift
against gravity and the resistance of the springs and thereby control
the movement of the body and the apparatus. "The Pilates Method teaches
you to be in control of your body and not at its mercy."[13]
Centering
For practitioners to control their bodies, they must have a starting
place: the center. The center is the focal point of the Pilates Method.[14]
Many Pilates teachers refer to the group of muscles in the center of
the body—encompassing the abdomen, lower and upper back, hips, buttocks,
and inner thighs—as the "powerhouse". All movement in Pilates should
begin from the powerhouse and flow outward to the limbs.
Flow or efficiency of movement
Pilates aims for elegant sufficiency of movement, creating flow
through the use of appropriate transitions. Once precision has been
achieved, the exercises are intended to flow within and into each other
in order to build strength and stamina. In other words, the Pilates
technique asserts that physical energy exerted from the center should
coordinate movements of the extremities: Pilates is flowing movement
outward from a strong core.[15]
Precision
Precision is essential to correct Pilates: "concentrate on the
correct movements each time you exercise, lest you do them improperly
and thus lose all the vital benefits of their value".[16]
The focus is on doing one precise and perfect movement, rather than
many halfhearted ones. Pilates is here reflecting common physical
culture wisdom: "You will gain more strength from a few energetic,
concentrated efforts than from a thousand listless, sluggish movements".[17]
The goal is for this precision to eventually become second nature, and
carry over into everyday life as grace and economy of movement.[18]
Breathing
Breathing is important in the Pilates method. In Return to Life, Pilates devotes a section of his introduction specifically to breathing "bodily house-cleaning with blood circulation".[19]
He saw considerable value in increasing the intake of oxygen and the
circulation of this oxygenated blood to every part of the body. This he
saw as cleansing and invigorating. Proper full inhalation and complete
exhalation were key to this. "Pilates saw forced exhalation as the key
to full inhalation."[20] He advised people to squeeze out the lungs as they would wring a wet towel dry.[21] In Pilates exercises, the practitioner breathes out with the effort and in on the return.[22] In order to keep the lower abdominals close to the spine; the breathing needs to be directed laterally, into the lower rib cage.
Pilates breathing is described as a posterior lateral breathing,
meaning that the practitioner is instructed to breathe deep into the
back and sides of his or her rib cage. When practitioners exhale, they
are instructed to note the engagement of their deep abdominal and pelvic
floor muscles and maintain this engagement as they inhale. Pilates
attempts to properly coordinate this breathing practice with movement,
including breathing instructions with every exercise. “Above all, learn
to breathe correctly.”[23]
