Abombinable Aqualates

by: AndreaDow
Total views: 744
Word Count: 337

Thursday, July 12th

Call me a Pilates prude if you like, but I think Pilates exercises should be kept out of the pool! I cringe when I see articles and advertisements for Aqualates which is basically Pilates mat exercises done in the water. I truly think Joseph Pilates was brilliant in the creation of his exercise method. We do not need to add newly invented props or submerge ourselves in water to get the originally intended benefits. If you want to jump in the water and do a few leg exercises, great! Call them leg exercises though, not Aqualates.

Health Magazine reports that Aqualates will "sculpt your butt and thighs in H2O with no laps required". Their article says that people across the country are "abandoning their mats and doing their leg circles and mermaids underwater" in these new Aqualates classes. Please, I beg you, do not abandon your mat! One of the goals of Pilates is to learn how to activate and maintain the activation of your core/powerhouse muscles working both with and against gravity. Although there is a gravitional effect while you are in the water, it is greatly diminished by the buoyant characteristics of water. This greatly decreases the desired results Joseph Pilates was looking for in terms of being able to strengthen your core (abdominals, butt, back, upper leg) against gravity. It seems to me that a couple of the exercises highlighted in this article are more creative Pilates than traditional Pilates. I have never taught a "tap & lift" or "standing V with jump" in any of my mat classes.

Now I am not saying that these exercises are ineffective, just that they are not authentic Pilates exercises and that Pilates should not be taught in the water! Buyer beware, marketers know that the word Pilates sells and will attach it onto anything to make some money. Stick to the original work by Mr. Pilates and you will benefit from his incredible method.

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