AeroPilates, an Exercise System That Has Arrived, Not a Moment Too Soon!

Posted by Marjolein Brugman on Wednesday, June 24, 2009

History

In 1968, Dr. Kenneth Cooper was the first to write the book "Aerobics", in which he explained how energy expenditure could be scientifically measured. Suddenly there was a way to control weight by measuring calories ingested versus calories expended. The world of fitness was later caught up in the Jane Fonda era, consumed by the adage "no pain no gain". "You must work hard, sweat hard and get sore" exhorted Fonda on her 1981 "Workout" video.

Suddenly men and women flooded to the gym in an effort to become strong, fit, slim and healthy. Consumerism quickly followed. It began with specialized running shoes and when Nike was asked why they endorsed the concept of "target zone" energy expenditure, they answered "it sells shoes"! The fitness clothing manufacturers followed with trendy, comfortable workout gear and the diet industry with protein bars and weight loss shakes. Today, however, most of us in our forties and fifties are still suffering some irreparable damage after all those years of high-impact and mindless exercise!

Twelve years ago, when first introduced to Pilates by my very brilliant Orthopedic Surgeon, I too was a traditional gym rat who followed the Jane Fonda trend and for more than 20 years had been committed to nautilus machines, free weights, jogging on the streets and "going for the burn". So it was with much skepticism and trepidation that I began to explore this Zen-like, strange movement system where you lie on a moving platform with your feet in stirrups and your pant legs flapping around your face? What took the fitness industry so long to find Joe Pilates? How did the elite, rich and famous Pilates aficionados manage to keep this system such a guarded secret and why did Jane Fonda not know about him?

Injury
I became a total convert in 3 months. My seriously damaged hip was reconstructed and I was able to run again. My body became smarter in how it moved and stronger than ever before. I stood taller, looked leaner, and had better tone in my arms and a flatter stomach than all the previous years of heavy weights, miles of pounding the pavements and hundreds of daily situps.

Strength
Joseph Pilates was a genius. He studied the anatomy of body movement and realized that you have to stabilize your body before strong, correct movement is possible. He designed a machine on which your prone body can strengthen and stretch without remembering the imbalances it has while vertical. With simple resistance springs, that your mobilizing muscles pull against, your supported body moves back and forth, forcing the core stabilizing muscles to engage. Every movement works both opposing muscles to create a balance, like that of a pendulum. No one muscle is isolated, as entire groups of muscles are perfectly recruited with grace and efficiency. Each muscle is elongated as it pushes and pulls against the weight of your body and maintains its length and freedom, well beyond the workout. All of a sudden you develop a stronger, taller, leaner, better body with a mechanical awareness that was missing before. But what about the heart? It's a muscle too.

Cardio Too
Two years ago, after much conversation with Stamina Products, discussing the possibility of rounding out the Pilates workout with a safe and effective cardio routine, AeroPilates was born. Based on the research done by Dr.Earl Carter on the benefits of rebounding, we decided to add a trampoline attachment in place of the footbar. Now you can lie on your padded, totally supportive AeroPilates machine platform and jump against the Rebounder, to get a cardiovascular workout that is more efficient than running on a treadmill, without unnecessary impact to your bones and joints. "Jumping for joy" is what you are now able to do, lying down, with your neck and lower back supported. Those of you with weak ankles, knee replacements and lower back problems, can begin to get the same benefits as that of running on a treadmill.

What a revolutionary thought, that everyone, young and old, fit or sedentary, injured or obese can now increase their heart rate, burn calories, lose weight and improve their heart health, while safely lying down and without risk of injury!!!!

Stronger Abs is the Secret
Over the last 15 years, the fitness industry has focused on the benefits of strong abdominals as the key to lower back health and strength. Television advertising began to bombard us with a new abdominal machine every week promising a flatter stomach and washboard abs, in a flash.

While we are absolutely certain that strong abs look great and help with lower back problems, we have learned that there is a more important reason to strengthen them. If we teach our body to initiate movement by first engaging the abdominal muscles, we will be able to mobilize our arms and legs more efficiently and with out the risk of injury. While traditional Pilates trains your body to engage your abdominals with every movement, the secret that you cannot know until you try, is that AeroPilates does it as well. Every time you jump your body naturally engages the abdominal muscles, so now, on one AeroPilates machine, you can actually attain each and every one of your fitness goals.

AeroPilates in the Home
The fitness industry is overjoyed. Not only have we created a total body strengthening, lengthening muscles training system and a fun, new and revolutionary cardiovascular training system we now believe we have found a solution for the ever expanding obesity problem in America. Our goal is to have every home in America furnished with an AeroPilates machine. Because everyone can benefit from AeroPilates, so buy one of our Reformers and see for yourself.

Learn more: What is AeroPilates?

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