Pilates For Dummies (eBook)

Once the secret fitness weapon of professional dancers, athletes,and movie stars, Pilates is sweeping the country with a vengeance.And if even half of what its many fans claim is true, thenit's easy to see why. Combining elements of yoga, dance,gymnastics, and boxing, along with many original movements, Pilatesexercises build muscle tone, improve flexibility and balance,lengthen the spine, increase body awareness, and repair pastinjuries. Most people who've done it, even for a short time,say they feel stronger and more energized, centered and physicallyconfident than ever before. They also like having the flat tummies,tight buns, and long lean thighs of a dancer.

Pilates For Dummies lets you get on board with thePilates method , without the high cost of private instruction.Packed with step-by-step exercises, photos, and illustrations, ithelps you develop your own Pilates fitness program to do at home orin the gym. Top Pilates trainer Ellie Herman shows you how to useeight basic Pi lates principles to get the most out of yourmat-based routines and:
* Look and feel better than ever
* Get stronger, more flexible, in control and less prone toinjury
* Target and tone problem areas
* Get movie star abs, buns, thighs and arms
* Repair chronic stress and sports injuries

Calmly, clearly, and with quirky good humor, Ellie explores theorigins and basic philosophy of the Pilates method, and helps youset realistic fitness goals and custom-tailor a program. She alsocovers:
* Basic, intermediate , and advanced mat exercises
* Using Pilates exercise equipment and accessories
* Targeting specific areas including the stomach, back, thighs,and chest
* Pilates for the pregnant and recently pregnant body
* Using Pilates to heal injuries, reform posture
* Ten simple ways to incorporate Pilates into your everydaylife
* Combining Pilates with other forms of exercise, including yoga,swimming, aerobics, and more

Why let the rich and famous have all the fun? Your complete,friendly, step-by-step guide, Pilates For Dummies shows howPilates can offer a fitness program for the rest of us.