Here are two short excerpts from a wonderful in depth interview that Pilates instructor Michael Miller conducted with Pilates instructor and yoga practitioner, Claudio Fernandez, in Rio de Janeiro on December 4, 2006.
The entire interview is available for purchase as a nine page PDF at Michael Millers website, hermit.com. I found the whole interview to be an intriguing exploration of Pilates, and Pilates and yoga.
Michael: What is Pilates?
Claudio: My English is bad, but I try. I think equal with you, Michael, that Pilates is idea. This is, for me, the first thing. Pilates is idea. Because with this knowledge, you can make Pilates, real Pilates, not other exercise similar to Pilates. You can train real Pilates when you understand Pilates is idea. In the other moment you make similar exercise inspired by Pilates, but real Pilates you experience in your body when you understand Pilates is idea.Michael: What is the idea?
Claudio: The idea is, in English, uniform eccentric loading flowing through progressive patterns of movement. This is idea. This idea is equal to a mathematical formula, it is very synthetic, it is very clear, it is very objective. Equal to a mathematical formula, when you understand the function, it is very easy, then you apply the formula in all movement, because the area of knowledge of the formula is movement.
Michael: The object of the formula is the movement.
Claudio: Yes. You use the formula in all type of movement. All movements, no?
Michael: You apply the formula in all kinds of movement, is that what you are saying?
Claudio: Yes, it is very interesting because when you understand Pilates as an idea it is very easy to make Pilates. You know how to make the connections, you know the function of each part of the training. Breath, muscular contractions, time, the parts of the movement. The formula takes the parts of the movement and orders them. Because the form is an idea I like to speak formula. Because one idea can be very general, a general idea, but a formula is an idea that is very specific, very targeted, a formula is to shoot at a target. And the idea is very specific, it is clear, its use is clear.
Michael: What do you mean the use is clear?
Claudio: The use in the body, it is very clear the use of the body is the target. The use of the body is the target of the idea. It is clear in your body this specific idea is for the body in movement.
Michael: The issue is moving the body through space, right?
Claudio: Yes, this is the fundamental difference with Yoga. This is very, very, important. Because the idea of Pilates is about the body in movement, a predator, for survival. It is the idea, survival, is evolution, because survival makes the evolution. This is the power of the idea. The power of the idea is to make movement in the body with more capacity.
This entire interview is available at Michael Millers website, hermit.com. Click here to purchase the entire PDF
© 2006 Michael Miller All rights reserved. The excerpt of this article is used with express permission of Michael Miller.
