Customer Reviews

Pilates for Beginners

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Although I have practiced yoga for many years, I am new to Pilates. I am not someone who likes to go to classes, but I can't afford private lessons, so I have been looking at a lot of books to see which would be best for self-teaching Pilates. This has been challenging, because Pilates stresses precision, which is a difficult feat to accomplish on one's own. This is a unique book, as it is spiral-bound and stands up easel-style so it's easy to use and refer to during practice. The photographs are large, in color, crisp, clear, and very well done. There are visualizations and tips with each exercise and techniques for flowing one exercise into the next. The Beginner's program (the book is not just for beginners, despite the title, but it is probably too introductory for the advanced student) has a fair amount of detail, yet not so much that it confuses the reader. It is informative without being overly didactic, and answers a number of "how to" questions that are not even addressed in other books. As I embark on my Pilates journey, THIS is the book I will be keeping by my side. Highly recommended!

Very well thought through. Easy to follow and understand.
Clear instructions. Exercises flow one into another as you turn the pages, for a good pilates home session.

The book "Pilates for Beginners" is just what it says. It is a great way to start, for someone who has never been exposed to this type of exercise. The book even gives you two ways to do the Pilates, one is the regular correct way, and the other is an abbreviated easy way. Perfect for beginners. It has pictures, easy description, everything.

Before I start my review, let me tell you there is another book on the market that is identical to this, just a different cover, it is called Pilates at Home and sells for more. They are the exact same book, just with a different publisher and a different title, so beware.

The beginning of the book starts of by providing an overview of what Pilates is, how it works, the basic principles behind the exercise program, and how to complete the exercises safely and effectively. The rest of the book is divided up into the Basic Program which is especially for beginners, the Main (beginner & intermediate) Program, and an Optional Program with more advanced moves with weights. Even though the book is labeled as a beginners guide, it does include intermediate exercises as well so this is something to keep in mind.

The design of the book is very functional. The book can either be placed at eye level and stand up easel-style, or put beside your mat for quick reference. Then you simply flip to the beginning of the Pilates workout and follow the step-by-step explanations of each exercise along with the colorful photographs. Each page is a different exercise, which makes the workout easy to accomplish since you only have to flip the pages between exercises.

The book contains guidelines that suggest when you should adjust your level of difficulty including descriptions of how to do so. Other useful information that the book provides includes general health advice, cautions against physical injuries, and modifications for each exercise so that they can be completed safely.

All in all, Pilates for Beginners is a great book for those who have never before experienced Pilates and are purchasing the book as a self-teaching tool. It's a great alternative for those who cannot afford expensive private lessons with a Pilates instructor or group classes. Pilates can be a difficult program to learn on your own, but this book comes highly recommended as one of the best self-teaching Pilates guides on the market.

The author of the book, Kellina Stewart, is a professional Pilates instructor who learned about the Pilates Method from Romana Kryzanowska
who was trained directly from Joseph Pilates himself.

Another great book to get for your Pilates Library would be
The Complete Guide to Joseph H. Pilates' Techniques of Physical Conditioning: With Special Help for Back Pain and Sports Training by Allan Menezes, it is very indepth and leaves nothing out. Mr. Menezes, I found out has the dvds to go with the book. Every exercise that is in the book is on the dvds. There cheap, and if you need indepth instruction I would get these. You won't waste much money and get good instruction on every part of pilates.

Hope this helped.

When I first got this book, I could not get very far in the exercises. But I took it as a challenge. I had to start somewhere, and, I could see my progress quite quickly. The exercises are unusual and involve control, not solely strengthening. They aren't boring. I'm in my mid 60s and find that doing these helps me with weight loss, balance, back health and strength to do life's tasks. I try to do these several times a week, and other types of exercise on other days. Even when I don't feel like exercising, I try to tell myself that I should be able to do at least 15 minutes of these, even if I don't "finish." There are also supplementary arm / free weight exercises in this book, which I haven't tried as I do another series of similar balance / weights / leg, torso and arm strength exercises.

If you make some notes to remind yourself of the sequences, you can easily do these when traveling. Only a mat or padding on the floor is helpful, so a rug can do.

Good to have exercise alternatives, and this is definitely a keeper.

This book is just what the doctor ordered for a person new to Pilates. The written directions are easy to follow and the pictures ensure that you are in the proper position.

My experience with the seller was smooth as silk. The book condition was exactly as promised and it arrived when it was supposed to.

Thank you!

my wife and I have enjoyed this book very much, and it has really helped my back. Mike Wallace.

For me, this has been the perfect book to begin learning Pilates, but there may be some for whom the beginning positions are still too difficult, my mother, for example, who is in her 70s. I am 47 and have been working out in one way, shape, or form for 30 years. I may have thought I was in pretty good shape, but Pilates is a whole different type of working out, and I love it. After years of high impact aerobics and other activities that have stressed my joints, I am thrilled to find a way of working out that is an incredibly powerful one without my stressing already weak ankles and knees. I was shocked to find out how much control and concentration are involved in completing the exercises using the correct form. I am fortunate to have become acquainted with a cousin recently who has been a personal trainer for 20 years or more and now solely trains people using Pilates. She gave me a bit of the history and information about core principles so I was armed with enough information to go looking for a good book. This one has been everything I hoped it would be. The author very carefully explains the important principles and then goes on to offer both a basic program and a main program, as well as optional additional exercises. One thing I love is that the book really is step by step. For someone like me, who hadn't had the faintest idea of how or where to begin, it has been so helpful having a book that tells me exactly what to do in exactly what order with exactly the right kind of photographs and illustrations, tips, and guidance. All of the postures and guidelines are straight forward and easy to understand. And after just one day of attempting the exercises, I felt the wonderful soreness that comes when you've used muscles you didn't even know you had. I continued to follow the program as the author suggested and in no time I was feeling the difference. She is right on. You need to take your time to get the exercises right, it's not about how many reps you can do and how quickly you can do them, and you really have to pay attention to your breathing and how your body is responding to the movements. And my core, which is what I really wanted to improve, has changed dramatically. Each time I start with a new exercise that I can't quite do and then continue to work at it and notice after a period of time that it becomes easier and easier to do, I know I'm getting stronger. So I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in starting a Pilates workout routine. I think even if I were only 20, the exercises would be challenging and quite transformative. The only "negative", which isn't really a negative, is that if these exercises and routines were all I ever did and I never had ways of varying them, I would get bored. So, the book isn't everything. I still have other books because I need varying routines and exercises for the workout to remain engaging and interesting. But, without a doubt, this is an excellent place to start!!!

Love Pilates and was pleasantly surprised by how informative and easy this book is to exercise with!