The Method was developed by the late Joseph Pilates, born in 1880 in Germany. A frail child, he turned to physical fitness programmes to improve his body image, becoming a keen sportsman who developed talents in sports as varied as diving, gymnastics and boxing. He studied many different disciplines and, drawing from each of them, formulated a system that worked for his own body - this became known as the Pilates method.

After moving to New York in the 1920s, his studio soon attracted actors, dancers and athletes finding that his exercises perfected and complemented their traditional programme and catered for their individual needs - building strength without adding bulk, balancing that strength with flexibility, and achieving the perfect harmony between mind and body.

Pilates still attracts many leading figures from the worlds of the performing arts and top sport, where it is used extensively in rugby, football, athletics and cricket - the Body Control Pilates group works with the England cricket team. It is also being used increasingly to complement the work of physiotherapists, osteopaths and chiropractors.