Joseph Pilates was born in Germany in 1883. As a child, he suffered from many ailments, including rickets, asthma and rheumatic fever. Because of this and teasing from his peers, he was determined not to be a weak child. He dedicated his life to learning about the human body and howto become stronger and more lean. By the time he was only 14, he was already posing for anatomical charts.

At the age of 32, he moved to England to work as a circus performer and boxer. He had already begun to develop his own method of exercises to correct problems he was seeing. He attributed poor health to such things as improper breathing, poor posture and lack of mindful movements.

During World War I, he was imprisoned in a camp with other German nationals. A bad flu was going around and Joseph Pilates was credited for keeping those men healthy and fit during this time. It was also here that the makings of the first Pilates equipment took form. He invented the "Cadillac" as it became known as, to aid himself in working with the men that could not get out of bed. Taking bed springs out, he reattached them to poles at the corners of the bed to give the muscles resistance, so he didn't have to physically do this himself.

Modern dancers of that time, including George Balanchine and Martha Graham, began to send their students to Joseph Pilates. Word spread and it became a very popular way for athletes to rehabilitate ailing joints and muscles, not to mention keep them in top physical form. Romana Kryzanowska was sent to Joseph Pilates when she was a teenage dancer with an injured ankle. More than 60 years later, she is still teaching the method to her devoted students.

Joseph Pilates continued to teach well into the 60's. He died in 1967 at the age of 84. Today, his work can be found in studios, health clubs and gyms around the world. He always knew that one day his method would be universally adopted.