Colleen Craig is a long-time Pilates student and teacher. Some time ago, she attended a Swiss ball exercise class at her local Y. She began with energy and confidence, and had a lot of fun performing the ball exercises.
However, she says in the Preface, about halfway through the forty minute class she starting running out of steam, despite many years of dance training, gymnastics, and Pilates training. When it was over, all she could do was sit and rest.
It was a revelation to her that there was a way of exercising with such intensity.
Yet she enjoyed the experience, especially the stretches of the feeling of her body suspended in space as though weightless.
She began combining what the ball could do with Pilates exercises, and came up with a system of exercises using the ball that strengthen the same deep stabilizing muscles that Pilates goes for, but in an even more intense way. When she began teaching it, her students told her they began feeling taller after the first class.
She includes the usual background information on Joseph Pilates, and also background information on the use of exercise balls. They were first used in Switzerland to help orthopedic patients. Now they are used now only in combination with Pilates, but by yoga teachers and elite athletic trainers as well, and of course by ordinary people.
Unlike other exercise equipment, the ball is lightweight, cheap and easy to work with at home and to take with you when you travel (underinflated, of course).
Part of the ball’s value is that it’s not stable. You can develop your inner spinal and abdominal muscles just by sitting on a ball, because you must continually make adjustments as you sit, strengthening muscles that aren’t normally worked by other systems of exercise or sports.
She starts out each chapter with the story of somebody who benefited from the subject, including Joseph Pilates and her own story, and then stories of people she’s known and some of her students. This helps bring home to people who are suffering from severe physical problems and limits. Other people have overcome their challenges.
After giving the background, she starts out with a chapter. Many people may not realize how important breathing is, but as she points out, if you do the exercises without proper breathing, you’re missing most of the benefit.
She then goes on to include chapters on postural exercises, abdominal exercises, extensions, arm and footwork, restoration and rebuilding, stretching, stress management, cardiovascular exercises, and then finally three full workouts: Restorative Ball, Basic Ball and Intermediate Ball.
This book is well illustrated with pictures of the author and a few others performing the exercises, making them look easier than they actually are.