Pilates for Everyone: 50 Poses for Every Type of Body

After 20 years of practicing and instructing pilates, Havard brings what she’s learned to the page in her empowering debut. When she began Pilates, Havard noticed a “ ‘Stepford’-like quality to the instructors and the practitioners. Everyone was twenty-something and slender, and they looked like dancers or models.” By contrast, Havard lays out a “non-intimidating and welcoming” practice broken into seven parts. The first covers basic Pilates facts, such as its history (Joseph Pilates, a German immigrant, began the method in New York City in the late 1920s), different types (such as classical and contemporary), and benefits (core strength and flexibility among them). Next come poses for one’s upper body, lower body, and total body, then standing and chair Pilates, and a series of sequences combining multiple poses rounds things out. Havard takes all body types into consideration—each pose she presents comes with a slew of variations based on one’s needs and abilities, and the brief interviews with each of the models featured in the poses add a wealth of perspectives. The diverse cast and regimen modification options go hand-in-hand with Havard’s encouraging tone: “Who should do Pilates? You—no matter who you are.” The result is a welcome and refreshing departure from standard fitness fare. (July)