- Joan Breibart has been doing pilates since the 1960s.
- She's 83, and still uses the reformer a few times a week.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Joan Breibart, president and founder of The Physical Mind Institute. It has been edited for length and clarity.
When I started taking Pilates no one thought about diet or exercise. There was no talk about "wellness" or "practices." Everyone just ate food without having heard of a calorie or a carbohydrate. Sometimes, we would smoke cigarettes in the Pilates studio and go for martinis afterward.
That was in the 1960s. I was working in publishing in a role that today would be called an executive assistant. Back then, I was called a gopher. I was mostly sent to the library to find information on whatever the editors needed since we couldn't just look it up online.
One day in the library, I found a Life magazine article about Joseph Pilates, the man who founded the movement we've all tried or at least laughed about. There was something so intriguing about what he was doing that I knew I would find a way to try it.
My body transformed
Growing up, my father always told me I was related to the strong men of Europe. My ancestor, Sische Breitbart, was deemed the world's strongest man in the 1920s and became a folk hero. But in the 1960s, most women didn't want to sweat. I had run around in gym class or at camp but never really exercised.
I found a Pilates studio near my Manhattan home. The woman who ran it demanded we attend at least twice a week. That was quite expensive for me back then, but I enjoyed the classes. Within six weeks, my body transformed. I felt stronger and more trim.
In the 60 years since then I've tried all sorts of exercise, from Peloton to barre to Crossfit. I've learned that you can never repeat the transformation that you had at first when you were a virgin exerciser. Sure, you'll continue to gain strength and functionality, but there's nothing like that initial physical change. Since you can't rely on dramatic physical changes long term, you need something else to motivate you.
People became disillusioned with exercise
I was motivated to continue with Pilates because I found it intellectually engaging. Lots of exercise bored me.
In 1987, after the stock market crash, I left New York and moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Back then, no one was doing that. I thought I would never see another reformer, the machine Joseph Pilates invented and on which Pilates takes place, as long as I lived. Yet, a few years later, I found a studio and was back in action.
In the early 90s, the nation's attitudes toward health and fitness had changed. People had gone through the low-fat and aerobics craze, but many of them still looked and felt the same. That's when interest in Pilates started to take off. I began the Physical Mind Institute, then called the Institute for Pilates Certification, to train teachers and meet demand.
I think we're at a similar moment now — with the rejection of diet culture and the fascination with Ozempic and similar drugs. These 60 years of body obsession have done nothing but make people feel guilty, which isn't healthy.
Lots of people now are looking for a better answer. Pilates isn't it for everyone — although it has been the answer for me through aging, cancer, and chemotherapy. Attending pilates classes you dread might make for a good comedy skit, but it won't help you change your body. All that stress hormone flowing through your body can't be good for anything.
What's most important is that people find an exercise program that lets them get to know their bodies. When you are an expert on your body, you can treat it well and take care of it. I know exactly how to move when my knee gets stiff while I'm watching an opera performance or when my back feels too tight.
You're the ultimate expert on yourself. You only get one body, and it's yours to discover.