Pilates on a Different Plane

Pilates on a Different Plane

Gyrotonics takes Pilates to a different plane. Like Pilates, Gyrotonics aims at elongating, realigning, stretching, toning, and conditioning the body. It has two components: with apparatus and without apparatus. Gyrotonic Expansion System exercises are done on a mat, and Spinal Dynamics exercises are gentle, repetitive torso rotations that are done seated, standing, kneeling, and prone on a mat. The Gyrotonics apparatus resembles a bench with a towerlike structure at one end and with straps,handles, and pulleys plus weight plates for added resistance. Breathing plays an important role in the program, as it does in Pilates and yoga. Pilates facilities have now grown to the hundreds, but Gyrotonics is still fairly exclusive. The apparatus is expensive, few trainers have been schooled in it, and it has not yet achieved popular status. Many who have tried it, however, tend to think of it as Pilates-plus.