TAKE PILATES TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Ready for a full-body workout that strengthens your core, tones your arms and legs, enhances your flexibility and improves your balance? Step this way for the Cadillac.

- CHARIS TORRANCE

That complex apparatus you see in Pilates studios that looks like a four-poster massage bed is the Cadillac, also known as the Trapeze Table. It may seem a little intimidating at first, but under the guidance of a good instructor it offers a fun, effective workout.

'Pilates is a broad exercise system that includes mat work and various apparatuses, such as the Reformer, the Wunda Chair and the Cadillac,' says Pilates master teacher Katya Kinski.

THE HISTORY OF THE CADILLAC

German-born boxer and circus performer Joseph Pilates was the founder of a body-conditioning method that he originally named ‘Contrology’. He devised his early version of the Cadillac in England at the break of World War I, where he ended up being interned in a camp with other Germans.

‘He was passionate about helping his camp mates who were weak and bedridden to take charge of their recovery,’ Katya says. ‘He attached springs to hospital beds to enable his followers to return to health with his recommended exercises. His success paved the way for the refined version of the Pilates Cadillac that we know today.’

And the name? It’s said to have earned its title because it was considered the ‘luxury model’ of Pilates equipment, like the car.

‘If I had to choose just one piece of equipment, it would be the Cadillac,’ Katya says. Unlike the Reformer, where you mainly move in two planes, the Cadillac’s spring system allows you to move in all planes. It lets you explore a wide variety of exercises, from stretching to strength training, and even some upside-down tricks if you’re feeling adventurous.