Last Friday kicked off the 7th annual March MATness celebration! If you’ve been following your favorite Pilates studios on social media, you’ve probably noticed the use of #marchmatness everywhere this month. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of March MATness, continue reading to find out about its origin and what it means to the Pilates community.
March MATness is a social media campaign. It was founded in 2013 by Benjamin Degenhardt, a certified Pilates teacher and mat Pilates enthusiast. This campaign was inspired by the 34 mat exercises outlined in Joseph Pilates’ original book, Return to Life Through Contrology. These 34 exercises are meant to be performed in one complete sequence, in no more than 30 minutes.
Today, Pilates has evolved into many different iterations. One of the core purposes of March MATness is to bring the Pilates community back to Joseph Pilates’ original teachings. Pilates mat work is considered by many to be the ultimate goal of a Pilates practice. It’s also considered the most difficult. Due to the absence of machines and therefore support, Pilates mat work is a true test of strength.
Joseph Pilates had a strong belief in daily movement. This is something we agree with whole-heartedly at Inertia6, as obvious by our motto: “A body in motion stays in motion.” Whether you’re able to complete the 34 mat exercises in their entirety or only manage a few, they can be done every single day. When you start to introduce these exercises into your daily routine, you’ll notice a great shift in how you feel physically and mentally.
The other beautiful thing about Pilates mat work is that it can be done anywhere! In a Pilates studio under the guidance of your teacher, at home, or in a hotel room on vacation. This work travels well! There’s no reason not to fit some healthy movement into your day.
Happy March MATness everyone! I hope this post has inspired you to work on your mat routine, or maybe even dig into the history of Pilates!
LMT, Pilates Instructor
and Founder of Inertia6
Rachael has a passion for movement and her athletic training and experience give her body-awareness and insight.
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