Joseph and Clara Pilates dedicated their lives to creating the method of exercise now called Pilates. Influenced by his study of yoga and boxing, Joe devised the series of Mat exercises; he took the work further to develop many ingenious apparatuses, which truly distinguish this method. In all types of Pilates classes, practitioners work in a variety of positions and different relationships to gravity. There is a focus on breathing, balance, and working from the center, as well as an understanding of stability versus mobility, and relaxation of areas that tend to overwork.