The Wunda Chair for Effective Pilates Workouts
A Versatile Piece of Home and Studio Equipment
May 18, 2009
Joseph Pilates designed the Wunda Chair as a piece of home exercise equipment. Its small size makes it easy to move and store, and its simple design belies a wide range of exercise options - from the basic to the super-advanced.
Structure of the Wunda Chair
The chair fundamentally consists of a seat and a spring-loaded pedal. Several spring attachments allow for varying levels of resistance. There are many Wunda Chair (or Low Chair) designs available, from the traditional to the very modified.
Traditional Wunda Chairs
Gratz Industries and Peak Pilates make Wunda Chairs that convert into regular chairs for sitting on. To convert the chair, the student tips it over and drops the padded seat cushion into place, hiding the springs. As a regular chair, the Wunda Chair encourages good sitting posture and is very comfortable.
In their exercise mode, traditional chairs have two springs, each with three attachments. Springs are changed by unhooking them from the back of the chair.
Contemporary Low Chairs
Most manufacturers, including Peak Pilates, Stott Pilates, and Balanced Body, make Wunda Chairs without the furniture capability. Spring systems vary somewhat among the contemporary chairs: Stott Pilates chairs have four springs, while Balanced Body chairs have a cactus-like device for attaching the springs. Commonly, contemporary Low Chairs are available with modifications like a split pedal, and handles that can be installed for balance exercises.
Redesigned Group and Home Chairs
The Peak Pilates MVe chair has a sliding spring attachment that obviates the need for hooks. Because spring changes are easier than with traditional chairs, and because of the lightweight, stackable design, MVe chairs are popular for group classes and home use.
Combo Chairs
Gratz Industries and Peak Pilates offer Low Chairs that convert into the Pilates Electric Chair with the addition of handles, a backboard, a wooden seat plate and a padded cushion. This design saves space and money in small studios. A limited number of contemporary manufacturers also make a chair pedal bar attached to one end of the Cadillac.
Exercises
In Pull Up, the student stands on the pedal with hands on the back edge of the seat, shoulders directly over wrists. Using abdominal and buttock muscles, the student rounds her spine and lifts the pedal off the ground.
In Mountain Climber, the student steps one foot onto the seat, with the other foot on the pedal. He raises his body into a crouching lunge, holding his weight over his front leg, and pumps the pedal up and down with his back leg.
In Swan, the student lies face-down over the chair with hands on the pedal. Using the support of the springs, she raises her upper body into a controlled backbend.
Scope
The chair is among the most challenging pieces of apparatus in the Pilates method. It's commonly introduced only after a student has begun to understand the Pilates principles well, and most students struggle to master its most difficult exercises even after years of practice - making the chair endlessly engaging, effective, and fun.
