Ditto Stillwell...so sorry you're hurting so much! I hope you recover soon!

Personally, I don't fully trust "New Agey" type activities.

I have friends who have practiced yoga for years and swear by it. However, I tried Yoga some years back but it was too strenuous for me and the positions just didn't suit my body's abilities.

Can someone tell me who "invented or originated" Pilates?

So, I googled and came up with these sites:

http://www.nowrapilates.com.au/pilates.html
http://originhealth.co.uk/pilates_based_conditioning
http://www.pastornet.net.au/response/articles/121.htm (interesting take though from a "Christian" vantage point)