why pilates has my heart

as a kid, i spent more of my time upside down doing handstands or flips then standing up straight. at the time it was great but it ended up with me experiencing a lot of lower back pain from a young age. as i grew up and began working out with weights i always struggled to activate certain muscle groups, especially my glutes and core, without using the muscles in my back. after struggling with this for a while, i decided to give pilates a crack after a physio recommended it to me and that was that. never looked back. for me, pilates is a no brainer, it helps my back pain, improves my mental health, burns like crazy, improves my sleep and has improved my core strength dramatically. oh and i just bloody love it too.

i know just how much pilates helps me physically and mentally although being a bit of a science nerd i decided to check whether the research agrees. according to recent empirical reviews and meta-analyses, the pilates method is proven to reduce pain. improvements in lumbo-pelvic control, core strength, posture, flexibility and dynamic balance were big ones. promising results in decreasing body fat mass and increasing lean body mass were also reported.

alongside this, significant improvements in sleep and life quality were found among university students, middle aged people and the elderly who undertook pilates training. a pilates schedule of 2-3 classes a week was found to be associated with increased mindfulness and body awareness among the participants.

therefore, the research clearly demonstrates the acute and chronic benefits of pilates training on both physical and psychological measures. like i said, a no-brainer…

1. Tolnai N, Szabó Z, Köteles F, Szabo A. Physical and psychological benefits of once-a-week Pilates exercises in young sedentary women: A 10-week longitudinal study. Physiology & behavior. 2016;163:211–8.