Pilates is very popular right now, along with Stanley Quenchers and matcha lattes. It’s the exercise style we all want to do right now, as we all go to aesthetic classes and post carefully chosen videos of stylish equipment on social media. And to be honest, we’re not upset about how popular Pilates has become.
The low-impact exercise which can be done on a mat or with a reformer machine, is great for making your body more flexible and balanced and keeping it from getting hurt. There is research that shows Pilates can help with mental health, and of course, the exercise is also great for building strength, especially in the core and lower body.
But does it work the same way as weight training when it comes to building muscle strength we asked Michelle Griffith-Robinson, a personal trainer and member of the Women’s Health Collective, for the tea.
Is doing pilates by itself enough to build strength
Pilates can help you get stronger, but it’s not enough on its own if you want to gain strength instead of just keeping it. A Heliyon study that looked into whether Pilates is better than other exercises for building strength found that Pilates can help build muscle strength when compared to not doing anything.
Also, as we get older, strength training becomes even more important for our health and quality of life. Griffith-Robinson says, After age 35, women’s strength slowly decreases, so it’s important to have a fitness routine that includes weight-bearing exercises like squatting and lifting.
To get stronger, you need to practise progressive overload. This means putting more stress on your body over time by adding weight or reps, for example. You can change how hard a Pilates workout is by choosing Reformer and making the springs harder.
Strength Training And Pilates Together
Griffith-Robinson says, As you get stronger, you need to add more weight to keep going. Pilates on the reformer is a weight-bearing exercise because it uses body weight and resistance from the machine. From my own experience, it can be hard on the whole body.
Griffith-Robinson does think that Pilates is a great way to build strength and a great way to work out with your strength sessions. It lets your core get stronger before you move on to more weight and helps improve your core and posture.
Don’t worry if you’re really into Pilates but also want to get stronger. You can do both Griffith-Robinson says that you should do Pilates once or twice a week and weight training at least twice a week to see results.
When you want to build muscle, it’s important to think about your whole life not just your workouts. Paying attention to things like how well you sleep, how stressed you are, how much rest you get, and what you eat will help you reach your goal.
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