What’s So Good About Pilates, Anyway?

I’ll always remember my introduction to Pilates: Sunday morning Guthy-Renker infomercials starring Mari Winsor and her Winsor Pilates method. Mari made it look so easy that at some point I purchased an official Winsor Pilates Circle, so convinced I was that it was the key to me getting abs.

It turned out, Pilates is far from easy and that circle never really did get a workout on my watch. It wasn’t until some years later when a reformer studio opened near my office that I truly experienced the Pilates burn in all its glory, but it will always be Mari who first turned my head.

Mari Winsor passed away in April 2020, and there’s no doubt she was one of the pioneers of the Pilates industry. She brought her technique into homes around the world in the early 2000s and reportedly sold 50 million copies of her video series through her partnership with Guthy-Renker.

Back then, you’d be hard-pressed to find a Pilates studio near you; today, they’re a dime a dozen — heck, you can now even purchase reformer machines to use at home, without needing a Pilates certification to secure it.

Pilates was first developed in the early 20th century by German physical trainer, Joseph Pilates, and was originally called “Contrology”, referring to the “complete co-ordination of body, mind and spirit”. This full-body workout focuses on strengthening the body, improving muscle tone and flexibility, and promotes overall wellbeing beyond just the physical benefits. The goal for Joseph Pilates was to enable the body to move with grace, ease and efficiency, for muscles to be long and lean, and a quality over quantity approach is essential to this method, too.

The practice is often recommended by physios as a form of rehabilitation post-injury, but as Pilates continues to increase in popularity through boutique studios — both mat and reformer — and online classes, it has become the exercise method of choice for people looking to maintain a level of fitness and wellbeing through lower-impact workouts, rather than simply homework you might get from your physio.

So what is the catalyst for this surge in popularity? Tori Clapham, founder of Australian-based Peaches Pilates, says it’s because people are burnt out, and opting for exercise that feels like punishment rather than nourishment is just not aligned with looking after our mental and physical health.

“We are finally, as a society, cottoning on to the fact that you don’t need to hammer yourself into the ground to get results and feel good,” she explains. “In fact, choosing movement that nourishes not only your muscles and your mind, but your joints, your spinal column and your pelvic floor means you can do more, get fewer injuries and even improve or completely heal the ailments you already have.”

When the pandemic hit in 2020, Fluidform’s online platform was already established but Kirsten says with the closure of all fitness studios — including her own across Australia — they saw an “exponential” uptake in online class subscriptions. “The pandemic turned my online workout programme into a platform of support, motivation and inspiration,” she says.

Peaches Pilates’ online platform already had members from around the world too, but they quickly got to work to load more workouts, create a subscription offering and really foster an online community as a way to not only ensure their client base had access to Peaches trainers and their signature workouts, but also so that the company continued to have cash flow during lockdowns.

“We were very lucky that this was met with open arms and our users more than quadrupled in that time period,” says Tori, who, while still very focused on Peaches’ online offering, says they’re now seeing a shift back to training within their studios for those who live locally.

“Many people crave the connection and motivation a group environment provides, plus the intimacy of a relationship with an instructor who truly cares about you and your wellness journey,” she says.

Peaches Pilates is entirely mat-based, while Fluidform offers both mat and reformer workouts via its online platform. Mat classes are slightly more friendly on the wallet, though Reformer Pilates is really having its time in the spotlight, now that studio doors are remaining open.

“Reformer can assist you to do Pilates well,” says Kate Hanline, owner of Auckland-based reformer Pilates studio Core Collective. “With the equipment, we can have a lot of fun and feel pretty badass, and there is a never-ending range of exercises.”

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A Reformer Pilates class at Core Collective is $35 a session with both monthly and yearly membership options available too. Fluidform’s pricing is similar, and both Fluidform and Peaches offer in-studio mat classes in several locations around Australia for A$30. A 12-month online subscription to Fluidform is A$20 per month, while a yearly membership to Peaches costs A$119.99 or less than $10 per month. Both online offerings also give customers from all over the world access to at-home equipment and recipe ideas to complement the workouts on a more holistic level.

“Yes, it’s riskier than attending a supervised class, but for mums or people who have limited free time, it’s a good option; it’s just important to follow some kind of online instruction and ensure you know your machine before using it,” says Kate.

When it comes to the reformer, Kirsten says it has the ability to replace nearly every piece of equipment you can find in the gym. “The combination of moving with assistance, against resistance, pushing, pulling, controlling and holding allows for greater freedom of movement [compared with the mat],” she explains. “This continues to challenge the most advanced clients. Both movement forms focus on your slow twitch, stabilising muscles that support your joints, stability, balance and posture.”

In terms of the results you get from mat versus reformer, Tori says it’s quite similar, especially as many mat classes work not just with your own body weight but with the assistance of equipment, such as dumbbells, sliding discs, balls, bands and, of course, the “magic circle”.

“I’m going to preface this by admitting that I am a mat devotee,” shares Tori. “There are a lot of ‘reformer snobs’ out there who think that reformer is superior or in some way a more challenging workout, but the fact is that reformer was actually developed for people who weren’t yet strong enough for mat practice. The results, however, are very similar and many of the movements mimic each other.”

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Joseph Pilates has been quoted as having said of Pilates: “You will feel better in 10 sessions, look better in 20 sessions, and have a completely new body in 30 sessions,” which is really rather enticing, you have to admit.

As Kate explains, however, Pilates is far from a quick fix — no form of exercise is. “I don’t think anyone should want a completely new body! With regular and consistent attendance, you will definitely feel and look better, and in ways that often surprise clients, such as feeling taller, and having more confidence in your body and how you hold yourself.”

“Many people are completely mind-blown by the impact Pilates can have on their body,” adds Tori. “My only thoughts here would be that consistency is key; 30 sessions over 30 months probably ain’t going to cut it, I’m sorry to say.

“Pilates has been proven time and again to have wonderful benefits for mental health, but any form of exercise is probably the most advisable thing you can do; you’ll never regret a workout, so get moving, honour that beautiful body of yours and then enjoy those sweet, sweet endorphins after the fact. Go get it!”