10 Benefits of Pilates
Discover the Whole-Body Benefits of Pilates
Pilates is more than just a core workout — it’s a full-body movement practice designed to build strength, balance, and awareness from the inside out. Whether you're looking to ease pain, improve posture, enhance sports performance, or feel more energised and in tune with your body, Pilates offers lasting benefits for both physical and mental well-being.
Curious about how private Pilates in London could support your health goals? Here are 10 powerful reasons to make Pilates part of your wellness routine:
1. Whole Body Workout
Pilates consists of flowing, functional movements, meaning you will work your entire body. Pilates in London helps to strengthen your core, the centre of your body from where all movements stem. This is a key factor in helping to reduce back and hip pains. Pilates classes help stretch and strengthen all your major muscle groups, improving your fluidity of movement and balance.
2. Improves Sports Performance
The physical benefit is that it brings balance to the body. Once a week, Pilates conditions your core muscles to be neither loose, weak, nor rigid. The focus is to build dynamic strength to help support and stabilise your joints during motion. Research also suggests rehab Pilates London that it is effective in reducing injury risk in sports.
3. Improves Balance and Coordination
Balance is important in whatever stage of life you are in, especially Pilates for Seniors. It is necessary for all movement from walking and running to twisting and turning. We aim to increase your body awareness, giving your body stability during motion. Regular practice will strengthen you and develop a greater sense of balance and coordination. This is achieved through core strengthening and the focus on alignment with whole-body exercises.
4. Improve Bone Density
Bone is a dynamic tissue (like muscles) that responds well to resistance and bodyweight exercises. Most exercises use your body weight as resistance to strengthen tissues (bone, muscle, fascia, tendons, and ligaments) while negatively impacting your joints. If you have reduced bone mineral density like osteopenia or osteoporosis then Pilates is a great form of exercise to help strengthen your bones in a safe and low-impact manner. At Wellthy Clinic, our highly skilled instructors will modify exercises according to your needs.
5. Enhances your Mind-Body Connection
Mental health is probably not discussed often enough, but regular exercise improves your mental well-being. The cognitive benefits of Pilates come from concentrating on your breathing while performing exercise movements. Focusing on breathing whilst ensuring correct spinal and pelvic alignment helps you become more in tune with your body. With regular practice, you will develop a greater awareness of your movements. You are encouraged to bring your attention to different body parts and focus on how they feel at that moment. This intentional breathing will also help you relax, unwind and reduce stress.
6. Reduce Back Pain
There are many studies which suggest that Reformer Pilates for low back pain is a safe, effective treatment method for people with low back pain. The technique uses many active rehabilitative strengthening and stretching exercises, specifically core strengthening, which has been shown to help reduce low back pain. A recent Cochrane review (2015) suggested Pilates is more effective than a minimal intervention for patients with low back pain disability and pain levels. Pilates exercises are great for keeping your spine healthy. The meaningful movements help maintain joint mobility and keep intervertebral discs lubricated. In addition, exercise has positive benefits on how you think and feel about your pain levels, which can also have an important impact on injury rehabilitation.
7. Can help you Lose fat
Pilates gives you the foundation to support more demanding activities. It involves muscle-strengthening exercises, which can contribute towards weight loss. Combine a healthy diet and aerobic activity (walking, cycling, or swimming) for best results. To increase efficiency, try Pilates where there is added resistance, for example, reformer Pilates, to increase the difficulty and help burn more calories. A recent study showed an increase in Pilates activity has shown a positive reduction in weight, body mass index, and fat percentages (Savkin 2017).
8. Tone and Define Your Body Shape
We often get asked, “Does Pilates tone your body?” The simple answer is yes, it does. Modern-day postures can lead to hunched shoulders and poor upper back mobility, which can create muscular imbalances. Symmetrical exercises can help proactively support demanding job roles and bad postural habits by making better muscular balance. Beginners Reformer Pilates is beneficial as it gives you feedback on your right alignment so you can self-correct. Furthermore, regular practice will transfer into everyday tasks to support your active lifestyle. Improving your alignment will help reduce aches and pains, improve your breathing mechanics, and digestion and make you appear slimmer.
9. Aids Lymphatic Drainage
The lymphatic system is a key part of our immune system, which is primarily used to recognise and eliminate bodily waste and toxins. Cellular waste products are carried around the body in lymph fluid (similar to blood) into the lymph nodes. However, unlike your blood circulatory system, there is no heart to pump blood around your body. The lymphatic system requires muscular contractions, breathing, and good digestion to flow around the body.
The lymph movement is important for a functioning immune system and getting rid of waste and toxins from your body. Exercise is the best form of lymphatic drainage, and Pilates is unique as it focuses on moving joints in different planes with twisting and rotating movements. The main lymph nodes are located near your joints, so flowing movements that articulate these joints will help with your lymphatic drainage and help optimise your immune system. Pregnancy Pilates can be particularly useful as congestion issues, such as swollen ankles, are common when pregnant.
10. Boosts Energy Levels
Exercise is known to boost not only your body’s fitness level but also your energy level. When you exercise, you experience an increase in your endorphins. These are natural hormones that get released when we are doing exercise that requires a burst of energy, and they also make us feel good.
It is common for people to say they feel great after a session, partly due to these energising endorphins. This is also one of the reasons exercise is a great way to support your everyday stresses. Interestingly, due to the low-impact nature of Pilates, it doesn’t put excess stress on the body, meaning it causes less fatigue and helps to maintain that energised feeling.
Exercise also has knock-on effects on your everyday energy levels. It boosts your cardiovascular health, which helps you to have greater endurance throughout the day. It can also help improve your sleep patterns, meaning you are more likely to have better quality sleep, and having better quality sleep means you are likely to feel more mentally alert, energised, and more productive.
Want to feel these benefits for yourself?
At Wellthy Clinic, we are dedicated to helping you reach your health and well-being potential. Our skilled team offers private Pilates classes, meaning your sessions will be individualised for you and your needs. Take a step towards a healthier future and book a Pilates session below.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Pilates change your body shape? Yes, Pilates can gradually change your body shape by improving posture, toning muscles, and strengthening your core. While it may not lead to drastic weight loss, it creates a leaner, more streamlined appearance.
How quickly will Pilates change my body? Many people notice improved posture and muscle tone within 4 to 6 weeks with consistent practice. More visible changes may take 8–12 weeks, depending on frequency, effort, and other lifestyle factors.
What does Pilates do for the body? Pilates improves core strength, flexibility, posture, and overall body awareness. It also supports injury prevention and recovery by promoting balanced muscle use and alignment.
Does Pilates tone belly fat? Pilates strengthens and tones the abdominal muscles but doesn't directly burn belly fat. Fat loss occurs through a combination of movement, nutrition, and overall energy balance.
Is Pilates good for losing weight? Pilates can support weight loss when combined with a healthy diet and other forms of exercise. It helps build muscle, which can slightly increase metabolism, but it isn’t the most efficient calorie-burning workout.
Can you get a toned body with just Pilates? Yes, with regular practice, Pilates can tone your body by strengthening and lengthening muscles. However, combining it with cardio and proper nutrition enhances overall results.
How many times a week should I do Pilates? For noticeable benefits, doing Pilates 2–3 times a week is effective. Practising more frequently (up to 5 times weekly) can accelerate results and deepen body awareness.
Why does Pilates make me feel so good? Pilates activates deep-stabilising muscles, improves circulation, and encourages mindful movement, which can help reduce stress and boost mood. It also promotes a sense of control and calm through breath and focus.
Is Pilates enough of a workout? Yes, especially for improving strength, flexibility, and posture, though it may not replace high-intensity cardio or heavy resistance training if those are your specific goals. It can be enough when combined with an active lifestyle.
Can Pilates help you tone up? Absolutely, Pilates targets small, deep muscles that help create a toned, sculpted look. It builds muscular endurance and improves definition, particularly in the core, glutes, arms, and legs.
Benefits of Pilates References
Angin, E. Erden, Z. Can, Z. (2015) The Effects of Clinical Pilates Exercises on Bone Mineral Density, Physical Performance and Quality of Life of Women With Postmenopausal Osteoporosis. Journal Back Musculoskelet Rehabil;28(4):849-58.
Yamato et al (2015) Cochrane review: Pilates for low back pain
Savkin & Aslan (2017) The Effect of Pilates Exercise on Body Composition in Sedentary Overweight and Obese Women
Eleonora Sansoni
Eleonora Sansoni is the Clinical Director. Also, a Pilates instructor with extensive experience teaching equipment-based Pilates for over 20 years in London, Australia, and Italy.