Incorporating cardio exercises into your routine, along with Pilates, can help support your fitness goals for a leaner and toned physique.
The movements are smaller and more precise than yoga flows. There is also greater emphasis on core control and stability during Pilates exercises. Finally, instructors play a bigger hands-on role in manually cueing proper form and alignment.
Visible muscle tone comes from both building lean muscle and reducing body fat. Pilates alone may not be the most efficient path to fat loss, but it prepares the body for higher-intensity exercise and supports better movement patterns. For optimal toning, Pilates works best alongside cardiovascular exercise and dietary changes.
Pilates can help build lean muscle mass, but if it’s covered by excess body fat, those defined muscles won’t be as visible.
Pilates is often overlooked and dismissed as a stretching routine, yet it’s one of the most effective ways to build long lean muscles.
This holistic approach ensures that all aspects of fitness are addressed, helping you achieve a well-rounded and toned body.
It gives me step by step video with warm up/cool down. I need someone to tell me what exercises to do- LOVE it! This may be 15 minutes but it works me out good! Some of the exercises kick my tail though!
While traditional Pilates doesn’t use heavy weights, it incorporates resistance—especially with equipment like the Reformer—and focuses on eccentric muscle contractions (lengthening under tension), both of which can strengthen muscles.
You don’t need heavy weights to build muscle. Pilates builds lean muscle using your body weight, resistance from equipment like the Reformer, and small, targeted movements that keep muscles under body pulse pilates tension.
This will work you hard through the supporting shoulder, side of the trunk and also challenge your glutes – especially with the leg lift.
However, Pilates does not promise drastic weight loss or major physical changes. Results will vary depending on individual factors such as genetics
This is known as neuromuscular adaptation. Firing up your muscles in this way is likely to make you feel different and you may experience this as a feeling of being stronger.
Whilst Pilates theoretically is not the quickest route to increasing muscle mass, anecdotally many people do feel that they look more ‘toned’ when they do Pilates. There are a few reasons why this may be.
Have you ever thought, "What is Pilates, and can it really help me get the toned body I want?" You are not the only one! A lot of people want to know how this popular workout method can change their lives.