Pilates is being pitched everywhere right now as strength training, and I’m going to say the quiet part out loud…

Pilates is not strength training…

although strength is developed. Pilates is not isometric contraction to muscle failure. Pilates is not grinding your body into the ground and calling it “core.” That is something else, and if you love it, great. But don’t call it Pilates.

Here’s what Pilates actually is.

Pilates is a movement methodology that takes the spine through flexion, extension, rotation, and lateral movement in all planes of gravity. And that means nothing until you feel the load of your body against spring resistance while your center of gravity keeps changing through those shapes. This is why reformer Pilates feels so different than lifting weights. The springs give you feedback. You can’t fake it. You either organize your body or you don’t.

Pilates is fun. It’s rhythmic. It’s intelligent. It’s a little like dance, because you’re not just building strength, you’re building coordination. Your body becomes the bow moving across the springs, like a bow on a violin. That’s not poetry. That’s mechanics. Resistance plus breath plus timing equals a nervous system conversation.

And yes, I’m going to say it the way I teach it. Pilates is a neurological reset hiding in plain sight.

A big reason beginners love Pilates for posture, back pain, stress, and “I finally feel like myself again” is that Pilates is not just a workout. It’s neuromuscular training. You’re creating better firing patterns. Better reflexes. Better trunk support. Better breathing habits that show up in real life, not just in the studio.

When Pilates is taught well, it also supports autonomic regulation. Research has shown Pilates training can improve measures of heart rate variability after a training program, which is one marker used in studies of autonomic modulation.

Now let’s talk about the gut and the nervous system, because this is where people feel the “calm” and don’t know why.

Most of the body’s serotonin is produced in the gut, primarily by enterochromaffin cells. Serotonin is not just a “happy chemical.” In the gut it’s a major signaling molecule involved in motility and sensory function. That gut signaling communicates with the nervous system through multiple pathways, including vagal pathways.

Do we have Pilates-specific serotonin data. In one randomized pilot study using an online Pilates intervention, the authors reported an increase in serotonin concentration in the Pilates exercise group. That doesn’t mean Pilates is a serotonin pill, and it doesn’t mean the result applies to every person in every context, but it does support the idea that Pilates can influence more than muscle tone.

Here’s what I see in real bodies, with real beginners, after two to four weeks of consistent Pilates practice. Better posture. Better breath. Better digestion. Better sleep. Less bracing. Less anxiety in the body. More control, in the best sense of the word. Not rigid control. Intelligent control. Awareness and choice.

Pilates also trains you to handle load differently. Once you’ve repeated the patterns enough, your body learns a new default. Exhale becomes reflexive. Trunk support becomes automatic. You stop overusing your neck and shoulders. Your hips open up. Your spine stops moving like a two by four. You start responding to stress with more organization and less panic.

That’s why I refuse to reduce Pilates to “strength training on a reformer.” Pilates builds strength, yes. But it also builds nervous system regulation, spinal mobility, breath mechanics, and full-body coordination. It’s a mind body exercise system. It’s a posture method. It’s core strength training in the truest sense, because it trains the trunk to support the spine through real movement.

If you’re new and you’re searching “Pilates for beginners” or “how to start Pilates,” here’s the most practical advice I can give you.

Find a studio that’s been around long enough to have standards. Find a comprehensively trained instructor, ideally 500+ hours, who understands anatomy, spring settings, safety, and progression. Start with fundamentals. Learn how to breathe. Learn how to articulate your spine. Learn how to work with spring resistance instead of muscling through it. That is where the benefits of Pilates actually come from.

Melody Morton-Buckleair
Founder, The Good Space Pilates, Houston
Founder, Elmwood Place Pilates, Palestine, Texas
https://www.essenceandstyle.com/pilates-is-not-a-trend-its-a-neurological-movement-system-hiding-in-plain-sight

If you’re local and want to try Pilates with us
Palestine, Texas, Elmwood Place Pilates, BOGO intro deal, $30 Buy Pilates Packages | Enhance Your Fitness Today — Elmwood Place
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