What Is Pilates, and Is It for Men? We Answer All Your Questions about Pilates
Pilates has a reputation for being a glorified stretching session, but that misconception couldn’t be further from its origins. Invented by German self-defence instructor and professional boxer Joseph Pilates when he was held in a British internment camp during World War I, it was devised as a form of physical training for his fellow inmates.
Pilates led daily workouts for the prisoners for four years, refining his method with a variety of equipment, which he called ‘apparatus’. He rigged springs to hospital beds – the blueprint for the design of the pilates reformer – and helped incapacitated patients build strength using the same controlled, ultra-precise movements that are still utilised in pilates today.
There are plenty of benefits that come from arranging a bi-weekly rendezvous with the Pilates reformer (or the mat). Here, we explore everything you need to know about the practice with our Pilates for men ultimate guide.
What Is Pilates?
'Pilates is a low-impact method of exercise using resistance to challenge your core stability – increasing muscular strength, endurance and flexibility,' says Jonny Caguioa, trainer at BLOK. It focuses on 'mind-body connection, with clear attention to the breath.' This might sound like yoga-speak, but in reality it simply means you’re nailing your form to get the most out of each move – a skill that translates to your bigger lifts.
Traditional workouts targeted towards men can make you strong but stiff. They tend to focus on contracting and shortening muscles, which can lead to tightness and a reduced range of motion. Most Pilates exercises challenge you to use a muscle ‘eccentrically’, says Caguioa, which means you lengthen it – increasing both strength and flexibility.
You’ve probably incorporated Pilates exercises without even realising. The glute bridge, for example, is 'a typical Pilates move used to focus on spinal articulation, pelvic stability and engagement of glute and hamstring muscles,' says Matt McElligott, pilates trainer at KARVE.
Is Pilates for Men?
Yes. 'The misconception is that Pilates is often associated with dancers and a workout catered to women,' says Marsha Lindsay, creative director of Nobu Pilates. There’s also a presumption that it’s too ‘easy’ or ‘slow’. But low impact doesn’t mean low-intensity. It simply means putting less stress on your joints.
'Pilates is a full-body workout that promises to deliver the ultimate blend of strength, stability and flexibility,' she says. 'Every session you will learn how to connect with deeper muscle groups to find balance in the body. It also brings awareness to better posture by taking a 360-degree view of your body’s alignment.'
There’s no getting away from it: shifting tin is a must for adding mass. But by diversifying your workout routine with regular flexibility work – Pilates, specifically – you’ll lay the foundation for stronger movement patterns and iron out any weaknesses that are getting in the way of your heavy compound lifts. Neglect your posture, in the other hand, and you won’t just fail to make the most of your hard-earned gains, you’ll prime yourself for injury, too.
'In my experience, men tend to come into class with similar physiological issues such as tight glutes, hamstrings and lower back,' says Caguioa. 'Pilates will help spinal mobility and pelvic stability, and by freeing up your glutes and hamstrings, contribute to relieving any back pain.'
How Is Pilates Different from Yoga?
Given their shared propensity for ‘breathwork’ and the ‘mind-body connection’, Pilates and yoga are usually lumped into the same category, but they’re inherently different in almost every way. Yoga is a 5,000-year-old holistic discipline that seeks to unite mind, body and spirit. Pilates was invented in an internment camp at the turn of the 20th century to rehab wounded soldiers.
Of course, spirituality – or lack thereof – is not the only thing separating the two. Where yogic exercises primarily focus on flexibility, Pilates is centred on strength and conditioning, particularly core strength (Pilates originally dubbed his method ‘Contrology’, since the exercises are centred on mind-and-body muscle control).
Then there’s the cues. While you won’t find any Sanskrit in Pilates, you’ll hear certain expressions in class time and time again. '‘Through each vertebrae’ is a common term,' says Caguioa. There’s also ‘from head to tailbone’, he says, referring to the whole of your spine. '‘Navel to spine’ is a cue to remind you that your lower abdominals are there to support and stabilise your lower back and pelvis.'
Different Types of Pilates
While there are a few different offshoots of Pilates teachings, the main distinction lies between mat-based and apparatus-based pilates. Classical Pilates, which marries mat work with apparatus, is considered to be the practice in its truest form.
There are three key pieces of Pilates apparatus to familiarise yourself with, and, unfortunately, they all look like medieval torture devices. There’s the Pilates reformer, 'a spring loaded, moveable carriage with an incorporated pulley system to work stability and strength,' says McElligott. The cadillac, 'a raised horizontal table with levers, springs and straps.' Then there’s the barrel, which is 'designed to improve breathing and posture by focussing on spinal correction,' he says.
While practicing both mat and apparatus-based pilates is important, first-timers are advised to try a reformer-based class to begin with, says Lindsay. Not only is it (unbelievably) the easier option, it’ll teach your body the correct movement patterns to replicate on the mat.
'The mat work can be the most challenging repertoire, as you are required to manage your bodyweight against gravity,' she says. For the quickest progress, 'use the spring work to understand how to recruit the correct connections, then challenge the body by taking the spring support away to see if it can achieve the movement independently.'
The Benefits of Pilates
Smoothing out your slouch isn’t the only good reason to practice Pilates on the regular. To optimise the benefits listed below, try incorporating two or three pilates sessions into your weekly training regimen. 'The most famous Joseph Pilates quote is, ‘In 10 sessions you’ll feel the difference, in 20 sessions you’ll see the difference, and in 30 sessions you’ll have a whole new body’,' says Lindsay.
After one Pilates session, she says, clients immediately feel great. 'Like anything worth doing, Pilates requires commitment and consistency to achieve long-lasting strength and conditioning. The upside is once you start becoming accustomed to the movements, your muscle memory will kick in and it becomes easier.'
Pilates Boosts Flexibility
'Good flexibility can improve posture and alignment,' says McElligott. 'Generally, the more muscle mass we have, the less flexible we can become. Pilates can help not only flexibility, but also better stability and strengthening of the joints.'
Pilates Promotes Stability
With well-oiled joints and a rock-solid core, you’ll boost stability and keep injury at bay. 'The abdominals, pelvis, lower back and diaphragm are all part of our core,' says McElligott. 'The stronger, more stable these areas are, the better core strength and stability we will have.'
Pilates Promotes Better Posture
Better posture = greater self-confidence. 'Pilates focuses attention to equal weight distribution through the soles of your feet improving stability, balance and posture,' says Caguioa. 'Focusing on shoulder and spine mobility and upper-back strength in any Pilates session will relieve a tight chest and back and improve your overall posture.'
Pilates Builds Strong Abs
Quit repetitive crunches – with Pilates you’ll hit your core from every possible angle, building strong abs. 'Lateral breath and recruitment of your deeper core muscles will enable you to engage your abdominals in the correct way, not only supporting your spine but giving you a flatter stomach,' says Caguioa.
Pilates Eases Aches and Pains
If you spend the majority of your working hours hunched over your laptop like a human croissant, Pilates will offer your spine some much-needed TLC. 'Improving spinal mobility, pelvic stability, and freeing up your glutes and hamstrings with specific Pilates exercises will all contribute to relieving back pain,' says Caguioa.
Pilates Boosts Your Mental Health
All that breath-work triggers your parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the body’s rest and digest mode. 'Within a few minutes of doing ‘lateral breaths’ and connecting your mind and your body in the present moment, stress will begin to reduce dramatically,' says Caguioa.
Pilates Moves for Men
Add these classic Pilates moves to your repertoire for core strength and flexibility.
Roll-up
On your back, with arms and legs extended, bring your arms up and 'roll' your torso forward. Unroll back to the start.
Hundred
Again, on your back, arms either side, raise and bend your legs at 45 degrees. Lift your shoulders and pulse your arms 100 times.
Open-leg Rocker
Sit with knees bent and hands on your shins. Extend your legs into a V-position. Roll back onto your shoulder blades, then up.
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