Like High-Intensity Workouts? 5 Reasons Why You’ll Love Pilates.
If you’re someone who craves high-energy exercise that gets the heart beating and blood pumping, you might have looked at low-impact activities like Pilates in the past and thought ‘that won’t be enough for me!’ Well, we’re here to tell you that it most certainly will. And it might even be the secret workout you need to finally see those results you’ve been after. Here’s why…
SmartFit Pilates Instructor jumping on the Merrithew Reformer Cardio Tramp
1 - LOW IMPACT DOESN’T MEAN LOW INTENSITY
If you’re addicted to getting your heart-rate up before heading back to your desk, let us introduce two very handy props to transform your Reformer workout: the Jumpboard and Cardio Tramp. These contemporary Pilates add-ons attach to the end of the Reformer, enabling you to literally ‘jump’ off it while staying horizontal on the Reformer bed. You’ll enjoy a cardio workout without the unrelenting grasp of gravity! This facilitates proper biomechanics, ensuring optimal foot placement and giving you more control over your landings during energetic movements. Plyometrics and aerobic exercises can all be performed using the jumpboard or cardio tramp (which is bouncier), making it an ideal way to improve your cardiovascular fitness while still working towards proper ankle-knee-hip alignment - giving you all the burn, without the injuries.*
Even without using a jumpboard or cardio tramp, you can still have a HIIT session on the Reformer. Our instructors can programme exercises that repeat and flow at a quicker pace, while still keeping your safety in mind. Thanks to the Reformer’s springs and moving carriage, you can actually smoothly repeat sequences to get your heart beating and muscles working, again without any of the traditional downsides of high-intensity, high-impact workouts. Our Reformer HIIT group class is actually one of the most popular classes in our studio!
*FYI, your instructor can programme Jumpboard/Cardio Tramp exercises into Duet Classes and Private Pilates - all you need to do is ask! While we don’t currently have a specific Cardio Reformer or Jumpboard group class on our schedule, if you and 2-4 of your friends or family members would like to give it a try, we can get a Semi-Private Group Class scheduled in at a time that suits all of you. The class will be tailored to your group’s ability levels and goals, and will include cardio for part or all of the class - it’s up to you!
2. PRECISION & CONTROL MAKE YOUR MUSCLES WORK HARDER
Traditionally, the much-loved world-renowned practice of Pilates does not leave you gasping for breath. And that’s a good thing. By not putting your heart and joints under any signifiant stress, you’re able to work your muscles more deeply than you would during a high-intensity intervals class, for example. This is because, by not panting away with short shallow breaths, you’re able to utilise the mindful rhythm of your breathing to focus on nailing the correct form in every rep of every exercise; breathing through that muscle burn to complete each set with perfect technique. This is the secret to getting the maximum gains from every movement.
Remember, an exercise doesn’t need to be fast to be effective! In fact, in Pilates, the more consciously you move, the more challenging the exercise will feel and the more results you will see. Anyone can use momentum to move something heavy. It takes a truly strong, healthy body to work against resistance and gravity with total control. As you’ll soon see for yourself, under our instructors’ kind but ever-watchful eyes, there is no cheating and no slacking off! They will teach you how to really feel a movement - ensuring you’re using the correct muscles at all times, and not over-compensating by using a naturally larger or stronger body part when you should be zero-ing in on those smaller, harder to reach muscles.
3 - FLEXIBILITY AND MOBILITY TAKE YOUR USUAL WORKOUT TO THE NEXT LEVEL
Pilates is an incredible complementary form of exercise, with its benefits frequently praised for enhancing performance in sport and other higher-intensity activities. Why? Because the increased flexibility and greater mobility you gain from the practice are obvious plus points for any athlete.
Take any kind of circuit training using body weight or other weights for instance. Optimising the muscles working often requires being able to move the load across a full range of motion. Just like how a full squat is more impactful than a half squat, the better your flexibility and mobility, the more muscles you will be working on for most exercises.
And then there’s the body awareness. Moving with conscious understanding and awareness of your body alignment and which muscles you should be using (and which you shouldn't - we’re looking at you lower back when you should be using your glutes!) helps to ensure you’re performing with maximum efficiency - and we’re all about making you as efficient as possible! So whether you run the occasional 5K, play tennis twice a week or can’t get enough of cross-fit, the full-body fitness, self-knowledge and awareness that you’ll gain from regular Pilates can make a significant difference to your score and is sure to have you smashing new PBs in no time.
4. AVOID INJURY SO YOU CAN KEEP ON MOVING
Pilates trains your core and other stabilising muscles in your back and glutes through a series of controlled movements and isometric exercises. This is extremely important, as it’s these muscles that are activated during all kinds of other exercise, often without you even knowing it. It’s particularly true with high-intensity moves like jumping and running. In fact, you have your core and stabilising muscles to thank for enabling your body to handle higher impact; propelling you forward or upward with proper form, ensuring you land correctly and maintain your balance. Without a strong core, your joints would bear the brunt of the exercise and shock, which puts you at significant risk of injury or chronic pain down the line.
Which leads us onto ageing. By helping to keep your bones and muscles strong, your body mobile and your alignment on point, Pilates is a great choice for those who want to stay healthy and active as the years go by. If you’re someone who loves to play sport, run or do high-intensity training now, the chances are you’ll be keen to keep this up in the future. And that means caring for your body now. That’s where Pilates can help.
5. STAY CALM, BALANCED & HAPPY
A lot of people who enjoy HIIT workouts often exercise to loud music or use countdown timers as a way to dissociate their mind from the difficulty of movement. In a way, they ‘lose themselves’ and only come back fully in the moment at the end of the workout to enjoy the wave of endorphins.
In Pilates, we embrace mindfulness - and that too brings joy, of a different nature. The control, breath work and concentration are a form of self-care and moving meditation that many people swear by, particularly if you’re someone whose life is constantly on the go.
Research has actually shown that when we’re required to think about how we’re moving, rather than moving while our thoughts are elsewhere, our nervous system is stimulated significantly more. And Pilates does exactly that - focusing as much on engaging your mind in the movement as your muscles. As Joseph Pilates himself said, “Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness” - a quote that encapsulates the practice’s equal focus on your mental and physical health. As a result, Pilates is loved around the world for its ability to improve mood, sleep, stress levels and productivity. And that’s before mentioning those post-practice endorphins. Remember, time spent on the Mat, Reformer or Cadillac is time that is totally yours - time to quieten the internal chatter and focus only on your movements, your goals and your body.