Five Benefits of Reformer Pilates
Reformer pilates is the trendy workout of the moment and every celebrity from Hailey Bieber to the entire Kansas City Chiefs team has been seen on a reformer lately. While you may be new to the workout or just saw it in a TikTok video, pilates has actually been around for over a century.
The reformer is a spring based resistance device which essentially has a moving carriage, straps and springs that allow you to do a variety of different exercises from focusing on upper body and core strength, to balance and stability for the lower body.
The biggest benefit of pilates is that it builds strength in your entire body while also toning your muscles. If you think that you need a regimented gym routine and lots of equipment to achieve a toned figure, that is not the case. The reformer and the Cadillac have a variety of springs which act as weights and the more springs you add, or the heavier springs that you choose, the more strength is required in a movement. You will build strength in your abs, legs and arms from a well rounded workout that incorporates all of these muscle groups.
The beauty of the reformer and the Cadillac is that it allows you to work muscles that are deeper - the smaller stabilizing muscles - that other exercises can’t find. These muscles are responsible for your stability, balance, and what allows you to prevent injuries during a work out.
Pilates is a full body workout that engages all muscle groups - when done correctly. At Miami Pilates, we make sure that our class plans are thoughtfully crafted so that every part of your body gets toned during the 50 minute session. It is not necessary to spend hours at the gym. Rather, doing a well rounded class that works your legs, arms and abs is enough to achieve incredible results, as long as you stay consistent with your routine.
My favorite thing about pilates is that it is a low impact workout. Not only does this make reformer pilates ideal for anyone recovering or dealing with an injury, but it also means that you don’t raise your cortisol levels the way you would during a bootcamp style class. Reformer pilates' low impact nature means the body can be strengthened without putting any real load or impact on the joints as it enables you to work on a horizontal plane. This helps prevent injury, heal from injury, and doesn’t leave you ravenous after the workout which will cause you to overeat and undo all of your hard work.
Another secret benefit of pilates is that it improves posture- no wonder dancers swear by it! Many of the exercises on a reformer target the core and peripheral postural muscles either directly or indirectly leading to improved posture and core strength. Leading to a reduction or even curing some people’s lower back pain. The most important aspect of pilates is strengthening the core- which acts as the foundation to your body. Sure, it’s nice to visually have flat abs or even a 6 pack, but it’s even nicer to not have sciatica and lower back pain.
Last, but most importantly not least - exercise like pilates improves your mental health. Due to how focused reformer and Cadillac pilates is, it requires full concentration when done properly. It is super important to breathe through an exercise to get the full benefit, which creates a mind body connection and calms the nervous system. Exercise has also been shown to lower stress hormones like cortisol and increase endorphins. Just being off your phone for an hour and concentrating on your body moving can do wonders for your mental health.