What is Pilates?

Pilates is definitely a buzz word and the workout of the moment, but what is it exactly?

I hear the word thrown around a lot - on Instagram, at dinner, even at my local yoga studio. Let’s get one thing straight - pilates is NOT yoga, and as a pilates studio owner, I think that is one of the biggest misconceptions about this workout that I want to make clear.

Yes, one can do pilates on a mat. In fact, when doing a pilates certification, mat pilates is the foundation of all the exercises an instructor needs to learn before advancing to teach on the equipment. However, pilates can be taken a step further by incorporating the reformer and the Cadillac. These are apparatuses invented by Joseph Pilates in the 1920s to help accelerate the process of strengthening and toning the body in ways the mat can’t achieve.

By adding weight to the equipment in the form of springs, we are adding and subtracting weights from our exercise routine. Springs on the Balanced Body equipment we use at Miami Pilates ranges from very light (yellow) to light (blue), medium (red) and heavy (green). By combining springs for a certain exercise, we can increase or decrease the weight load of the move. This is why it’s super important to listen to your instructor when they tell you how many springs you need during a certain exercise to ensure you are using the right weight to tone your body and achieve optimal results.

The difference between pilates and yoga is that yoga is a moving form of meditation that involves purely body strength. It incorporates breathing techniques and is only done on a mat. Pilates is a full body workout, that includes the use of equipment and other props like the magic circle, the pilates ball, hand weights, resistance bands, ankle weights and more. You can get very creative on a pilates machine and make your workout as difficult or as simple as you want it to be, there are no limits.