Pilates guide
Pilates suits women in their 60s, 70s and beyond: most Pilates trials in older adults were done in women, and they show better balance and everyday function, with some help for sleep and mood. It is safe with osteoporosis once a few moves are changed. What it hasn't been shown to do is build bone or prevent falls on its own, so it works best alongside walking, strength training with heavier loads, some gentle impact and, if you leak, pelvic floor training.
This guide covers what changes after 60 (bone, muscle, balance and the pelvic floor), what the trials show and how strong they are, the moves to swap with osteoporosis, how to train your pelvic floor in a class, how to start and how often, a 30-minute counter-to-mat class, and the warning signs to know. Our Pilates over 50 and Pilates for seniors guides cover starting later in life for everyone, and our exercise for older adults and exercise for osteoporosis guides cover the full exercise plans.
Most Pilates trials in older adults were in women: of 51 trials in people over 55, 31 recruited only women. The UK's consensus on exercise for osteoporosis names Pilates among the balance and strength activities to do at least twice a week, and trials have included women into their 90s.
Across 39 studies (1,770 people), Pilates improved balance tests about as much as other exercise, but the review says it can't be recommended to reduce the number of falls. No Pilates trial big enough to count falls properly has been done. Falls programmes with more balance challenge do cut falls, by about a quarter.
In pooled trials after the menopause, Pilates made no significant difference to bone density. In the one head-to-head trial, in 115 women around 64 with low bone mass, supervised heavy lifting raised spine density by 1.9% against 0.1% with a Pilates-based programme. Canada's osteoporosis guideline puts Pilates in addition to, not instead of, strength and balance training.
The Royal Osteoporosis Society says "Generally, Pilates is very safe and won't cause a spinal fracture." The UK consensus suggests alternatives to roll-downs and curl-ups as a precaution, smooth twists, and back-strengthening moves.
About a third of older women leak urine. Pelvic floor training made a cure of stress leaking about 8 times more likely than no training, and women over 60 cut their leaks by about 70% in 12 weeks, in a group or one to one. Pilates moves without a deliberate squeeze train it less well, so build the squeeze in.
Pilates isn't a reliable way to build strength. The UK guidelines ask older adults for strength, balance and flexibility work on at least 2 days a week plus 150 minutes of moderate activity, and the osteoporosis consensus adds strength work you keep making harder and, if suitable, gentle impact on most days.
These are ordinary parts of later life. Training can't stop them, but it slows them and keeps you doing what you enjoy.
Bone loss speeds up in the year before the last period and slows, but doesn't stop, about 2 years after it: in 862 women followed for 10 years, spine bone density fell 10.6%. The NHS says osteoporosis is "most common in older adults and women after the menopause, but anyone can have it", and the Royal Osteoporosis Society says about one in two women over 50 will break a bone because of it.
Women lose some muscle through the menopause, and being active helps keep it. At 75, women lose about 2.5% to 3% of their strength a year, faster than they lose muscle, and loss of strength predicts disability more than loss of muscle does. Sarcopenia (low strength with low muscle) affects 10% to 27% of people over 60, depending on how it is measured.
More than 90% of hip fractures follow a fall, so stronger bones and steadier balance are two separate jobs. Balance tests in trials (standing on one leg, reaching, sway on a platform) are not the same as falls: a class can improve the test without changing how often people fall.
About 37% of older women leak urine, and in a US survey 36.8% of women aged 60 to 79 and 49.7% of those 80 and over had a pelvic floor problem (leaking urine or poo, or a bulge). These are common and treatable; the NHS lists pelvic floor exercises and avoiding constipation among the ways to help a prolapse.
Most mat classes start on the floor, so getting down and up is a skill in itself; chair, standing and wall Pilates avoid it. The classical mat leans on rounding the spine (the Hundred, roll-ups, rolling like a ball, the roll-over), which are the moves to change with osteoporosis. All-fours and plank positions load the wrists and knees, and mat Pilates uses light loads, while bones and muscles need more over time.
Most Pilates trials in older women are small (20 to 110 people), short (4 to 24 weeks), unblinded and compared with doing nothing, so reviews rate the certainty from very low to moderate.
Against doing nothing, Pilates improved balance tests in 20 trials (930 people aged 63 to 79 on average), in 39 studies (1,770 people) at very low to moderate certainty, and in a 2026 network analysis, where online or app-led Pilates helped too (at very low certainty). The newest review says Pilates was "comparable to other forms of exercise".
Pilates matched traditional strength and balance training (31 people at risk of falls) and another balance method (58 older women). Aerobic exercise for the same time improved walking speed and dynamic balance more, and Zumba improved balance in harder conditions where Pilates didn't. Across 423 trials, almost every kind of exercise improved balance, and the authors say the rankings don't show any type is better.
The one early trial that counted falls was 60 women in a single residential home, with the falls analysed poorly. A pilot of 53 people found 42% fewer fall injuries, which could have been chance, and a proper trial would need 804 people. In the trials that described their classes, only 2% to 36% of exercises challenged balance much.
An umbrella review found tai chi, yoga and Pilates the most effective exercise for fear of falling, a Pilates review found less fear, and the world falls guidelines cite reviews in which supervised classes such as Pilates or yoga had the largest effects on concern about falling. The newest Pilates review found no effect.
Mat Pilates improved balance, leg strength, flexibility and fitness against no exercise in 9 trials. But a review of 24 trials (1,190 people) found no reliable strength gain and said Pilates can't yet be recommended "as a means to improve strength". In 60 women aged 60 to 80, Pilates and resistance training improved everyday function about equally. Mat and apparatus Pilates did equally well in another trial.
In 18 trials in women with low mood (827 women), Pilates eased depression. Sleep scores improved in 6 trials, but not in the groups of women after the menopause or healthy adults over 40. After the menopause, 11 trials found better scores in some areas of quality of life, with none at high certainty. The trials are small and the measures are self-reported.
A Spanish trial of about 110 women around 69 (Pilates twice a week for 12 weeks against no exercise) was registered with 41 main outcomes and reported in several papers on falls risk, sleep, thinking and body composition. It is one trial, and one review counted two of its papers as separate studies. We count it once.
No adverse events were reported in 51 Pilates trials in older adults, though harms were rarely measured, and our searches found no report of a fracture during Pilates. Fractures linked with exercise are rare and come with deep forward bending, such as sit-ups. No study has looked at fractures with Pilates in people with osteoporosis.
In 3 trials after the menopause, Pilates made no significant difference to spine or hip bone density, and in 11 studies of Pilates or yoga (591 women) the effect was close to zero. Two small trials reported gains (41 and 51 women), but their results haven't held up when pooled. At most, Pilates may help hold bone steady.
Strength training you keep making harder, and impact, are what changed bone density in trials. In LIFTMOR, 101 women about 65 with low bone mass did supervised heavy lifting and jumping twice a week for 8 months: spine density rose 2.9% against a 1.2% loss, with one minor back spasm and no new spinal fractures.
In MEDEX-OP, 115 women around 64 with low bone mass did 8 months of either heavy lifting or a mostly mat Pilates-based programme. Lifting raised spine density by 1.9% against 0.1% and improved the hip, where the Pilates-based programme was "largely ineffective"; both improved everyday function, and lifting didn't harm the pelvic floor. The same Australian group ran both trials, and its Pilates-based programme was the low-intensity comparison, not a Pilates programme made harder over time.
The UK consensus asks for muscle-strengthening on 2 or 3 days a week, building up to the heaviest weight you can lift 8 to 12 times, and about 50 moderate impacts on most days if you have no spinal or multiple fractures. The 2024 UK clinical guideline strongly recommends weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercise. Canada's guideline puts yoga or Pilates "in addition to, but not instead of, balance, functional and resistance training".
Across 20 trials, exercise cut low-trauma fractures by about a third, and supervised programmes did better than unsupervised ones. No trial has been big enough to show this on its own.
In 108 trials (average age 76, 77% women), balance and functional exercise cut the rate of falls by 24% (high certainty), and programmes of more than 3 hours a week with balance work by about 42%. The world falls guidelines ask for balance-challenging exercise 3 or more times a week, made harder over at least 12 weeks, and say "Benefits of exercise are lost on cessation". NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) asks falls programmes to focus on "balance, coordination, strength and power".
The Royal Osteoporosis Society suggests Pilates among balance activities and says "it is best to stand up if you can". Standing work at a counter, a narrower stance, reaching and stepping make Pilates more like the programmes that cut falls.
For people already falling, the UK consensus recommends "Highly challenging balance and muscle strength training for 3 hours a week over at least 4 months". The NHS says you may be able to refer yourself to a falls service, which can include strength and balance training.
The UK consensus suggests alternatives to the roll-down and curl-up as a precaution, and says twisting should be safe if done smoothly. The Royal Osteoporosis Society's Pilates fact sheet swaps rolling like a ball and the roll-over for safer moves, and keeps the Hundred and roll-up family only for people with strong muscles who do them regularly with ease.
The consensus asks for back-strengthening moves repeated 3 to 5 times and held 3 to 5 seconds, at least twice a week. In 99 adults aged 60 to 88 with a rounded upper back, a back-strengthening programme 3 times a week for 6 months reduced the curve by 3 degrees; it wasn't Pilates, but the swan and swimming are the same kind of work.
Start new exercise supervised, and see a physiotherapist first if spinal fractures are causing pain and other symptoms (below). Our Pilates for osteoporosis and Pilates for kyphosis guides go further.
Pelvic floor training cured stress leaking in 56% of women against 6% without it (high certainty). NICE recommends supervised training for at least 3 months, with "at least 8 contractions performed 3 times per day". In 362 women over 60, 12 weeks in a group cut leaks by a median 74% and one-to-one training by 70%, with a meaningful change by week 4.
Training without a deliberate pelvic floor squeeze worked less well than direct training, and adding a squeeze to Pilates built more pelvic floor strength than Pilates alone. Drawing the tummy in isn't the same: in 20 women it lifted the pelvic floor less than a direct squeeze, and pushed it down in 6 of them.
In 40 women after the menopause, Pilates with the squeeze did as well as pelvic floor training; in another trial, direct training did better whether or not the squeeze was added; in 34 older women, direct training worked the pelvic floor more. A 2026 review found them similar, but we could read only its summary, and the trials are small. Squeezes first, Pilates alongside.
Heavy, supervised lifting didn't worsen pelvic floor symptoms in women with low bone mass, and most Pilates moves raised tummy pressure no more than standing up from a chair; only roll-ups stayed high for longer. Squeeze before you lift, cough or land.
The squeeze is from the pelvic floor exercise move's page; the dose is our women over 40 and pelvic floor classes' (8 slow squeezes held up to 10 seconds, then 8 quick squeezes), building to NICE's at least 8 contractions 3 times a day for at least 3 months if you leak. If you're unsure you have the right muscles, a pelvic health physiotherapist can check.
See the movement on the 3D figure: Pelvic floor exercise (Kegel)
Sit to stand (2 sets of 5 slow, building to 2 sets of 10, our longevity and balance classes; the build-up is editorial), the step-up (2 sets of 8 reps each side, our longevity class, on a low step with a hand on a rail), heel drops (2 to 3 sets of 10, adapted from the move page's dose; march instead with spinal fractures, as its caution says), the wall push-up (5 to 10, our longevity class), the band row (2 sets of 10 to 15, our longevity class) and the slow calf raise (5 to 8 slow, our balance class). Squeeze your pelvic floor before each lift or drop, and make the moves harder over the weeks.
Tandem stance and heel-to-toe walk (hold 10 s each way, then 5 steps heel to toe, twice), the single-leg stand (3 holds of 5 to 10 s each side), side-stepping (10 steps each way) and backward walking (1 min), all from our standing Pilates for balance class, beside a counter; getting down to the floor and up again (1 slow cycle down and 2 up, our balance class), with a chair close by and someone present the first few times.
The swan (3 to 5 small lifts, each held 3 to 5 s, our osteoporosis class), swimming (2 sets of 20 s, our longevity class), the bird dog (5 each side, 3 s hold, our balance class), the seated upper-back lift (3 to 5 repetitions, each held 3 to 5 seconds, at least twice a week (UK osteoporosis consensus, 2022), from the move page's dose), the glute bridge (2 sets of 12, our longevity class), the side kick (8 each side, our balance class), dead bug heel taps (6 each side, our women over 40 class, the head-down swap for curl-ups) and the spine twist (3 each side, our longevity class; on a chair if you slump).
3D demoSwan (Pilates swan dive)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoSwimming (Pilates)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoBird dogBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSeated upper-back lift (sit tall, shoulders back)Beginner · A bench or box
3D demoGlute bridgeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSide kick (Pilates side kick series)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoDead bug heel tapsBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSpine twist (Pilates)Beginner · No equipmentSwap the curl-ups (the chest lift, the Hundred, single-leg stretch and criss-cross) for head-down versions such as dead bug heel taps, as their cautions say; swap the roll-up and spine stretch forward for a hip hinge; and leave out rolling like a ball, the roll-over and the teaser, as their cautions say. Keep the wall roll-down small, with your hands on your thighs. People who already move comfortably and smoothly can keep some curl-ups, as the UK consensus says.
3D demoChest lift (Pilates curl-up)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoHundred (Pilates)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoSingle-leg stretch (Pilates one leg stretch)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoCriss-cross (Pilates)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoRoll-up (Pilates)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoSpine stretch forward (Pilates spine stretch)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoRolling like a ball (Pilates rolling back)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoRoll-over (Pilates roll-over with legs spread)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoTeaser (Pilates)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoHip-hinge practiceBeginner · No equipmentPilates twice a week, as part of 2 or 3 strength days with a day's rest between, plus walking on most days towards 150 minutes a week. Build up to balance practice every day, as the Royal Osteoporosis Society suggests, and add gentle impact on most days if it suits you. If you've fallen, aim for about 3 hours a week of balance-led exercise. This is our editorial starting point, following those guidelines.
In one small trial, in-person Pilates helped quality of life more than remote classes, and in older adults "Adherence to group exercise was good, but poor for home exercise." Supervised programmes also cut fractures more. Start in a class with a qualified teacher who teaches older adults and knows the osteoporosis swaps.
Mat and apparatus Pilates improved older women's fitness equally, and a reformer trial included women up to 95. Chair and standing Pilates avoid getting down to the floor. You don't need a reformer; choose the one you'll keep doing.
Benefits fade when exercise stops. In one small study, balance gains from a short Pilates course were kept a year later, and were bigger in people who carried on.
Our counter-to-mat class for women over 60 is new and untested as a whole: it puts the pelvic floor, gentle impact, leg and back strength and balance together, with no curl-ups or rolling. The longevity class is a close alternative without the pelvic floor or impact; the balance class suits a falls worry; the osteoporosis class has the safe swaps; the pelvic floor class teaches the squeeze; and the chair classes suit days when the floor is hard.
A 30-minute class for women over 60: pelvic floor squeezes, gentle heel drops, leg and arm strength at a chair, balance at a counter and head-down Pilates.
30 minBeginner22 movesBench or box, stepA 35-minute Pilates class for ageing well: a brisk start, leg and grip strength, balance at a counter, getting down to the floor and up, and mat work.
35 minBeginner19 movesBench or box, stepA 25-minute Pilates class for steadier balance: standing balance and leg strength at a kitchen counter, then mat work for your trunk and hips.
25 minBeginner17 movesWall, bench or boxA 25-minute Pilates workout for osteoporosis and osteopenia: the Royal Osteoporosis Society's swaps for rounding moves, plus back strength and balance.
25 minBeginner16 movesWall, bench or boxA 20-minute Pilates workout for your pelvic floor, built on UK pelvic health physiotherapists' booklet: squeeze as you breathe out, move, then fully release.
20 minBeginner18 movesWall, bench or boxA 40-minute class for women over 40: pelvic floor squeezes, heel drops for bone, strength with dumbbells and a band, head-down Pilates and balance.
40 minBeginner19 movesDumbbell, bandA 20-minute chair Pilates workout for beginners and older adults: breathing, sitting tall, gentle spine and leg moves, and a standing finish at the chair.
20 minBeginner14 movesBench or box, something with weightA 15-minute chair Pilates class done entirely sitting down, in a chair or wheelchair: breathing, spine moves, and leg and arm strength with water bottles.
15 minBeginner13 movesBench or box, something with weightImpact, strength and balance for stronger bones, following UK osteoporosis consensus advice, with options for every level.
40 minBeginner14 movesKettlebell, other / check instructionsBalance practice in 10 minutes: tandem stance, single-leg stands, marches, heel walks, tree pose and floor transfers.
10 minBeginner7 movesWall, bench or boxEach plan mixes strength, balance and walking across the week.
A weekly plan for women over 50: strength, bone-loading and balance on 3 days plus walking, built on UK osteoporosis consensus advice.
3 training days45 minBeginner3 days a weekA 12-week exercise plan for over-65s: strength and balance three times a week, short balance sessions and daily walks, based on falls-prevention trials.
3 training days40 minBeginner6 days a weekA free 8-week walking plan for beginners: build to 150 minutes of brisk walking a week, with intervals, hills and two short strength sessions.
6 training days40 minBeginnerModify or avoid exercises that round your back deeply or repeatedly, especially with a weight: sit-ups, toe touches, Pilates roll-downs and curl-ups, and extreme yoga forward folds. Bend from the hips instead. You do not need to avoid bending, twisting or lifting altogether: move smoothly and keep your upper back straight.
Twisting should be safe if you do it smoothly and comfortably. Slow down and shorten fast or forceful twists, and leave out the added weight.
If you leak when you lift or jump, keep exercising, lighten or change what sets it off, and see a GP or pelvic health physiotherapist; if you feel a bulge or heaviness, get checked before heavy lifting or running.
Do every standing move beside a sturdy counter with a chair behind you, and only get down to the floor if you can get up again; the get-up move's page shows how. Rise slowly from the floor if you get dizzy when you stand (our suggestion).
Follow your surgeon's precautions after a hip or knee replacement, use fists or forearms if your wrists hurt, and kneel on padding or skip kneeling, as the move pages say. Our Pilates for arthritis, hip replacement and knee replacement guides go further.
Keep breathing, keep holds short and leave out legs-overhead moves, as our Pilates for heart health and high blood pressure guides explain.
This is general information, not a diagnosis. A&E means accident and emergency; in the US, call 911 for 999, and use your doctor's urgent line or urgent care for NHS 111.
See your GP first if you get chest pain, breathlessness or dizziness when you are active, if you have a heart condition and want to exercise harder, or if you have had a fall.
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You're frail, have moderate to severe dementia, have had a spinal fracture or fall regularly: the UK guidelines suggest any new exercise is supervised by a trained professional at first.
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The Royal Osteoporosis Society suggests a physiotherapist first if you:
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Stop if you feel any of these, and call 111, or 999 (911 in the US) in an emergency:
Call 999 if:
Call 999 or go to A&E (accident and emergency) straight away for severe difficulty breathing (gasping, choking or not able to get words out), a chest that feels tight or heavy, pain that spreads to your arms, back, neck and jaw, lips or skin turning very pale, blue or grey, or sudden confusion. If you're more short of breath than usual, or your heart is racing, fluttering or skipping beats, contact NHS 111.
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You feel any pain or become unwell, as the NHS advises for its Pilates videos, and especially for chest pain or pressure, unusual breathlessness, dizziness or fainting. If you have a health problem, an injury or any symptoms, get advice from a healthcare professional, such as a GP, before you start.
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The NHS's advice:
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If you fall repeatedly, or have started avoiding activity because you're worried about falling, ask your GP about a local falls service.
NICE asks for a full falls assessment for people who have fallen in the past year and are frail, were injured, could not get up on their own, lost consciousness, or have fallen twice or more. A falls service can offer a supervised programme such as Otago.
See your doctor about back pain, or a change in body shape such as losing height or a more curved back: these can be signs of a spinal fracture, though not all spinal fractures hurt.
The NHS's osteoporosis page lists back pain, "a curved spine or hunched posture" and "getting shorter" as symptoms that can come from small breaks in the bones of the spine.
With osteoporosis or a past spinal fracture, avoid repeated or loaded deep rounding of the back, and bend from the hips. The osteoporosis guide covers impact and lifting.
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See a GP if you have a lump in or around your vagina or other signs of prolapse, such as heaviness or pressure. With prolapse, the NHS advises avoiding activities that strain the pelvic floor, like heavy lifting, running and trampolining.
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If leaking isn't improving, see a GP or a pelvic health physiotherapist: NICE recommends supervised pelvic floor training for at least 3 months first.
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See a GP about any bleeding from the vagina after your menopause, even if it's only a small amount or has only happened once. It's not usually serious, but it needs checking, and you shouldn't have to wait more than 2 weeks to see a specialist.
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The NHS advises getting advice from a healthcare professional first if you have a health problem, an injury or symptoms, or have recently had a heart attack or an operation.
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Supervised heavy lifting raised spine bone density in women in their 60s with low bone mass, with no new spinal fractures, and resistance training had no serious adverse events in 12 trials after the menopause. The UK consensus recommends safe lifting technique rather than "don't lift". Start light, learn the technique and build up; after a recent spinal fracture, see a physiotherapist first.
No trial supports either idea. Strength falls with age faster than muscle does, and strength experts call resistance training "a powerful intervention to combat the loss of muscle strength and muscle mass". The aim is strength, not a look.
Pooled trials found no significant change in bone density with Pilates after the menopause, and heavy lifting beat a Pilates-based programme for bone in the one head-to-head trial. Some Pilates pages, including the Royal Osteoporosis Society's older Pilates page, say otherwise; the trials don't show it.
It improves balance tests, everyday function and, in small trials, mood. It just isn't the whole answer for bone, strength or falls.
Better balance scores haven't yet translated into fewer falls in a trial big enough to tell. Programmes with more balance challenge and more hours a week do cut falls.
The Royal Osteoporosis Society says Pilates is generally very safe; swap the curl-ups, roll-downs and rolling moves.
Direct pelvic floor training has the strong evidence. Pilates without a deliberate squeeze trains the pelvic floor less, and drawing the tummy in pushed the pelvic floor down in some women.
It is common, about 37% of older women, and it is treatable: women over 60 cut their leaks by about 70% with 12 weeks of pelvic floor training.
Pilates trials have included people up to 95, and the UK guidelines say "Some physical activity is better than none" for older adults. Start supervised if you're frail or have fallen.
Mat and apparatus Pilates improved older women's function equally.
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Yes, as one part of the week. In trials, mostly in women in their 60s and 70s, Pilates improved balance and everyday function and may help sleep and mood, though most trials were small. Pair it with walking, strength work you keep making harder and, if you can, some gentle impact.
For most women, yes: trials have included women into their 90s. See your GP first if you get chest pain, breathlessness or dizziness when you're active, or have had a fall. If you're frail, have had a spinal fracture or fall regularly, start in a supervised class.
It hasn't been shown to: trials after the menopause found no significant change in bone density. Strength training with heavier loads and impact are what raised bone density in trials. Pilates still helps your bones indirectly, through balance, back strength and confidence.
It improves balance, but fewer falls haven't been shown in a trial big enough to tell. The falls programmes that cut falls by about a quarter use more balance challenge, 3 or more times a week, for at least 12 weeks. Do your Pilates standing at a counter where you can, and ask about a falls service if you've fallen.
Yes. The Royal Osteoporosis Society says Pilates is generally very safe and won't cause a spinal fracture. Swap curl-ups, roll-downs and rolling moves for head-down and flat-back versions, twist smoothly, and add back-strengthening moves.
Only if you train the pelvic floor on purpose. Direct pelvic floor training makes a cure of stress leaking about 8 times more likely, and women over 60 cut their leaks by about 70% in 12 weeks. Build the squeeze into your Pilates, and see a GP or pelvic health physiotherapist if leaking isn't improving.
Not quite. The UK guidelines ask older adults for strength, balance and flexibility work on at least 2 days a week, plus 150 minutes of moderate activity such as brisk walking. Pilates covers the first part, so keep walking too.
Both, if you can. In older women, Pilates and resistance training improved everyday function about equally, but lifting built more strength and, in women with low bone mass, more bone. Many women do Pilates twice a week and add the strength moves on this page, made harder over time.
No. Mat and apparatus Pilates improved older women's fitness equally in a trial. Mat, chair, standing and wall Pilates all count.
Twice a week is a good start, as in most trials and the UK consensus. If you've fallen, aim for about 3 hours a week of balance-led exercise in total, and keep going, because the benefits fade when you stop.
For beginners, often yes: in one small trial, in-person Pilates helped quality of life more than remote classes, and people keep going with group exercise better than at home. Look for a qualified teacher who teaches older adults and knows the osteoporosis swaps.
Neither has been shown to be better. Both can help balance, mood and flexibility, and the largest comparison of balance training found almost every kind of exercise helped. Choose the one you'll keep doing; our yoga for older women guide covers yoga.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. If you are pregnant, have a health condition or have had recent surgery, check with a doctor, midwife or physiotherapist before starting, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
