Pilates guide
Yes: the NHS counts Pilates as a muscle-strengthening activity for its twice-a-week guideline. In trials, Pilates built strength compared with doing nothing, though reviews in older adults disagree on how clearly, and it built trunk endurance well; for strength, it did about as well as other exercise.
On its own it adds little muscle, most likely because most Pilates doesn't keep adding load as you get stronger, and we found no trial comparing it with weight training for muscle size.
This guide covers what counts as strength training, what the studies found on the mat and the reformer, how Pilates compares with weights, how to make it harder with levers, springs, bands, rings and weights, and how to combine it with lifting. Our 30-minute Pilates strength class uses dumbbells or a band.
The NHS lists Pilates among muscle-strengthening activities, done "to the point where you need a short rest before repeating the activity" on at least 2 days a week. The UK Chief Medical Officers add that any strengthening activity is better than none.
In older adults, one review of 39 studies found a moderate gain in strength against no exercise, though a newer review of 24 trials found no clear gain. Its clearest effect is on trunk muscle endurance.
In people who weren't training before, Pilates built strength about as well as other exercise, strength training included, at low or very low certainty.
Lean mass didn't change in pooled trials. On scans, 36 weeks of Pilates grew the tummy muscles but not the glutes, in 9 women with no comparison group, and we found no trial comparing Pilates with weights for muscle size.
Most mat Pilates adds little load as you get stronger, so gains tend to level off, an exercise scientist says; heavier springs, bands or weights let you keep adding load. For more strength and muscle, do Pilates and weights.
Adults should do strengthening activities that work all the major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms) on at least 2 days a week, as well as at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, and the NHS lists Pilates among these activities, along with yoga, tai chi, lifting weights and working with resistance bands. Adults over 65 should do activities that improve strength, balance and flexibility on at least 2 days a week. The NHS describes Pilates as "a form of exercise that focuses on balance, posture, strength and flexibility".
The UK Chief Medical Officers: "Muscle strengthening activities should be done on at least 2 days a week, but any strengthening activity is better than none." The World Health Organization recommends muscle-strengthening at moderate or greater intensity, working all the major muscle groups, on 2 or more days a week, and for older adults, balance and strength training on 3 or more days.
Usually, resistance training against a load you can keep increasing. In the 2026 American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) position stand, built on 137 reviews, strength improved more with heavier loads (80% or more of the most you can lift once), 2 to 3 sets and at least 2 sessions a week, and muscle grew more with 10 or more sets a week; training to failure didn't consistently change the results. The National Strength and Conditioning Association calls resistance training "a powerful intervention" against the loss of muscle strength and mass in older adults.
On the mat, it comes from your body weight and the length of your levers: planks, push-ups, leg pulls and the side bend load your arms, the hundred, roll-up and teaser your trunk, and the side kick series and shoulder bridge your legs and hips. On the reformer and other equipment, springs add resistance you can adjust, though a spring's setting doesn't tell you the force: in one study, working it out from the springs was imprecise, and in another, people used different muscle strategies for the same leg push. A lighter spring can make some core moves harder, because the carriage is less stable.
A 2021 review of 39 studies in older adults found a moderate gain in strength against no exercise (moderate certainty), and a review of 9 mat Pilates trials a large one. A 2024 review of 24 trials (1,190 older adults) found no clear gain against no exercise (low certainty), and concluded that it isn't feasible to recommend Pilates to improve strength in older adults.
A 2022 review of 11 studies found Pilates built strength no better or worse than other exercise, with strength training among the comparisons, at very low to low certainty. In older adults, Pilates and other exercise didn't differ (moderate certainty).
In healthy adults, 2 or 3 sessions a week for 5 to 12 weeks added about 10 curl-ups in a 1-minute test, compared with no exercise, and an earlier review found moderate evidence that Pilates improves muscle endurance.
Pooled trials found no clear change in lean mass: 0.46 kg on average in adult women (anywhere from 2.35 kg less to 3.27 kg more), and no change in adults with overweight or obesity; mat Pilates was no better than other exercise or none in 10 studies, and a review in healthy people found the effect uncertain. Many studies measured muscle with bioimpedance scales, which read more lean mass than a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan after Pilates training, so small gains reported that way are unreliable.
Nine inactive women did 36 weeks of supervised Pilates twice a week. On magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, the six-pack muscle grew 21%, while the glutes and deep hip muscles didn't change significantly (12 women started, 9 were scanned, and there was no comparison group). These two reports are the only studies of muscle volume after Pilates that we found.
In a trial in 60 older women (49 finished), Pilates and a resistance programme, each twice a week for 18 weeks, didn't differ in machine-measured strength or balance: Pilates beat no exercise for hip extension strength, and the resistance group improved on every machine-measured hip test. Balance and core resistance training on a feedback device beat Pilates for balance, trunk strength and leg power in 34 older women, and in inactive women, a low-load, high-repetition group class improved fitness, leg power, grip and body composition, while Pilates improved only flexibility. We found no trial against progressive weight training for muscle size.
Across 21 studies, heavier loads built more maximum strength than light ones, while muscle growth was similar when every set was taken to failure; across 28 studies with 747 adults, muscle growth didn't differ by load.
Mat and apparatus Pilates gave similar gains in older women and in adult women; in women after the menopause, grip strength rose only with apparatus Pilates. Reformer Pilates raised lower-back and shoulder-blade strength in a small pilot study, and grip strength in 47 women with overweight. In another trial, in adults with overweight or obesity, knee strength didn't change with Pilates or with aerobic training.
A Pilates teacher quoted by National Geographic said Pilates strengthens tendons more effectively than weightlifting, but a review of 27 studies found that tendons adapt to loading and that how heavy the load is plays a key role. We found no study supporting the claim.
We found no trial comparing Pilates with progressive weight training for muscle size. For strength in people who weren't training, Pilates did about as well as other exercise.
An exercise scientist quoted by National Geographic says a sedentary beginner would see some early muscle development that then plateaus, because most Pilates lacks progressive overload, while the reformer "can offer more of a strength-training effect". That's expert opinion, not a trial.
Source 13
The UK consensus on exercise for osteoporosis recommends resistance and impact exercise for bone strength, and activities such as Pilates for strength and balance at least twice a week, without repeated or end-range rounding of the spine. Pilates helps strength and balance, but it isn't a substitute for resistance and impact training for bone.
Source 44
Our suggestion: keep Pilates for control, trunk strength and flexibility, and add load you can keep increasing, with weights, bands or heavier springs, if you want more strength or muscle.
Source 14
Straighter, lower legs and arms overhead make moves harder; so do fewer points of support, going from knees to toes or from two legs to one, and slower lowering. Then work up through harder moves: the chest lift, then the hundred, then the roll-up and the teaser.
Source 19
Work each muscle group until you need a short rest, as the NHS puts it: light loads build muscle only when the last few repetitions of a set are hard.
Use heavier springs on the reformer for most leg and arm work, though lighter springs can make some core moves harder; a ring adds gentle resistance; bands build strength about as well as weights; dumbbells and ankle weights add load. In the trials, one programme changed the springs every 15 days as people got stronger, keeping the effort difficult (8 to 9 out of 10), and another added elastic bands and made them heavier over 18 weeks.
The classical mat exercises include no pulling moves and little heavy leg work, so add band rows and loaded squats or lunges, or a weights session.
Move up a step when you can do the current one smoothly. With osteoporosis, swap the roll-up and teaser for head-down moves such as the dead bug.
Use fists or your forearms if your wrists hurt, and skip leg pulls with shoulder pain.
Band rows add the pulling that mat Pilates lacks: 3 sets of 10 to 15, stopping 2 to 3 reps short of failure, with 60 to 90 seconds' rest, is the move page's dose, an editorial starting point. For push-ups, our editorial starting point is 2 to 3 sets, stopping 2 to 3 reps short of failure.
Our editorial starting point for the loaded moves: 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping with 2 or 3 reps in reserve.
3D demoBodyweight squatBeginner · No equipment
3D demoDumbbell goblet squatIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoReverse lungeIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoSingle-leg glute bridgeIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoResistance band squatBeginner · A band
3D demoBand-resisted glute bridgeBeginner · A band + An anchor point
3D demoSide kick (Pilates side kick series)Beginner · No equipmentA cushion works instead of a ring. Leave overhead work out with shoulder pain.
3D demoLying adductor ball squeezeBeginner · Other / check instructions
3D demoIsometric chest squeeze (palm press)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoDumbbell biceps curlBeginner · A dumbbell
3D demoStanding overhead dumbbell triceps extensionIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoShoulder press with a bandBeginner · A bandOur suggestion: 2 Pilates sessions and 1 or 2 resistance sessions a week, or the Pilates strength class twice a week, with at least 150 minutes of moderate activity on top.
If strength is your main goal, lift first: in the ACSM overview, strength improved more when resistance exercise came at the start of a session. Otherwise, choose the order you prefer.
Source 14
Aim for strength and balance on at least 2 days a week. In one review, Pilates reduced the risk of falls compared with no exercise.
Start with the 30-minute Pilates strength class twice a week. The other Pilates classes use your body weight, light weights, a ring or a band; the band workout and the plans below add load you can keep increasing.
A 30-minute Pilates strength class with dumbbells or a band: Pilates trunk work plus squats, lunges, rows and push-ups, each set taken until it is hard.
30 minIntermediate15 movesA dumbbell, A bandA 30-minute intermediate mat Pilates class that follows the classical order, from the hundred to the push-up, with prep versions of the hardest moves.
30 minIntermediate22 movesNo equipmentA 25-minute mat workout built on the order of a classical reformer class, with a mat or standing version of each reformer exercise. No machine needed.
25 minBeginner16 movesA wallA 20-minute Pilates class for your arms: planks and push-ups, side and back support, face-down work and a standing series with light weights or a band.
20 minBeginner16 movesA bench or box, A dumbbellA 25-minute Pilates class for your legs: reformer footwork without the machine, leg circles, the side kick series, inner-thigh squeezes and stretches.
25 minBeginner15 movesA wall, Other / check instructionsA 25-minute Pilates class for your glutes: bridges, the side kick series, face-down kicks and standing work at a wall, with a band to make it harder.
25 minBeginner16 movesA wall, A bandA 20-minute Pilates ring workout for beginners: squeeze, press and balance with a magic circle, or a cushion and a belt if you don't have one.
20 minBeginner11 movesOther / check instructions, A bandA full-body resistance band workout: squats, rows, push-ups, presses, pull-aparts, band walks, good mornings and flyes.
30 minBeginner9 movesA band, An anchor pointThe band, dumbbell and barbell plans add load you can keep increasing; the 4-week Pilates plan suits beginners.
An 8-week resistance band workout plan: three full-body sessions a week at home or away, with how to choose bands, add tension and anchor them safely.
3 training days35 minBeginner4 days a weekA 4-day dumbbell-only plan for home or gym: two upper and two lower days, every set, rep and rest, and how to keep progressing when the dumbbells max out.
4 training days45 minBeginner3 days a weekA 12-week beginner barbell program: squat every session, alternate bench and row with press and deadlift, and add weight each time until it stalls.
3 training days50 minBeginner3 days a weekA free 4-week, 3-day Pilates plan for complete beginners. Two mat days and one wall day, with clear rules for when to move each exercise to its harder version.
3 training days25 minBeginnerIn the US, call 911.
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.
Source 16
Our suggestion, as in our guide to getting stronger: breathe out as you lift and don't hold your breath against heavy loads. With uncontrolled high blood pressure, heart disease or glaucoma, check with your care team before lifting heavy. With glaucoma, skip moves that take your head below your heart, such as the roll-over and jack knife, unless your eye specialist agrees, as their move pages say.
Call 999 or go to A&E if back pain comes with pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs, a loss of feeling around your genitals or anus, or changes in your bladder or bowels. Our Pilates for anterior pelvic tilt guide lists the NHS back pain warning signs in full.
Source 49
Avoid postures with a lot of spinal rounding, especially with a load; after spine fractures or several low-trauma fractures, keep impact to the level of brisk walking. Our Pilates for osteoporosis guide has the details.
Source 44
Our Pilates in pregnancy guide covers what to change, including how long to spend lying on your back and when to stop.
The NHS counts Pilates towards its twice-a-week strength guideline, and two reviews found it made older adults stronger than no exercise did, though a newer review found no clear gain.
Pooled trials found no clear change in lean mass, the one MRI study found the tummy muscles grew but not the hip muscles, and we found no trial comparing Pilates with weights for muscle size.
Exercise can't change where a muscle attaches, so it can't make a muscle longer, and muscle tissue is lean whatever trains it, as an exercise scientist explains. How big muscles get depends on load, training volume and your genes, not the name of the method.
Tendons adapt to load, and how heavy it is plays a key role. We found no study supporting the claim.
Light loads build similar muscle to heavy ones when sets are hard, though heavy loads build more maximum strength.
Mat and apparatus Pilates gave similar gains in trials, and bands build strength about as well as weights.
The UK osteoporosis consensus recommends resistance and impact exercise for bone; Pilates suits strength and balance.
Source 44
Yes: the NHS counts Pilates as a muscle-strengthening activity for its twice-a-week guideline. In trials it built strength, though reviews in older adults disagree on how clearly, and its clearest effect was on trunk endurance.
A little at first if you're new to exercise, then it tends to level off unless you add load, an exercise scientist says. Pooled trials found no clear change in lean mass, and on scans, 36 weeks of Pilates grew the tummy muscles but not the glutes.
For the NHS guideline, yes, if you work all the major muscle groups until you need a short rest, twice a week. For more strength, more muscle or stronger bones, add load you can keep increasing, such as weights or bands.
For strength in people who weren't training, Pilates did about as well as other exercise, strength training included. For maximum strength and muscle size, weights you can keep making heavier are the surer route. Many people do both.
Yes: the springs add resistance you can adjust, and reformer trials improved lower-back and grip strength. A spring setting doesn't tell you how much load you're moving, and a lighter spring can make some moves harder.
For general health, Pilates twice a week meets the strength guideline. For maximum strength or for bone health, it isn't a full replacement: heavier loads build more strength, and the UK osteoporosis consensus recommends resistance and impact exercise for bone.
Lengthen the lever (straighter, lower legs), take away support (one leg or one arm), lower more slowly, and add reps until the last few are hard. Then add load: heavier springs, bands, a ring, dumbbells or ankle weights.
Yes. If strength is your main goal, lift first: strength improved more when resistance exercise came at the start of a session. Otherwise, choose the order you prefer.
It helps strength and balance, which lowers the risk of falls. For bone itself, the UK osteoporosis consensus recommends resistance and impact exercise, so add weights and impact if you can; our Pilates for osteoporosis guide has the details.
Usually, especially if you're new to exercise. In two reviews, older adults got stronger than with no exercise, though a newer review found no clear gain, and in healthy adults, abdominal endurance improved by about 10 curl-ups in a minute.
No study shows that: lean mass didn't change in pooled Pilates trials. If you swap heavy lifting for Pilates, though, you may lose some of the strength that heavy loads built.
No. Mat and apparatus Pilates gave similar gains in trials, and bands build strength about as well as weights.
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.
