Pilates For Weight Loss
Are you looking for a method to slim down your shape, reduce fat and construct more slender muscle mass?
Your brain may instinctively think of more intense forms of exercise like bodybuilding or running as the speediest way to get rid of weight and become fit, however, there exist other varieties of physical activity to try.
If wanting to get a more slender figure, Pilates may be an effective way to do so given its ability to increase core strength, balance, and flexibility — which are all critical elements in forming muscle.
It is not obvious to link Pilates, famous for being a mindful practice, with weight loss. In terms of shedding weight, running is usually considered to be the best form of exercise because it gets the heart rate up quickly, thus resulting in more calories being burned.
Exercising through running and strength training can certainly be beneficial if you’re looking to slim down, but Pilates should also be considered a great way to supplement your routine.
If you don’t want to jump straight into an intense cardio workout, try fitting Pilates sessions into your daily or weekly schedule.
You may assume that Pilates is just a type of exercise used in rehabilitation or only done by athletes, yet this is not the case. In reality, Pilates is simply a deeper and more purposeful approach to lighter weightlifting.
With the right diet and professional support from a Pilates instructor (or free instructions online!), it is a great way to burn off calories.
Pilates
Pilates is a type of exercise which is not overly strenuous but instead aims to strengthen and condition your body by constructing lean muscle mass. It is possible to do this activity in the comfort of one’s own home, at a fitness centre, or typically in group classes. This activity does not have to be limited to certain body parts and can be done with or without the use of equipment.
‘Classical Pilates’ as viewed today originated from an exercise system developed at the beginning of the 1900s by Joseph Pilates. It was initially intended to assist dancers in rehabilitation, but he soon realized the potential for its use in many other contexts.
This exercise regimen is designed to adjust the disparity of muscles that are commonly overworked due to our same day-to-day activities like walking, sitting, and standing.
For someone who hasn’t given it a go, Pilates might appear to be a breeze. The tiny, precise motions are more intentional and not as difficult, isn’t that so?
Wrong.
Consider how strenuous it is to hold the plank position or perform push-ups; particularly the arm, shoulder, and core muscles. If you’re prepared to increase the amount of energy your body uses, this could be the answer to shedding pounds.
Pilates for weight loss
Pilates can enable you to create a negative calorie balance to shed pounds. Many people have the misconception that Pilates is only employed for physical rehabilitation, and is sometimes even labelled as a mild form of stretching, according to Pilates teacher Paola Langella.
This technique of exercising both the mind and body concentrates on stretching and strengthening it all over, as well as toning it, making it an exceptional fat-burning workout when done frequently.
This deficit only increases further as students progress through the exercise. “The class becomes more intense and cardiovascular,” explains Paola.
Your heart rate rises and you become aware of how intense Pilates is and how it could be a perfect fitness program instead of incorporating running or vigorous cardio into your exercise program.
When it comes to slimming down, it isn’t necessarily the amount of exercise that you do that makes the difference, it is rather the balance of calories that you consume. The secret to shedding pounds is to take in fewer calories than what your body needs to use in a single day, which is often referred to as an energy or calorie deficit.
Jessica Stevens, a personal trainer with Core Balance, emphasizes the need to set attainable goals and utilize a smart, healthy course of action to get to your weight objectives. For successful weight loss, two aspects must be taken into account to accomplish a healthier lifestyle.
Individuals should make sure to consume a nutritious and sustained diet. To discover what such a diet looks like, the 80/20 diet could be helpful as it combines multiple components of a balanced eating regimen.
Subsequently, Jessica suggests that if you want to shed pounds, some exercises are more effective at burning calories than others. Interval training of a high intensity can be an extremely useful way to knock off pounds and it doesn’t have to consume a significant amount of time.
You could do countless exercises which can be adapted for any kind of fitness, and all you need is half an hour. For example, you could exercise by doing High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on a treadmill.
The type of exercise that will be most beneficial is the one that brings you pleasure as you are more apt to stay consistent with it. If you’re trying to get down in weight, concentrate on bingeing in good health with fewer calories as well as doing exercise that you enjoy like Pilates to lose pounds or interval training.
Can Pilates help you lose weight?
Doing Pilates can be a great way of keeping fit or becoming more active, however, if your only goal is to lose weight via Pilates only, then this may not be the most effective plan.
Although it can help with slimming down, doing this type of exercise won’t help you get to your goal as quickly as other cardio exercises such as swimming, biking, or jogging.
Research has indicated that Pilates exercises are an effective way to shed weight, as various peer-reviewed studies have been conducted and published on the topic by healthline.com.
In 2017, a small study observed 37 women between the ages of 30 and 50 as compared to a similar control group doing no exercise and found that Pilates was effective for:
- weight loss
- lowering body mass index (BMI)
- toning the waist
- decreasing abdomen and hip circumference
It did not alter the lean body mass, that being the total body weight minus the body fat weight.
In 2015, a research that looked into postmenopausal women who were between the ages of 59-66 discovered that 12 weeks of Pilates improved the strength in their abdominals, upper limbs, and lower limbs, however, it had no impact on the changes in their body composition.
How do calories affect weight loss?
It is imperative to figure out the amount of calories your body needs to intake and burn off to reduce weight. To shed pounds, it’s necessary to have fewer calories than you burn, which means burning more than you intake.
When performing Pilates to shed pounds, motions will be vigorous. This implies that movement between exercises is done promptly so that your body continuously burns calories.
It is essential to pay attention to how you feel after a lesson because this can have a major impact on the decisions you make in life during the rest of the day.
Paola states that the core emphasis of Pilates is to maintain an ongoing breathing rhythm and you will soon realize an emotional balance and tranquillity. Paola, a Pilates instructor, states that she tends to choose healthier foods following her classes, regardless of what other elements may impact her normal diet such as stress or her menstrual cycle.
She states that she has a heightened feeling of happiness and a better understanding of her body, resulting in her snacks and meals being healthier, as well as lower in calories.
Consulting with a doctor or a certified fitness instructor can be beneficial in this situation. You must be sure to give your body the correct amount of sustenance and calories it needs to be healthy.
How many calories does Pilates burn?
To shed one pound, you must burn roughly 3,500 calories. You can shed pounds by eating less than the amount of calories you are using up.
Pilates will offer some assistance, but they don’t contribute much to the burning of calories. That’s why you need to supplement Pilates with activities like strolling, jogging, or biking.
It is critical to contemplate your physical activities and pay attention to your diet. Eating well with foods like lean meat, unprocessed carbs, fruits, and veggies can help you to achieve your weight-loss objectives.
How often should you practice Pilates?
Practice regularly. Joseph Pilates, the creator of this technique, suggested doing it four days out of the week for the maximum effect. Paola suggests that even though there may be a lack of time, committing to 10 minutes daily from Monday through Friday is advantageous.
A lot of virtual Pilates centres and top exercise applications offer exercise schedules which are categorized by body part, and each division contains a variety of session durations.
This enables you to select a Pilates session for slimming down depending on the amount of time you have available. You just need a set of exercise tights, a mat, and your most comfortable sports bra, and you are ready to go!
How much weight can you lose by doing Pilates?
The caloric expenditure of pilates activities is determined by how much you weigh, the kind of class (mat or reformer), and how hard your class is.
For an individual weighing 150 pounds, a 50-minute pilates mat class at a beginner’s level will help them burn approximately 175 calories, while an advanced 50-minute course can cause the person to burn around 250 calories.
What type of pilates is best for weight loss
Any exercise that elevates your heart rate will cause you to burn more calories, for example, reformer classes. This means performing Pilates exercises on the illustrated apparatus, which is essentially a large, moveable platform.
It is common for people to practice Pilates as a means of losing fat, but it is essential to comprehend the contrast between fat loss and weight loss.
It doesn’t matter if you work out with Pilates on a mat or a reformer; neither one is better than other forms of exercise. What really matters is the intensity of the workout.
Pilates improves your lean muscle mass, which may result in an increase in your overall weight due to the muscle being heavier than fat. Instead of the number on the scale going up, your waist circumference will go down and your back will be extended.
You may have started taking the classes to burn fat, however, you will certainly want to keep attending due to the various other gains associated with women’s health.
1. Cardio Pilates full-body workout
Paola Langella has created a 30-minute routine that intertwines Traditional Pilates movements and cardiovascular bursts to heighten your metabolism and shape every inch of your figure.
2. 10-minute lower belly flattener
Try out this quick yet effective sequence from Cassey Ho if you want to specifically target abdominal fat. Engage in this activity regularly and you will feel the burning sensation in your abdominal area and you will start to notice changes in the lower part of your stomach muscles.
3. 15-minute lower body workout
With this 15-minute combination of Pilates movements from Juliana Spicoluk, you can target your core as well as your inner and outer thighs, buttocks, and hamstring.
4. 30-minute fat melt
Ready to burn some calories? Hannah from Moving Mango will get your heart pumping with this 30-minute Pilates routine combining rapid and sluggish movements.
5. 45-minute calorie burn
Desiree Errico, a former ballet dancer, has designed this Pilates workout to help you lose weight as it engages your entire body, helping to melt away fat and strengthen muscles. Prepare to sweat in her challenging 45-minute class.
The ‘Pilates Effect?’
The one-of-a-kind benefit of Pilates sometimes referred to as the “secret sauce,” is that it leads to a total improvement of posture.
Once you are finished with a Pilates session, you will realize that you have exercised more muscles than you knew that you possessed. By participating in one of these classes, you will benefit from increased fitness levels, improved muscle strength, and heightened levels of energy.
You’ll start to look and genuinely feel great too! In conclusion, there are numerous advantages to doing Pilates.
