Stereotypes stick, but when it comes to Pilates, it doesn’t take much to quash the idea that Pilates is glorified stretching for women. All you need to do is turn up for a Heartcore class. But history also backs us up.
The roots of the technique can be credited to a male trainer, Joesph Pilates, whose first ‘clients’ were fellow inmates and injured men in a World War I internment camp. Joseph devised rehabilitation moves, sometimes using bedsprings to create resistance – the very beginnings of reformer Pilates – and developed a practice that is a physical and mental gamechanger for both sexes.
More than 100 years later, we speak to Heartcore’s male teachers and members to find out how Pilates can impact a man’s body, mind and life.
WHY SHOULD MEN DO PILATES?
MEMBER STORY – ANTHONY B
“Following serious football injuries on my shoulder and knees, I started to avoid any physical activity because of the pain I experienced every time I exercised. As a result, my fitness and health deteriorated, and following covid, my health deteriorated even further. Having become desperate, I spoke to a friend who recommended Heartcore.
It would not be an understatement to say that Heartcore – and particularly my PT sessions with Rik – have been transformational for both my physical and mental health. They have strengthened all the muscles around my damaged knees, allowing me free movement for the first time in years. My shoulder pain has also been reduced significantly.
However, Heartcore has had a much deeper effect on me. It has strengthened my entire body, and as I am over 50, this has been vital for my wellbeing. It has also provided a discipline outside of my work, a kind of sanctuary where I can let go of everything and focus on myself.
It has become a very important part of my life, and I would strongly recommend to all men my age to consider Heartcore as a core part of their weekly exercise routine.”
DOES PILATES COMPLEMENT OTHER WORKOUTS, LIKE WEIGHTLIFTING?
Beni Bitter: “Pilates is a great complement to weight training. It teaches precise control and activation of the core and stabilising muscles, which directly improves lifting technique. It targets muscles that are often missed in traditional workouts and helps prevent overload and injury. For me, strengthening shoulder stabilisers and improving posture through Pilates has made bench pressing feel smoother and more powerful. Learning to activate glutes and brace the core before dead lifting has also helped protect my spine and improve form.”
Rik Melling: “I think a lot of guys who go to the gym can neglect their core because they just want big shoulders and big arms. Pilates creates a lot of stability through your core – glutes, hips, abs, and lower back – and protection through your lower spine, which is key for weightlifting. When you’re squatting, your hips need to be incredibly stable, otherwise, you compensate with your knees, or one side collapses in. For a bench press, you need your core engaged – if you’re not stable, you’re going to do some damage. Pilates strengthens your hips and, to a degree, your shoulders. It also helps train smaller muscle groups like your anterior deltoid. Having strong, stable glutes is great for runners and anyone who needs to move quickly in short bursts – stability is key!”
MEMBER STORY – JAMES LAWRIE
“I knew I had to do something to look after myself after a chapter of my life came to an end. I was both mentally and physically exhausted. I was totally burnt out. So, at the age of 55, I walked into Heartcore and booked my first reformer Pilates class.
I was very tense and stiff with arthritis in my neck and an old sports injury in my shoulder. But I instantly loved it. I was accustomed to thinking about exercise as something that has to be as strong and as fast as possible – I think lots of men do – whereas Pilates is slow, measured and done with careful breathing. It’s a good guide for how you should live your life. Certainly, it helps manage the pain from my arthritis, has definitely built physical strength and mental stamina and improved my balance.
I am now totally addicted to the way Pilates makes me feel better – both my body and my mind miss the exercise, the stretching and the discipline when I don’t go. It’s a central plank in my life now. It’s thanks to the regime of attending Tifuh’s Find Your Flow classes at Heartcore whenever I can that I’m able to do all the things I want and need to do.
It is also definitely thanks to Heartcore that I feel I belong to a wonderful, friendly, inclusive community of like minded individuals dedicated to physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. My only regret is not finding Heartcore earlier in life.”
WHAT IMPACT HAS PILATES HAD ON YOUR MENTAL HEALTH?
Beni Bitter: “Pilates is incredibly valuable for mental wellbeing. It creates space to slow down focus and breathe. The controlled movements help reduce stress and bring a sense of clarity and calm. For me it is not just physical recovery, but also mental reset. Even if someone is already lifting weights or playing sports, Pilates offers something unique that supports both the body and the mind.”
MEMBER STORY – ANTHONY PAYNE
“At the suggestion of my wife (who was bored of hearing about my aches and pains), I have been attending the infrared Hot Pilates class with Nicola at Bayswater since summer 2024. I’m now a regular and have set aside the same time every week in my diary, come rain or shine.
I attend with a friend and every time we walk back to the car after the class, we look at each other, exhausted, and say how happy we are to do the class. Despite being pretty inflexible the class has been great at keeping us as mobile as possible, which is our main goal. I’m also convinced that it helps keep injuries from other sports to a minimum.”
SO… SHOULD MEN DO PILATES?
Pilates is, of course, about strength, focus, flexibility and co-ordination, but it’s also about being ‘survival fit’. Ready to take on anything that life has to offer – in mind and mind. So yes, Pilates is for men, Pilates is for everyone.
Start your Pilates journey with Heartcore. Find everything you need to know about our classes and method on our First Timers page.