Doing a Pilates workout at home is a great way to strengthen your body, core stability, balance, and more on your schedule and in the comfort of your own space.
In fact, Pilates is the perfect home workout, being low-impact - meaning it's soft on your bones, joints, and the hearing of anyone on the floor below you - yet powerful. The workout uses specific controlled movements to target the muscles we use in daily life, such as the hip flexors, core, pelvic floor and stabilisers in the upper and lower body, making it a winner for both fitness and longevity. You also don't need any equipment to get started.
There are Pilates for beginners sessions through to reformer Pilates classes available on some of the best Pilates apps - but if you're looking for a quick one-and-done, go-to workout, we have the exercises for you, as prescribed by Rebecca Dadoun, a certified Pilates instructor and the founder of the Pilates Prescription.
Pilates workout at home
1. Table top reach
Starting off strong, the table top reach works to strengthen the core and improve spinal stability - but you'll also find it challenges your balance by putting you on one leg and one arm.
Here's how to do it, as demonstrated by Dadoun:
- Find your four-point kneeling position with your hands underneath your shoulders and knees underneath your hips. Keep your spine in neutral.
- Inhale, brace your core, and reach the opposite arm and leg away from each other.
- On your exhale, round the spine into a cat shape and draw the knee to elbow in together and inhale to lengthen out again.
- Repeat on both sides.
2. Side lying leg with rotation
If you're familiar with Pilates abs workouts, you'll recognise this exercise. By lying on your side, you're strengthening the hip flexors (which is very beneficial for runners and walkers), glutes (the buttocks), and quadriceps (thighs), while improving joint mobility.
Here's how to do the side lying leg with rotation:
- Lie on your side with your hips stacked. Bend your bottom leg for support and extend your top leg out, pointing your toes.
- Resting on your elbow, directly under your shoulder, lift your other arm up and bend it behind your head.
- Inhale, brace your core, bring your top leg out in front of you as you rotate your upper body towards the back of the room.
- As you bring your top leg back, rotate your upper body the other way, towards the front of the room, leading with your elbow.
- Repeat on both sides.
3. Single leg stretch
Even quick 15-minute Pilates workouts will have the single leg stretch. It's an important exercise that targets the core muscles and hip flexors.
Here's how to do it:
- Lie on your back with your knees bent at about 90 degrees. Tuck your chin to your chest.
- Bring your left leg into the tabletop position.
- As you exhale, extend the left leg forwards at the knee and extend the hip approximately 45 degrees.
- Inhale, bring the leg back to the tabletop position.
- Repeat on both sides.
4. Leg circles
Leg circles might not feel too challenging, but they are one of the best exercises to do in a Pilates home workout as they help strengthen the hip flexors, quadriceps, hamstrings (back of thighs), abductors and adductors (small muscles on the inside of the thighs and outside of the hips).
Here's how to do leg circles:
- Lie on your back, core braced, and chin tucked to your chest.
- Lift one leg, stretched out to 45-degrees.
- Draw circles with your foot, focusing on slow and controlled movements.
- Repeat on both sides.
5. Spine curls + butterfly legs
The glute bridge is another popular Pilates exercise for good reason. It engages the core and glute muscles, as well as the hamstrings, which all help with lower-body stability. The addition of Dadoun's butterfly legs makes the movement harder, challenging the smaller muscles around the thighs and hips.
Here's how to do it:
- Lie down on your mat with a neutral spine.
- Bring your legs up towards your hips into a glute bridge, keeping your feet together, rising slowly from the mat.
- Keep your chin tucked to your chest and your core braced.
- When you reach the top of your movement, push your knees out to the sides, engaging your glutes (buttocks).
- Bring your knees back together.
- Lower yourself back down to the mat by gently rolling down your spine.
Can you get in shape by doing Pilates workouts at home?
Yes, certainly, says Dadoun. "You can definitely improve your strength, mobility, and overall fitness with at-home Pilates practice - perhaps more so than going to a studio because you get to practice more often," she says.
You can also do different types of Pilates at home, not just mat Pilates. For example, if you grab a pair of small dumbbells, you can try Pilates with weights at home or if you have sliders, you can try reformer Pilates at home. Both of these are good alternatives to classic strength training that work in the home environment.
However, if your goal is appearance-based - i.e. you're looking to do Pilates for weight loss or 'toning' of specific muscles, there's a bit more to the conversation. "Genetics, nutrition, sleep quality, whether you move already, and hormone levels are all additional things that are going to determine any outcome or results you might be looking for," says the instructor.
You don't need any equipment to do a Pilates workout at home, but a pick of the best thick yoga mats can lessen the pressure on your knees, hips, and lower back during kneeling and lying positions. My top choice is the Gaiam Yoga Mat as it's made from luxe-feeling materials, has 6mm of support, and comes in various colourways.
While pricier, if you have the budget to spend, this super-thick yoga mat (12mm) is ideal for anyone with knee or joint discomfort. The extra 6mm of thickness completely supports the joints and the mat folds up horizontally for better storage - or to become a knee pad. It's my new favourite.
How many times a week should I do Pilates?
The great thing about doing Pilates at home is that it's entirely versatile. If you only have time to do a 20-minute Pilates workout once a week, that's going to be better than doing none at all. However, research shows that practicing Pilates at least twice a week for at least 45 minutes produces the best results.
The study, published in the Healthcare (Basel) Journal, found that women who did Pilates over Zoom twice a week for eight weeks in 45-minute sessions had improvements in physical motor tests, suggesting positive changes in their physical fitness.
The researchers also found that the Zoom group stuck to the program just as well as those doing Pilates outside their home, leading to the conclusion that doing a Pilates workout at home is the perfect alternative to studio classes.
