Everything to Know About Pilates If You're a Total Beginner

Whether you’re a total fitness newbie or a seasoned athlete, starting a new fitness routine can be intimidating to say the least. Getting to know the lingo, familiarizing yourself with the equipment, and committing the moves to muscle memory can all take time and patience. And when it comes to Pilates—a fitness method rooted in precision and proper form—beginners may understandably feel overwhelmed. But the strength-building, flexibility-boosting, and mood-enhancing benefits of Pilates aren’t just reserved for advanced practitioners. Pilates is actually a super accessible form of fitness and with the right info up front, anyone can dive right in. Here’s everything you need to know about practicing Pilates as a beginner.   

What Is Pilates and What Are the Benefits?

While Pilates has gained popularity over the last few decades, its origins date back to the 1920s when a circus performer/boxer/self-defense instructor named Joseph Pilates and his wife, Clara, opened a “body-conditioning gym” in New York. The duo had developed their own method of movement that became popular among the city’s dance community because it included strengthening techniques designed to complement rehabilitative work. 

“Pilates originally started as a rehabilitative modality,” says Peloton instructor Aditi Shah. “So it might look like it's a light or easy practice, but it's harder than it looks.” Originally known as “Contrology,” the method later became known as “Pilates” and is rooted in six principles: breath, concentration, centering, control, precision, and flow. 

For Aditi, Pilates is a form of movement that often challenges people’s preconceived notions of what constitutes a “good” workout. “Sometimes we think about fitness as doing things harder and faster,” she says. “Pilates is a great example that something might look simple and may not move fast, but that does not make it easy.” So as you prepare for your first Pilates experience, know that the low impact exercise can absolutely challenge your mind and your muscles while improving strength, flexibility, and coordination over time.

Is Pilates a Good Workout for Beginners?

While Pilates can present a variety of challenges for athletes of all levels, that doesn’t mean the practice is off limits to total beginners. In fact, because Pilates can be modified and adapted to just about every body, the technique is considered to be a great beginner-friendly workout that can offer a ton of strength, mobility, and flexibility benefits without the need for much equipment or experience. 

Because mat Pilates uses your own body weight to build strength, you can do a workout pretty much anywhere, and the emphasis on deep core strength and proper alignment can help you improve everything from your posture to your performance in other physical activities and sports (there’s a reason professional football players swear by the practice). And because Pilates is rooted so deeply in breath, precision, and concentration, the workout encourages a stronger mind-body connection which may enhance your athletic performance and ability to recover. 

“My favorite thing about Pilates is that it's so integrative, so intentional, and so controlled,” Aditi says. “Pilates allows you to be specific about what parts of your body you are using to create a movement, and exactly how you are choosing to move them. Everything is controlled and intentional, which over time helps you build proprioception and gives you more agency over your physical movement,” she says. “You might walk away feeling sore, but Pilates is so integrated and careful that you'll never walk away feeling injured.”

Do I Need Any Equipment for Pilates?

While certain props can take your Pilates practice to the next level, you don’t necessarily need much to get started. In fact, as long as you have a workout mat (or at least a clean, comfortable section of your carpet), you can perform Pilates. The benefit of having a high-quality mat is that it provides extra cushion and support, which can help take the pressure of your joints and make certain moves more comfortable. The extra grip that some mats provide can also make some poses feel more stable by removing any risk of slipping. 

For true Pilates beginners, a mat can be enough to kickstart a routine. Some other optional props include grip socks (for even more stability and anti-slippage), yoga blocks (to add additional support or challenge), or a Pilates ball (a small sphere that can go between the legs or under the back to activate certain muscles). A few other optional pieces of equipment that can take a Pilates practice up a notch include a rubber ring or Pilates ring, sometimes called a “magic circle” that can increase tension in certain moves and improve alignment, as well as sliders that allow you to glide along the floor, replicating some core-strengthening aspects of the reformer. 

While all these pieces of equipment and more (think: ankle weights, resistance bands, and yoga straps) can enhance a well-established Pilates practice, they’re not at all required or necessary for a beginner-level practitioner. If you’re just dipping your toe into the Pilates pool, focus on finding a space that’s comfortable enough to promote consistency and consider stocking up on props later. 

Best Beginner Pilates Workouts

When it comes to selecting the best Pilates workouts, beginners will want to stick to the simplest and most straightforward classes, which tend to be equipment-free and take place on the mat. Peloton has helped take the guesswork out of class selection by classifying all strength classes as “beginner,” “intermediate,” or “advanced,” and Aditi says any of the beginner-level Pilates classes would be a great starting point (simply filter by difficulty to see all the beginner classes in one place). 

Here are a few to check out as you become acquainted with all things Pilates: 

Pilates for Beginners: Tips to Keep In Mind

When it comes to Pilates, form is everything. While some moves may seem easy to breeze through, the key is to move slowly and with intention, which will force you to use your muscles—not momentum—to execute the exercises. A few general tips to keep in mind as you embark on your Pilates journey:

1. Concentrate On How Your Body Feels 

“Remember it’s not about how it looks, but how it feels,” Aditi says. “It's not about just lifting your leg, but about how you're lifting your leg and what you're using to lift your leg, what it feels like when you lift your leg.”

2. Modify the Moves As Needed

“It's so important to modify however you need,” Aditi says. “It's about the intention of the action and what you're using to get this movement to happen.”

3. Remain Focused On Your Breath 

“Remember to breathe,” Aditi says. “Breathing is a big part of Pilates and you often have the capability to breathe so much bigger than you think. That’s another thing that just benefits us in so many ways beyond Pilates.” 

How to Progress In Your Pilates Practice

It’s important to build strength and confidence in your Pilates practice by getting comfortable with beginner-level classes. But what if you’re ready to advance your practice? If you’ve invested some time in learning the basics and you’re flirting with the idea of trying something, it’s worth expanding your horizons. “If you are curious about intermediate classes, that means you should try them,” Aditi says. “You can always modify and go back to a previous iteration or to something that you've already done before, but you might learn something new in an intermediate class.”

While leveling up to more challenging classes can be motivating, the most important part of establishing a strong Pilates practice is to keep coming back to the mat. “You can expect to be stronger, but that requires consistency,” Aditi says. “So take your time, keep showing up, and focus on quality over quantity.”