More than a century ago, Joseph Pilates introduced Pilates, a low-impact exercise beneficial for body flexibility, to the world. Although it took a long time for Pilates to be widely accepted, its popularity is now immense, especially among women.
In reality, the benefits of Pilates extend beyond just improving body flexibility. Pilates can also boost stamina, increase range of motion, improve posture, tone muscles, and even help build lean muscle mass.
Currently, one of the "on-the-rise" forms of Pilates exercise is Reformer Pilates. This is a type of Pilates exercise performed with the help of an apparatus called a Reformer, which is a bed-like exercise machine equipped with springs and pulleys to add resistance during exercise.
Not much different from mat Pilates, Reformer Pilates has additional benefits. With this exercise, you might get a more intense workout and even help with muscle development. However, how does Reformer Pilates affect various muscles in the body?
Can Reformer Pilates Really Build Muscle?
The good news is that Reformer Pilates can help build muscles in your body. However, if you want to build larger muscles like quads, back, and chest, this exercise alone is not enough. To become more "muscular," you need to add heavy weight training.
The primary goal of Pilates is to tone muscles, especially smaller muscles. Research has shown that to get the maximum benefits of Pilates, you should exercise at least three times a week. Furthermore, to maximize its benefits, you should combine Pilates with some form of cardiovascular exercise, such as running.
In addition, toning and building muscle are not the only benefits of Reformer Pilates. This exercise also helps relieve chronic lower back pain. This is because Pilates exercises can improve flexibility and body posture, thereby helping to prevent injuries.
Some people who have regularly practiced Pilates also claim to have experienced an increase in their focus and concentration. This is because Pilates requires concentration to coordinate breath and body movements, training our brains to stay focused during Pilates.
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What Muscles Are Developed Thanks to Pilates?
As mentioned earlier, Pilates can help develop muscles, especially smaller muscles in the body. The following are some types of muscles that can be developed through Pilates:
Core muscles
Pilates exercises have the most impact on the core muscles of the body. With Reformer Pilates, you can work the core muscles that surround the spine and the rectus abdominis muscles. These muscles are very useful for keeping the spine upright. If your core muscles are strong, it will make it much easier for you to perform physical exercises and even daily activities. You will also avoid unwanted injuries.
Read also: Must Try, Here Are 7 Benefits of Pilates for Men
Gluteus muscles
Practicing Pilates is also very beneficial for the gluteal muscles. Typically, movements such as squats, lunges, dips, curls, and bridges are performed to target the gluteus muscles.
While these exercises are very good for training the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and hamstrings, they may not target the lower part of the glutes. This is the area that lifts your buttocks. In addition, Pilates is also very good for toning the muscles in the back of the legs.
Obliques
There are two groups of oblique muscles: internal and external. The internal oblique muscles are those that assist in spinal movement during exercise. They are located beneath the external oblique muscles. When you twist or bend, the internal oblique muscles help stabilize your spine.
Crunch movements help develop the external oblique muscles, while to train the internal oblique muscles, you can do side planks. However, if you want to intensely train both of these muscles, you can do so with Pilates exercises.
Inner thighs
Pilates is a type of physical exercise that works well to train the entire body, from head to toe. This exercise helps strengthen and sculpt the muscles in your body.
One of the muscle groups that can be trained with Pilates is the inner thigh muscles. By using a Reformer Pilates machine, you can train your inner thighs, or more precisely the adductor muscles, which are responsible for stabilizing the pelvis and helping to move the legs towards the midline of the body.
Teres major and teres minor
The teres major muscle is located in the upper arm, making up a group of muscles around the shoulder blade and upper arm bone. Meanwhile, the teres minor muscle is a small muscle found in the shoulder area.
This muscle group is very important because it helps keep the armpit area firm, which is crucial for reducing excess fat in the arm area. Pilates can help train and even strengthen these muscles.
Can Reformer Pilates Replace Weight Training?
Reformer Pilates can indeed help strengthen and build muscles; however, it cannot fully replace weight training. Everything depends on your goals and what you want to achieve.
For example, if you do weight training with light weights but higher repetitions with the goal of strengthening and stabilizing muscles, then this can also be achieved with Reformer Pilates.
However, if what you want to achieve is to develop large muscles and increase muscle mass, then Reformer training is not the right choice. All of this can only be achieved by doing weight training. Reformer Pilates can be done in conjunction with weight training to achieve maximum results.
If you are looking for a form of exercise to make muscles more flexible, as well as strengthen and tone them, then Reformer Pilates might be suitable for you. However, if your goal is to build large and bulky muscles, then you still need weight lifting. Choose the exercise that suits your needs and goals.
