Can plus size and overweight people do Pilates?

At Pilates Northwest, we have clients of all shapes and sizes. We have younger, older, injured, fit, beginners and advanced. They all get what they need here. We adapt Pilates to their needs.

For overweight people, determining what exercise modality is best has several considerations. As body fat significantly increases, range of motion, speed and agility typically decreases. We keep these things in mind. We won’t ask your body to do something it is not ready for. We will not start you too quickly. We will honor where you are and ask you where you want to go. We’ve seen strong athletes with too much body fat here. We’ve seen clients who are overweight and new to exercise. There is a perfect program for every person here at Pilates Northwest. Together, we figure it out.

We have commercial equipment here that can accommodate all shapes and sizes, both women and men. We like to teach holistically based on the clients goals, objectives and any limitations that may exist.

When working with overweight people, we work without overly compressing the abdomen. We do not overstress knees and we look at knee alignment and function. We keep clear communication about how exercises are feeling and write chart notes in each session to keep session logs. We want you to feel more lengthened, get stronger, feel taller, more streamlined, and functioning better after your session. We progress clients according to function, education and their feedback. If a slower day is needed, that’s what will happen. If you want to go, go go, then we can do that. All with safety in mind. Pilates is highly adaptable if the studio is adaptable. Our opinion is that we are all different. We all need something and we have the skill set to figure out what will benefit each person. Pilates Northwest is an adaptable studio teaching individualized sessions.

Among the significant benefits of Pilates for plus size and overweight people is that it increases the strength and coordination of the muscles of the core of the body – those that support the spine and organs. When the core is strong, alignment and posture improve, relieving stress on the joints and muscles. This is one of the reasons Pilates is often recommended for back pain and knee pain. Increased flexibility, muscle tone, and balance are nothing to scoff at either.

If you are at all concerned about your size with regard to Pilates equipment like the Reformer, Tower or Chair, don’t be. Professional Pilates equipment is built for all body types. We’re talking heavy-duty wood, metal, strong springs, commercial straps. At Pilates Northwest we have commercial equipment made by Balanced Body® and Stott®. The equipment is well made and of the highest professional grade.