How Pilates can help runners

What is Pilates?

While there are many different styles of Pilates, fundamentally, it is all about exercises focused on getting you moving the best you can, building your strength, improving mobility and flexibility, balance, coordination and motor control.

All in all, it helps you feel great and move well! Let’s look at how Pilates can help runners …

Should runners do Pilates?

Definitely! There have been several studies into the benefits of Pilates for runners. The most notable was the 2018 study by Paula Finatto. The study looked at runners over 12 weeks and found that those who introduced weekly Pilates to their training improved their 5km time and their VO2 max and trunk strength. 

What are the benefits of Pilates for runners?

Aside from the performance benefits, Pilates provides essential balance to your training.  

With a reported 50% of runners getting injured every year and stress levels (both physical and mental) being one of the major factors which increase your risk of getting injured, taking positive action to reduce and limit stress on the body and mind is a must for runners.

Running is high impact and highly repetitive, which is excellent in appropriate amounts for building your fitness and tolerance. However, because of its impact and repetitive nature, it’s easy to overtrain, put the body under too much stress and then increase the risk of injury.

The low-impact nature of Pilates, added to the focus on breathing, varying your movement patterns, and building your strength, stability and control, all add to the many ways Pilates can help balance out the impact of running and help keep you injury-free.

Pilates is also hugely adaptable, enabling you to vary your sessions to support your running at different stages of your training. Use the mobility-based sessions to help you recover from races and hard training weeks, then add strength and stability sessions to help you build up and prepare for races and rigid training blocks.

What are some basic Pilates exercises to build strength in runners’ legs?

If you’re a runner looking to improve your strength, the following Pilates exercises should help you build strength…

How can I try Pilates?

Don’t overthink it! Get started with short but regular and consistent sessions tagged onto your runs or existing strength/weight sessions.  

Just 10 minutes 3-4 times a week at the start will have you seeing results. From there, you can scale and adapt your sessions around your running.  

If you’re ready to start, try a 7-day free trial at pilatesforunners.co.uk, which has an accompanying app for easy and quick access to short sessions. No previous experience or kit is needed to start!