Keen to find out: does Pilates build muscle? Me too - after asking instructors, here’s why that had to say

I hate to break it to you, but in 2025 the internet is still as obsessed (if not more) with Pilates. You only need to scroll, walk down your local high street, or have a quick flick through a magazine to spot the ever-escalating buzz about the low-impact practice. But while it's known for levelling up your flexibility, toning your body and boosting your all-important posture, we're often asked: does Pilates build muscle?

After speaking to experts and looking at the research, the general consensus seems to be that yes, Pilates can help you build muscle (but it does come with a few caveats). That's because Pilates is technically a type of strength training exercise, that uses either your body weight as resistance or any extra Pilates equipment, like Pilates balls, Pilates bars, resistance bands and/or a Reformer machine to put your muscles under some added tension.

However, how much muscle you'll build and where will depend on a few things, like how consistent you are in your practice, your nutrition and whether you're using progressive overload to promote the development of your muscle mass. So, to get to the bottom of this once and for all, we looked at the science and asked a personal trainer and instructors for their expert opinion.

To discover how Pilates can help you build muscle and whether this low-impact exercise is an effective means of doing so - or whether you should stick to other means of strength training exercises, like lifting weights - do keep scrolling.

Be sure to read up on our guide to the best Pilates moves for building muscle, plus take a look at the 10-minute Pilates workouts, 20-minute Pilates workouts, and 30-minute Pilates workouts trainers do at home. New to the workout? Don't skip our round-up of the best Pilates moves for beginners, the best Pilates accessories of all time, and the best Pilates exercises for arms, while you're at it, plus how a Health staffer found trying toe taps every day for a week.

Does Pilates build muscle? We asked top experts for their verdict

What is Pilates?

Developed by Joseph Pilates in the early 20th century, the low-impact practice of Pilates we know and love today was first called "contrology". It was created as a means of physical rehabilitation and injury prevention for prisoners of war, soldiers, people with scoliosis and later on, athletes.

Fast forward to 2025, and the original Pilates method has been passed down through the ages, but with its same emphasis on mindful movements synced to breathing techniques, to create core stability, tone muscles and improve posture and flexibility.

"Pilates has nowadays expanded well beyond the professional athlete world and is a widespread movement technique for anyone wanting to enhance their overall wellbeing," Bala certified trainer, Marie Grujicic adds.

What are the benefits of doing Pilates?

One reason why Pilates has garnered such a cult following since it first originated in the 1920s is because of the many (many) benefits the low-impact practice has been proven to bring.

For starters, it’s great for improving posture. Grujicic says: “Pilates targets the deep postural and breathing muscles around the spine, helping you to enhance core stability and breathe optimally”.

It can also help to increase mobility, i.e. your ability to move your muscles and joints through their full range of motion, and be a means of injury prevention.

Plus, as a 2023 systematic review concludes, a consistent Pilates practice can help increase strength (which is different from building muscle), respiratory rate, body mass index and balance. The review even went so far as to say Pilates could "improve quality of life while lowering pain and disability".

While research in the Medicine journal found that the mind-body practice could "reduce levels of depression and anxiety in female patients with depression and anxiety symptoms".

And, as Laura Quinn- certified personal trainer, nutritionist, and head trainer in Pilates for Alo Wellness Club in Los Angeles - verifies another benefit of Pilates is that it can help you build muscle. "It can be tailored for muscle building or rehabilitation, depending on your needs," the expert states.

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Can Pilates build muscle?

"Yes, you can definitely build muscle with Pilates, because it’s designed to promote whole-body health by strengthening both the body and mind," Quinn reiterates. "Pilates tends to activate smaller "stabilizer" muscles that are often missing from a weight lifting program that typically focuses on the prime mover muscles, like your glutes, quads and biceps. It’s also great for building core strength."

The latter is backed by research published in the peer-reviewed Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise journal. The study was conducted on nine "non-active healthy" women and it found that practising the core-centric practice of Pilates twice a week for nine months "elicits hypertrophy (the process of increasing muscle size through exercises) of the abdominal wall muscles," particularly of the rectus abdominis.

But to build muscle, along with following a healthy diet and getting enough rest, Quinn highlights that the focus is on volume, intensity, and frequency. "Progressively challenging yourself is key," she says.

Without doing so, Lisa Beckwith - who is a fitness coach, personal trainer and has a diploma in clinical pilates - says your gains will plateau. "To get stronger you need to keep making it progressively stronger using progressive overload," she says.

To do so, Quinn suggests carefully increasing spring tension, reps, and movement complexity. "In Pilates, this progression could also involve advancing from basic to intermediate exercises, to advanced exercises, incorporating props like a ring or ball," Quinn adds.

So how effective is Pilates for building muscle?

The question we all want the answer to. While it's accepted that Pilates can build muscle and research shows this to be true specifically in the core region, experts note that Pilates won't result in similar muscle gains akin to more traditional forms of strength training, like lifting heavy weights.

"It generally doesn’t provide the same level of intensity (in terms of load) as traditional strength training," Quinn flags. According to Grujicic, that's because Pilates "engages slow-twitch muscle fibres known as Type I." "These fibres are more focused on endurance: slower, controlled movements over longer periods," Grujicic says. "This is why, if your physical fitness is mostly based on explosive strength training, sprinting, or heavy weight lifting, (Type II) you will get the infamous Pilates shake."

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The conclusion

In a nutshell: If you're looking to build significant muscle mass or lift heavier weights, Quinn says traditional strength training is a "great option".

That said, they note that completing both Pilates and weight lifting is going to make your body even stronger. "As all muscle groups are utilised, and the varied movements between strength training and Pilates allow for constant challenging of the body and its muscles," she adds.

And Beckwith agrees, pointing out that doing so will help you get one step closer to hitting the World Health Organisation's Recommended Guidelines on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour. "The best exercise is the one that gets done, but you get extra points if you lift heavy things along the way," she adds.

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