I’ve recently started a Wall Pilates workout. Although I’ve experimented in the past with many different types of workouts: strength, cardio, aerobics, walking, running, yoga, etc, I had never tried Pilates. I think I always viewed it as something requiring a lot of flexibility, and I’ve never been very flexible. But I’ve been seeing Wall Pilates workouts and testimonies a lot lately, and it intrigued me as something that seemed doable, and that could lead to results. One of the aspects that really appealed to me, was that it seemed to incorporate both strength training and cardio, so I was very interested to see if that really was the case.
Wall Pilates is a slightly different version of traditional Pilates, which was created by German physical trainer Joseph Pilates in the early 20th century. Pilates’ goals are core strength, stability, and flexibility, and focuses on breath, cervical alignment, rib stabilization, pelvic mobility, and abs. Wall Pilates has the same focus. Pilates is practiced worldwide and is practiced by over 12 million people.
I’m not someone who goes on an exercise plan and then abandons it after several weeks. I’ve been a faithful, consistent exerciser for over 25 years. It’s essential to my life and I always make time for it. The level and variety of my workouts has definitely changed over the years. Prior to having kids, I could have hour-long strength training workouts focused on a limited number of body parts, multiple days a week. Twenty years later, my workouts are shorter, and less intense. Sometimes I’ve focused more on cardio, and other times, more on strength training. And I do like to change things up. I think novelty makes things more interesting and experts agree, it’s good to have variety and also to challenge your body in new ways.
I’ve never had a gym membership but I’ve built up enough equipment in my basement to tackle most programs. It doesn’t really take much. You could probably create enough of a challenge, and have the ability to change things up, with three or four sets of dumbbells. I also have a yoga mat, some resistance bands and ankle weights. In the past I’ve used a weight bench, barbell and free weights, but that’s not part of my routine these days. And, of course, my most important piece of equipment is YouTube. Regardless of your fitness level, or the type of workout you’d like to try, there is a video out there to guide you.
So I was excited to try Wall Pilates. As a complete beginner, I knew I would need some help getting started, and, as with most exercise programs, there are many ways to help you take the leap. Wall Pilates is no exception. There are books, apps, gym classes, and videos. While many options require a paid membership, or subscription, lots of free options do exist. Although I have always been opposed to paying to exercise, I realized I had no idea where to start with my new Wall Pilates program, and decided to purchase an app, Yoga Go, which costs about $15 a month. I also used Rachel’s Fit Wall Pilates, a free program available on YouTube.
The Yoga Go option was designed specifically for me. I answered some questions when signing up as to my preferences for workout length, fitness goals, current fitness level, and comfort level with Pilates. And I could respond each day to how I felt about the workout. Responding that it was “easy,” would mean a slightly more difficult workout the next day. I really liked this feature. Rachel’s Fit Wall Pilates gave me the opportunity to dive right in with the Day One workout. Both options advertised a 28 day program, which I thought was a good amount of time to see if I liked the exercises, and if they yielded results. In my case I was looking for some toning in my abs, glutes and thighs, with some ability to get my heart pumping, and was also looking for some lower numbers on the scale.
Requirements were simple: A yoga mat and some clear wall space. You do need a decent amount of wall space as some moves are done with your back on the floor and feet on the wall, and others are done standing, with your back against the wall. I set up in my basement and needed to remove a couple of framed photos from the wall in order to leave space for full movement. Both Programs offer good video, with verbal instructions for moves, which is good, because most of the moves were not familiar to me. I found Rachels Fit Pilates to offer more down to earth explanations, enabling me to sometimes figure out a move just by listening. But I also viewed it on my laptop, which meant that if I needed to look at the visual, I could see better than the Yoga Go app which was on my phone. I often needed to pause both versions–but Yoga Go in particular–to allow time to move between positions and figure out the mechanics of the next movement. The Yoga Go phone app workout also required me to move the phone occasionally as the workout progressed, depending on whether I was doing a move standing up versus lying on the floor. That was a little cumbersome. Another feature of the Rachels workout that I really liked, was she often showed a basic version of the exercise, and then a more challenging version, so you could adjust the workout to fit your fitness level, or your energy level on that particular day.
Neither option offered broader advice, like how often should I workout, and when, and should I alter my diet? It’s possible that that information is available somewhere in the programs, but I was not able to locate it after a quick search, and it never came up during the actual workouts. I would have appreciated something like that. I’ve always been a firm believer in rest days, and my schedule does not really allow for a workout every day. I had the impression that the 28 day programs were every-day-for-28-days which surprised me. I continued to take off days while I worked through both programs. I did complete 28 days of both programs, but it did take me longer than 28 days to accomplish that.
I like that the workouts are short, most in the range of 15-20 minutes, which allowed me to double up on some days, doing both the Yoga Go and the Rachels. Or I sometimes added a walking workout to one or the other of the Wall Pilates workouts. I also added in an occasional upper body dumbbell workout, as I felt the Pilates didn’t emphasize this as much. Rachel’s Fit did incorporate one or two days of light upper body moves with weights, but Yoga Go never did. I did often feel sore the next day, particularly with more lower body workouts, and I was sometimes out of breath, more from the strain of the movements than from high energy movements. I did find some of the moves to be challenging, both in the mechanics, and in the sheer muscle and flexibility components. If you were just watching the video, it would look easy and not very challenging, but the completion of the moves was more strenuous than I expected.
I would definitely say that there is a strength component to Wall Pilates, which is most often done with only your body weight for resistance. If you think body weight alone can’t garner results, do a few pushups, and then let me know what you think! Pushups are generally considered to be one of the best full body strength builders out there. But I agree with most experts, who say that if you really want to build visible muscle, you will need to incorporate weight bearing exercises into your daily routine. But make no mistake, Wall Pilates is still a workout. I often struggled to complete the repetitions, and felt soreness the next day. You may not be entering a bodybuilding competition following completion of the program, but it WILL build muscle, so it can change how you look. .
Cardio? While Pilates is not high impact aerobics like running or jumping, it does still improve cardiovascular health by raising your heart rate and lung capacity. When your exercises pick up the pace, or require more stamina on your muscles, you are also working your heart. I frequently found myself breathing hard even though I was performing slow movements. In addition, the slow, fluid movements and focus on breathing and proper form, can be relaxing and lead to reduced stress, which is always a win.
Pilates and Wall Pilates are easy on joints and limit risk of injury. As with any strength exercise, proper form is important, so go to a class with an instructor, or watch a video to be sure you’re maximizing your benefits and minimizing injury risk. Pilates includes a lot of stretching, which can improve your flexibility and range of motion. If you’d like to test this theory, pay attention to your flexibility as you begin the program, and then check it at the end to see if there has been improvement. One simple way to do this is with the old standby of reaching to touch your toes. Pilates is a great workout to try if you’re a beginner exerciser, recovering from an injury or an older adult. Or if you simply prefer less intense workouts.
After completing both programs, I did see some toning. Nothing drastic, and no real weight loss, but to be fair, I did not alter my diet at all, which I’m sure would have resulted in more noticeable results. I think the most telling factor is that I’m going to continue working the program, albeit selectively. The Yoga Go program will continue to get more challenging as I rate each workout, and with Rachel’s Fit, now that I’ve completed the full 28 days, I can go back and choose which workouts to do, so if I want to focus more on abs, I can do that particular workout for a period of time. I do still hope to have continued results with toning and improvement in flexibility and balance, as these are functions that can be beneficial in performing all of our daily activities. And I’ll continue to add in other types of workouts, and try new things that come along, so I never get bored with exercise, which is such an important factor in my life.
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