When you hear the words “muscle building” and “strength training”, what do you think of? Lifting heavy weights at the gym is probably what comes to mind – but can Reformer Pilates have the same effect?

Before we dive into the details, you may be asking yourself - why is building muscle so important? Here’s the deal: the benefits are too good to ignore!
- improved bone density (decreasing the risk of osteoporosis)
- reduced risk of chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease
- improved balance and posture
- decreased risk of injury
- improved blood pressure
and many, many more!

What makes muscles stronger?

There are a few key points to gaining muscle mass as well as becoming stronger.
- Eating enough protein
- Consistency in training
- Resting to ensure recovery for muscle growth
- Resistance training (including gradually increasing volume over time) or in other words – hypertrophy 

Hypertrophy training means challenging your muscles to work within a 6-12 rep range ( 2-4 sets) using roughly 75-85% of your max effort.
So what exactly is resistance training? Simply put, it’s when your muscles work to move your body against resistance. This can be pushing or pulling with weights, resistance bands or springs, or by working against gravity with exercises like push ups or squats. You can even create resistance by moving through water! A key factor in resistance training is the amount of resistance, or load, your muscles are working against. By increasing the load, you challenge your muscles to tap into more of their power, signalling them to grow stronger. 

Your muscles do not know the difference between your squat rack and reformer spring tension – load is load!

What does strength training actually mean?

As mentioned above, strength training is resistance training!

Let’s compare the humble leg press at the gym and footwork on the Reformer. The movement of the joints are the same, and both exercises allow you to adjust the load- either by changing weights on the leg press or tweaking the spring tension on the reformer. Here’s where it gets tricky, there’s no straightforward “weight” equivalent for spring tension (unless you’re into some serious physics, but don’t worry- I’ll keep it light!). But the good news is: whether you’re using weights or springs, your muscles, tendons, ligaments and everything in between will be working hard. So, how do you match the load between the two? Start by figuring out the weight you can handle for your leg press, and then find a similar spring tension for footwork! Just keep in mind that the rep ranges from your gym program to Reformer classes will differ which will affect your spring choice… more on that in a minute!

Reformer Pilates Vs. Gym weightlifting

In Reformer classes, the goal is often higher reps, meaning  lighter tension may be your best bet – After all, you don’t want to hit a wall at 6 reps and wonder how you’ll survive the next 20! This ties back to the principle of hypertrophy - if you ever are unsure about spring settings, use it as your guide to effective muscle activation.

Unlike the gym, where you might rest between sets from 30 secs – 90 seconds, reformer classes will keep you moving with minimal breaks. They also add layers to your exercises, challenging you to progress to more advanced variations. 

So, after all this, remember: load is load, but there are countless ways to challenge your body, build muscle and grow stronger! Whether it’s reformer Pilates or the gym, balance is key. Doing the same kind of workout every day - like hitting the gym nonstop for a week - can leave you drained and actually limits the benefit of your exercise. The same goes for Pilates! Variety is your best friend. Mix up your movement throughout the week to test your muscles, allow them to recover, and challenge them again in new and exciting ways! 

Happy moving everyone!

Still curious about resistance training in Pilates? Dive into this blog on Creating your Own Resistance in a Pilates Class, to learn more!