By Shannon Willits, Master Pilates Educator
Men Training Smarter with Pilates
Players from the Kansas City Chiefs were shown in a viral video cross-training with Pilates before winning the Super Bowl. This video has sent a spark across the country igniting more men to do Pilates. Before the Chiefs it was athletes like Tom Brady, Jake Arietta and LeBron James who credit Pilates as their cross-training regimen. Before them, Tiger Woods was one of the first male athletes to endorse Pilates for cross-training.
Considering the intense focus involved, Pilates lends itself perfectly to the skill set required to fire a 98-mph fastball across home plate. MLB pitcher Jake Arrieta started doing Pilates in 2014 and now practices year-round, 6-7 days a week. “The impact on your joints is very minimal,” says Arrieta. “I can do Pilates and come back the next day and get a hard workout in.” Before discovering Pilates, Arrieta had never won more than 10 games in a season. It’s fair to say that Pilates helped kick-start his career.
Athletes looking for that competitive edge turn to Pilates. Every time a male pro endorses Pilates there is an increase in male participation and the men stick around. Turns out Pilates is a “guy thing.” Afterall, Pilates was created by Joseph Pilates who was a bodybuilder and gymnast.
Pilates compliments sports and quality of life for men. Two long-time male Pilates participants share their story:
Tony, age 52
Tony is an IT Director for a government authority and before Pilates led a mostly sedentary lifestyle. He would occasionally go to the gym, but found himself doing the same thing and was bored.
Tony was inspired by professional football players doing Pilates as cross-training. Moving to Ft. Myers with his wife in 2022, Tony was referred by friends and went to a free Intro Pilates Class. Together he and his wife began taking classes and so far, Tony has completed 233 classes.
His favorite classes are fitness focused. He also likes to go back-to-basics and work on the fundamentals of Pilates. Tony likes the built-in commitment to sign up prior to class. What keeps Tony committed is the class structure and the instructor expertise of alignment focused corrections. Tony likes each instructor’s unique style and is never bored.
Tony travels monthly with his job and can feel when he misses a class. His joints feel stiff and inflexible. He is motivated by the results like benefiting from improved balance. Tony has gained flexibility and strength; especially noticing his shoulders, back muscles, biceps, abdominals and glutes are stronger.
Tony’s wife even remarked that Tony’s abdominals and glutes look stronger. His advice to men considering doing Pilates is to just try it and don’t be intimidated by the strange looking equipment or feeling awkward. The instructors are there to work with you and help you understand the Pilates language and movements.
Tony said he was happy to see four men in class last week.
Steve, age 62
Steve is a residential realtor. He spends working hours at his desk, driving and walking while showing properties. As a lifetime athlete, Steve considers his current lifestyle to be moderately active.
Steve began playing sports at 13-years old. As a teen he played soccer as a teen making it to the All-American Level. Steve played college football at the University of Georgia, national level racquetball and was a competitive weightlifter for years. Steve built nation-wide golf courses and eventually became a scratch golfer and teaching golf professional. Steve has competed in triathlons and now is obsessed with Pickleball.
Steve took interest in Pilates when he learned that Tiger Woods was doing Pilates. Always staying ahead of the competition, Steve became curious about Pilates and took private lessons. He also enrolled in various Pilates courses for a deeper understanding of the foundations.
As a teaching golf professional, Steve found that his clients would plateau or reach their physical peak due to a lack of mind-body connection and physical ability. Steve had a big revelation while working with these clients. It wasn’t that they “wouldn’t” do what he was asking, it was that they “couldn’t” do what he was asking. Steve encouraged his clients to take Pilates as a way to improve their mental and physical fitness, which in turn improved their golf game.
Steve personally enjoyed the golf performance benefits of better balance and stability enabling him to maintain his spine angle through the shot with greater rotation. In golf, this equates to consistency, greater distance and accuracy.
Steve is also proud to say that he has never fallen in his adult life and contributes that to Pilates. He says that his posture has improved which gives him a youthful looking body, his core strength keeps his back and shoulders healthy and his joints have greater range of motion. Steve continues to do functional agility training and lifts weights while applying the fundamental Pilates principles. When playing Pickleball, Steve says that he can lunge and reach with balance and control.
Steve says, “Pilates helps you better manage gravity, whether leaning over the kitchen line in Pickleball or swinging a golf club at nearly 100 miles an hour. Don’t hesitate, take a Pilates class and find out for yourself.”
Shannon is a Master Pilates Educator with 4 growing local Club Pilates studios. As a career Pilates instructor and functional movement specialist, Shannon has mastered the science and art of her craft. She shares her knowledge by certifying aspiring Pilates instructors. Shannon’s unique approach for developing an apprenticeship has grown into the Southwest Florida Pilates Academy. Learn more at (786) 708-7601.
In her spare time Shannon has taken a love for playing Pickleball. Combining her Pilates wisdom with Pickleball training Shannon teaches Pilates for Pickleball. Currently you can find her Pilates for Pickleballs tips with Into Pickleball Online Magazine and pilates-pickleball.com.
CLUB PILATES
www.clubpilates.com