Why you need a Pilates reformer
What is a Pilates Reformer?
The reformer can sometimes look like quite scary and intimidating when you first see it but it truly is an amazing piece of equipment which can be used as a rehab tool or just to work on your general fitness.
It works on a spring-based mechanism which offers resistance training to build strength, power and endurance in your muscles depending on what your goal is. We can also make the springs quite light which challenges your control and can work your core really hard in a really short space of time. We can use the springs and ropes to support your body and work to lengthen your muscles and improve your mobility. It really is a one-stop shop for working your whole body in a safe and controlled manner.
Our physiotherapists regularly use the reformer for rehab to get you moving through your available range of motion and work on increasing strength, mobility and flexibility in a safe environment. The reformer offers load through your joints to build strength without putting the same forces that we would get in standing that may put unnecessary strain or feel unreachable in the early stages of rehab.
What’s the difference between Mat and Reformer Pilates?
Mat Pilates generally uses our own bodyweight for exercises and sometimes small pieces of equipment (like therabands, Pilates circles, foam roller) to increase the resistance work and mobility we can achieve in the session.
Reformer Pilates goes through similar movement patterns but uses the springs to either increase the resistance or the stretch we feel. We can change the spring resistance to make it either more supportive or more challenging depending on your goal or ability. Our instructors will make sure to give you options so that you feel you’re working to your ability.
Any of the exercises that we perform in mat-classes we can do in a reformer class, the spring-based mechanism just means that we will be getting either more of a stretch or strengthening our muscles at a quicker rate than what we can do with bodyweight alone.
Mat is still a fantastic way of challenging our body and we have plenty of clients who prefer mat and make huge progressions through mat alone. If you ask most of our instructors, they can find it difficult to decide which they prefer themselves as we get different benefits from both. For most of us, variety in exercise is key to keeping us stimulated and keeping our bodies guessing and improving. If you haven’t tried reformer before, it’s worth giving it a go and making your own mind up.