Why Pilates is Vital For Healthy Joints

I love pilates and find it strangely energising and relaxing at the same time!  It's a great exercise for your core strength and trains the body to have your core 'switched on' all the time when done correctly.  It's also wonderful for stretching out my long limbs - I'm 185cm tall, so love a good stretch - and my back, which can often get overlooked yet is vital for long-term health.  I would highly recommend pilates for anyone looking to do some non-high-impact exercise and get the body back in shape after any form of injury/accident.  (Obviously seek out a well qualified instructor and they can pin point issues and target specific areas as needed).  Read this post from a qualified instructor (Lottie Murphy) for more of the positive benefits pilates.....


As a Pilates instructor, I see a lot of clients who are referred to me after experiencing various joint issues such as hip and knee replacements, back pain or shoulder injuries. Ideally, we should start thinking about the health of our joints before problems start to occur.

I passionately believe that Pilates is the best type of exercise you can do. One of the main principles of Pilates, which is vital for healthy joints, is correct alignment. Poor alignment, muscle imbalance and lack of movement can, over time, put wear and tear on our joints.

Here are some principles you can start putting into practice today for maintaining the health of your joints.

Find Good Posture

Start caring about your posture. Good posture will position the body and the joints into their optimal position for movement. Good posture and alignment throughout the whole body is crucial for safe movement. Proprioception is the awareness of where the joints are in space. Try standing against a wall and notice the parts of your spine that make contact. Also, try and avoid sitting for too long during the day.

Muscle Tone

Stability of our joints is key to keeping them healthy so we must work towards having good muscle tone and muscle balance around the main joints like the shoulders, hips and knees. Pilates exercises can be great for working the deep intrinsic muscles around a joint, which help restrict unwanted movement in a joint. You can work towards a toned body with regular daily conditioning exercises.

Body Awareness

Pilates will improve your body awareness in every day life. Joint injuries may occur if you have poor body awareness for example you might be standing with your knee twisted or go to reach for something behind you and overstretch. Becoming more body aware will make you more conscious of your every day movements and how your body is feeling. You can then make necessary adjustments or seek advice if you are concerned with something you notice. Try my Mindfulness Pilates Routine to become more body aware.

Staying Healthy

It’s also important to maintain a healthy weight to prevent extra pressure on your joints. Watch portion sizes, eat lots of colourful veggies and try to include some omega-3 fatty acids such as salmon and my favourite, mackerel.

By Lottie Murphy, blogger and pilates instructor.   See my next blog post for a session of 'Tone and Stretch Pilates' from Lottie Murphy.

For readers who are London based....

Join Lottie for Pilates at the Lorna Jane Active Living Room in Covent Garden every Tuesday evening 6:15pm. Book online by visiting: www.lornajane.co.uk.

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