Pilates for Runners: Does It Help, and 8 Moves to Start With

Pilates has moved from dance studios to the high street, and plenty of runners now swear by it. The honest answer is more modest, and more useful. Pilates can make you stronger and more controlled through your trunk and hips, which is handy when your legs are tired. It is not a shield against injury, and it does not do the same job as lifting heavier weights. Here is what the evidence says, how to fit Pilates into a running week, and eight beginner moves to get you started.

What actually is Pilates?

Pilates is a low-impact exercise method built around slow, controlled movements, steady breathing and a strong focus on the muscles around your trunk and hips. It was developed by Joseph Pilates, a German-born trainer, in the early 20th century. He called it Contrology, and after he opened a studio in New York in the 1920s it became popular with dancers.

Today you will mostly see two versions. Mat Pilates uses your body weight, sometimes with small props such as a band, ring or ball. Reformer Pilates uses a sliding carriage on a frame, with springs that add resistance or give you support. Both share the same basic ideas: move with control, breathe steadily, keep good alignment, and choose quality over quantity.

Does Pilates actually help runners?

It can, but the evidence is thinner than social media suggests. The most quoted study is a small 2018 trial with recreational runners. Everyone ran twice a week for 12 weeks, and one group also did two one-hour Pilates sessions a week. The Pilates group cut their 5K time by around 2.4 minutes on average, compared with about 0.7 minutes for the run-only group, and their running used less energy at a set pace.

That is encouraging, but it is one study, with fewer than 30 runners finishing it, most of them young and running only twice a week. It suggests Pilates can help, not that it will take minutes off everyone's 5K. Where Pilates tends to help most is here:

• Trunk and hip control. Keeping your pelvis steady while your legs move is exactly what running asks of you, thousands of times every run.
• Glute strength. Bridging and side-lying moves work the muscles on the back and side of your hips, which many runners neglect.
• Mobility. Controlled twisting, bending and back extension keep your spine and hips moving well.
• Body awareness. The slow, precise style helps many runners notice how they move and where they tense up.

Can Pilates prevent running injuries?

This is where to be careful. There is no good evidence that Pilates on its own prevents running injuries. A recent review of exercise-based injury prevention programmes for endurance runners concluded there is not yet enough evidence to recommend them for reducing running injuries overall. Supervised programmes looked more promising, but most of the studies had a high risk of bias.

Many running niggles come down to doing too much, too soon. Sensible increases in mileage, enough sleep and easy days that are genuinely easy matter more than any single class. Think of Pilates as one helpful part of a well-built week, not a guarantee.

Pilates or strength training: which do runners need?

Ideally both, but they are not interchangeable. Most of the research showing that strength work improves running economy (how much energy you use at a given pace) involves heavier lifting and plyometrics, such as hops and jumps. A 2024 review found heavy strength training and plyometrics improved running economy, while moderate-load strength work did not show the same benefit.

Mat Pilates is mostly body weight, so it will not give your legs, tendons and bones the heavier loading that squats, deadlifts, lunges and weighted calf raises can. What it does well is control, trunk endurance and moving well through a full range of motion.

The simple rule: Pilates complements heavy strength work, it does not replace it. If you only have time for one extra session a week, a basic strength session will probably do more for your running. If you already lift, Pilates is a great addition for control and mobility. It also counts towards the NHS guideline of muscle-strengthening activity on at least two days a week.

What are the best Pilates moves for runners to start with?

These eight mat moves cover the areas runners tend to need most: glutes, deep trunk muscles, back extension and rotation. Move slowly, breathe out on the effort, and stop any move that causes pain. Quality beats reps every time.

• If your neck aches in the hundred or the single-leg stretch, keep your head down on the mat.
• If your lower back lifts during toe taps, make the movement smaller.
• Once all eight feel easy, progress to side-lying leg lifts, a plank and swimming (alternate arm and leg lifts lying face down).

How often should runners do Pilates, and when?

For most runners, one or two sessions a week is plenty, whether that is a 20-minute routine at home or a 45 to 60 minute class. A few simple rules help it fit around your running:

• Put it on an easy day or a rest day. Pilates is low impact, so it sits well after an easy run or on a day off.
• Keep it away from key sessions. A tough class that leaves your trunk or hamstrings sore is not ideal the day before intervals or your long run.
• Add it, do not swap it. If you already do strength work, keep it and add Pilates on top where you have time.
• Go gentle in race week. In the last few days before a race, swap a hard class for light mobility work.

Mat or reformer: which class should you book?

Mat classes are the cheapest and simplest way in. At leisure centres and community halls, drop-in mat classes typically cost around £8 to £15, and studio mat classes around £10 to £25, at the time of writing.

Reformer classes use the spring-loaded machine, so the springs can make moves harder or give you a helping hand. Classes tend to be smaller and pricier, typically around £20 to £35 a session in the UK at the time of writing, with the top end in central London and lower prices in smaller towns. Class packs usually bring the price per session down.

Neither is clearly better for runners. Reformer adds resistance and variety. Mat work is easier to repeat at home, and consistency is what counts. If you are coming back from an injury, some physiotherapists run clinical Pilates sessions, which can be worth asking about.

What does a 20-minute Pilates routine for runners look like?

Try this once or twice a week on an easy day. You need a mat and a bit of floor space.

• Minutes 0 to 3, warm up. Lie on your back with your knees bent and take 5 slow breaths. Add 10 small pelvic tilts, then 5 slow cat-cows on your hands and knees.
• Minutes 3 to 18, two rounds. Work through the eight moves in the order above, moving calmly from one to the next. Rest about 30 seconds between rounds.
• Minutes 18 to 20, cool down. Hold child's pose for 5 slow breaths, then a figure-four glute stretch on your back for 30 seconds each side.

Short on time or finding it tough? Do one round and build to two over a few weeks.

How does Pilates fit with an Edge plan?

The hard part is rarely the moves. It is fitting runs, strength, mobility and a class into one week without your legs paying the price. Edge is a free fitness app, and Edge Pro builds a fully personalised plan across running, strength, HIIT and mobility, ready in 15 minutes, so everything sits in one place instead of competing. Thinking about adding a weekly Pilates class? Message a real coach anytime to ask where it fits best around your key sessions. Edge Pro is from £19.99 a month with a free 7-day trial, and Edge syncs with Strava, Garmin, Apple Health and Coros.

So, should runners do Pilates?

If you enjoy it and it helps you move better, yes. Treat it as a complement to your running and strength work, not a replacement, and do not expect it to make you injury-proof. Start with the eight moves once or twice a week and judge it on how you feel after a month.

This article is general guidance, not medical advice. If you are new to exercise, returning from injury, pregnant, or managing a health condition, speak to your GP before starting, and see a physio for any niggle that does not settle.