Personalised Pilates vs. group classes: 4 small tweaks, big results!

Why we limit group pilates classes at MD Health

Group Pilates has surged in popularity in recent years, but at MD Health, we’ve made the decision to reduce the maximum size of our clinical Pilates sessions to just three clients at a time. Why?

The reason is simple – larger class sizes make it difficult to personalise programs and deliver optimal results.

Personalisation of clinical Pilates exercises is the difference between getting great outcomes for clients versus just doing a bunch of exercises that just don’t work.

Here are the main four reasons why:

1. The choice of exercises

An individualised program allows us to be highly selective with the exercises we choose, ensuring they directly meet your specific needs. For example, after a Full Body Assessment (a comprehensive evaluation of all major joints and muscles), we can determine:

• Which muscle groups are a priority.
• Whether there are any injuries or issues to address, such as a lumbar disc bulge, which will influence which exercises may aggravate or relieve the injury.
• Which areas need focus to help you reach your goals.

For example, if an assessment reveals weakness in your glutes and a lumbar disc bulge, we’ll select exercises that minimise the effects of the disc bulge (extension-based exercises) while targeting glute strength (such as hip extensions in standing).

Choosing standard Pilates exercises like “Hundreds” to work on your core stability may seem like a good idea, but it can actually be too advanced for many people with lower back pain. It can place unnecessary pressure on the lumbar disc bulge, potentially worsening the issue.

This careful selection of exercises, at the right loads and at the right timing is the difference between progress and not achieving your goals.

2. The importance of positioning and technique

Even subtle changes in positioning can drastically impact the effectiveness of an exercise.

Take a common exercise like scooter, which targets the gluteus maximus. This exercise is most effective when performed with correct positioning, engaging the muscle at its fullest potential:

However, small changes in positioning make a difference. For example, it is easy to lean back from the front leg and push the Pilates carriage with your body weight instead of using your gluteal muscle groups, reducing the effectiveness of the exercises.

Moreover, this exercise demands strong muscle groups to resist heavy loads. Making the exercise “heavier” (within reason) ensures the hips stay in proper alignment (without dropping or overly raising the hips).

Finally, focusing on the return phase of the movement, ensuring the carriage doesn’t snap back quickly, and pivoting at the hips with a straight back activates the eccentric phase of the movement. This phase is crucial for muscle growth, as it involves controlling the muscles during the return movement.

It’s the expertise of qualified professionals – such as physiotherapists, exercise physiologists, or osteopaths – that make these exercises effective and goal-oriented.

3. The impact of timing

In group Pilates classes, it’s easy to rush through exercises, ticking off body parts without fully engaging muscles. But the timing and duration of an exercise can make all the difference. Why?

• Longer holds engage muscles more effectively – Holding a position for a longer period forces you to control your body and activate muscles to their full capacity. This maximises the load on your muscles and helps them stabilise your joints, which is their most important role. When you rush through an exercise, it is very easy to use speed and momentum to achieve the movement but entirely avoid engaging the muscles.  When you are in a class, exercises can be challenging, so most people speed up the exercise to “get the exercise done”, but unfortunately, this defeats the purpose to engage muscles correctly. It is the role of the exercise professional to ensure the timing of your exercises is optimal for the maximum benefit and best long term result.

• Slower movements enhance brain learning – By slowing down an exercise and holding positions for a specific duration, we engage the brain more effectively, which facilitates better neurological learning by adding specific intent to an exercise. This is especially important in clinical Pilates, which focuses on closed kinetic chains, balance, and task-oriented movements. To see the best results, these movements need to be timed deliberately and usually at a slower pace. Specific and tailored instructions in a personalised setting is the best way to make sure timing is optimal for goal orientated results.

4. The power of precise progression

The final subtle combination of science and experience is when to progress exercises and by how much.

One major flaw in group Pilates classes is that exercises tend to stay the same over time, with little progression in load or complexity. Initially, doing the same exercises might bring about some change, but progress plateaus quickly.

To continue making further changes over time, the “load” – including weight, repetitions, and complexity – must be adjusted regularly. The body, muscles and neurological system needs to be challenged in order to have a stimulus to grow and change.

This adaptation is what makes exercise effective, and it’s the skill of knowing when to increase the load, how much to increase it, and when to scale it back that makes all the difference. This is where a qualified exercise professional excels, providing you with the customised clinical Pilates approach needed for long-term progress.

Do you have any questions?

Call us on (03) 9857 0644 or (07) 3505 1494 (Paddington)

Email us at admin@mdhealth.com.au

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Our clinical staff would be happy to have chat if you have any questions.