Is Pilates good for athletes?

Yes. Pilates builds deep core strength, rotational control and mobility you can use under load, which supports force transfer and balanced movement in most sports. It is low impact, so it adds training quality without adding wear, and many athletes use it as structured recovery between hard sessions.

Is Pilates good for runners?

Yes. It builds hip strength, single leg stability and trunk control, the qualities that keep a stride efficient as fatigue builds. Because classes are low impact, they add strength work without adding mileage stress, which is why many distance runners train it alongside their running.

How many times a week should an athlete or runner do Pilates?

One to two classes a week works well alongside a full sport schedule, placed on easy days or after heavy sessions. Runners in a heavy mileage block often hold at one and treat it as quality movement work. In the off season, two to three classes a week gives faster progress. Consistency matters more than volume, one steady class beats occasional bursts.

Can Pilates replace strength training for athletes?

For most competitive athletes, no. Pilates complements heavy lifting rather than replaces it, adding the control, mobility and trunk stability that barbell work tends to miss. Recreational athletes who mainly want to move well may find Pilates covers most of what they need.

Should I do Pilates before or after a run?

Either works. A short, gentle session before a run can wake up the hips and core. Fuller classes sit better after a run or on a separate day, since deep stabilizer fatigue right before speed work can make the run feel flat.

Can Pilates help with running injuries?

It can support recovery by strengthening the hips and core and improving control, and many runners use it while returning to mileage. It does not treat or cure injuries. If you are injured or in pain, speak to your doctor or physiotherapist first, then tell the studio so instructors can offer modifications.

Will Pilates make me a faster runner?

Not directly, speed still comes from run training. What Pilates changes is how much of your effort turns into forward motion: steadier hips, less wasted rotation and posture that holds late in a race. Many runners find pace comes easier at the same effort.

For sport

Pilates for athletes and runners

Pilates is one of the most useful forms of cross-training an athlete can add, because it trains what most sport programs skip: deep core control, rotation and anti-rotation strength, mobility you can use under load, and better breathing mechanics. For runners, the same work lands where running needs it most: stable hips, a controlled trunk and single leg balance that holds up when fatigue sets in. It builds the stability that lets you produce and absorb force efficiently, and it asks little of joints already carrying a heavy training week.

Bare Wellness opens soon on Saadiyat Island with two rooms built for exactly this kind of work: an Open Studio for mat, barre and hot classes, and a Reformer Studio with ten reformers where spring resistance loads movement precisely. Classes run at a deliberate tempo, so athletes can train control instead of chasing another hard session.

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At a glance

What athletes and runners gain

Core under load
Pilates trains the trunk to stabilize while the limbs work, which is the position every stride, swing and lunge puts you in.
Rotation both ways
Racquet sports and golf load one side hard. Pilates builds rotation and anti-rotation strength so the pattern stays balanced.
Hips and single leg control
Running is a series of one leg balances. Pilates trains each side alone and builds the lateral hip stability that keeps knees tracking well, so weaknesses show up in the studio, not on the road.
Low-impact recovery
A slow, precise class keeps you moving between hard sessions without adding impact, so training volume rises while joints get a rest.

A runner on a palm-lined beachfront promenade on Saadiyat Island at first light

For runners

Minutes from the morning miles

Saadiyat's runners keep early hours. The beachfront promenade is flat, palm-lined and quiet at first light, and most of the island's miles get logged before the day warms up.

Bare Wellness opens soon inside Bloom Arjaan by Rotana on the island, with more than sixty classes a week across mornings, evenings and weekends, so a session fits before or after a run. The hip and single leg work that keeps a stride honest happens a few minutes from the routes themselves.

Why athletes cross-train with Pilates

Most sport training develops power, speed and endurance. Very little of it develops control: the ability to stabilize the trunk, decelerate a movement, resist rotation and hold alignment when you are tired. Pilates trains exactly that layer. It slows movement down, loads it precisely and asks you to keep your position while the work gets harder, which is the skill sport keeps testing.

The payoff shows up in performance and in resilience. A stronger, better-coordinated core transfers force from the ground through the body with less leakage, so strides, swings and shots cost less. And because Pilates is low impact, it adds quality training volume without adding the pounding that usually comes with more hours.

Every sport loads the body in its own pattern, and the most useful Pilates work is the work that answers it. Pilates for padel players works through the lunges, direction changes and overhead reach the court demands, and Pilates for golf looks at thoracic rotation, hip stability and a swing that stays consistent through the closing holes. Runners have their own demands, and the sections below give them proper room.

Reformer or mat, and where hot classes fit

Reformer Pilates gives athletes measurable, loaded work. Spring resistance can strengthen a pattern one week and refine it the next, and the moving carriage exposes any wobble in your stability the moment it happens. The Reformer Studio at Bare Wellness holds ten reformers and one instructor, so spring settings and form corrections are personal, not shouted across a big room.

Mat Pilates strips the equipment away and makes your own body the load, which is harder than it sounds and travels well on competition trips. Hot Pilates in the Open Studio adds infrared heat to mat work for athletes who like to sweat while they train control. Most athletes settle on a mix, chosen around what the rest of the week demands.

What running trains, and what it leaves out

Running is repetitive by design. Thousands of nearly identical strides build endurance in one plane of movement while leaving the muscles that control rotation and side to side stability undertrained. Over time the pattern shows: hips that drop on landing, knees that drift inward, a torso that rotates more than it should.

A Pilates class is spent on exactly that neglected territory: the deep core stabilizing while limbs move, one leg loading while the other travels, the pelvis staying level while everything around it works. That is close to a description of good running form, practiced slowly enough to actually learn it.

The hips do most of the work

Every stride asks one hip to absorb load, stay level and drive you forward while the other swings through. When the glutes and deep rotators tire, the pelvis dips, the stride shortens and other structures pick up work they were never meant to do. Hip strength is the quiet engine of an efficient run.

On the reformer, side lying leg series, bridging and standing work load the hips through long, controlled ranges against spring resistance. Mat classes reach the same muscles with bodyweight and small props. Both make room for hip mobility work, useful for runners whose hip flexors spend the day shortened at a desk before an evening run.

Holding form when the run gets long

Watch any race and you can see the moment form goes. The chest drops, the stride shortens, cadence gets ragged and the last kilometers cost more than they should. That fade is rarely about lungs. It is usually stabilizing muscles running out of endurance before the legs do.

Pilates trains exactly those muscles under fatigue you can control. Single leg footwork, kneeling and standing balance work, and slow trunk sequences teach the body to hold a tall, organized position while tired. Runners often notice it first as a steadier cadence and a chest that stays open in the closing stretch of a long run.

How to fit Pilates into a training week

Treat Pilates as supporting work, not another hard session to survive. One to two classes a week is enough to feel a difference in stability and movement quality within a month or two, and it slots most naturally on easy days or the day after a heavy session. In season, keep it light and technical. Off season, you can push frequency and load harder.

For runners, Pilates works best in the spaces running leaves open. A reformer Pilates class the day after a hard session loads muscles through slow, controlled ranges without impact, which many runners find leaves their legs feeling worked but not wrecked. Mat Pilates is gentler still and travels well as a between run habit. Race training blocks usually go better with the lighter end of that range, and the schedule should breathe around key sessions rather than compete with them.

The schedule at Bare Wellness makes the logistics simple. More than sixty classes a week run across mornings, evenings and weekends, so a reformer class can sit before work on a recovery day and a slower mat class can close a heavy weekend. Booking runs on the website and the studio's iOS app, and full classes carry a waitlist that notifies everyone waiting when a spot opens, so the first to book keeps it.

Easy days: a technical class adds quality without draining tomorrow's session.
After a heavy day: slow, low-impact work keeps you moving while you recover.
Non-running day: a full class, with hips and single leg work the priority.
True rest day: rest. A class counts as training, not recovery.
In season: hold one class a week and keep it precise.
Off season: two or three classes a week builds capacity for the year ahead.

An athlete's base on Saadiyat Island

Bare Wellness sits inside Bloom Arjaan by Rotana on Saadiyat Island, minutes from the Saadiyat beaches, Mamsha Al Saadiyat and NYU Abu Dhabi, and a short drive from central Abu Dhabi over the Sheikh Khalifa Bridge. Saadiyat has some of the most pleasant running in Abu Dhabi, with flat beachside routes that fill with runners in the cooler hours. For athletes who already run the beach or train nearby, a class folds into the same trip. On-site and valet parking is available, and the valet is complimentary for anyone visiting.

The details athletes tend to care about are handled quietly. You can flag injuries or medical conditions in your member profile so instructors arrive already knowing what to adjust. Instructors hold recognized certifications, STOTT, BASI, Polestar and equivalents, and coach form rather than count reps. Grip socks are required for reformer and mat classes. If you want programming built entirely around your sport, or a specific race, private sessions are arranged on enquiry.

Good to know

Frequently asked

Is Pilates good for athletes?: Yes. Pilates builds deep core strength, rotational control and mobility you can use under load, which supports force transfer and balanced movement in most sports. It is low impact, so it adds training quality without adding wear, and many athletes use it as structured recovery between hard sessions.
Is Pilates good for runners?: Yes. It builds hip strength, single leg stability and trunk control, the qualities that keep a stride efficient as fatigue builds. Because classes are low impact, they add strength work without adding mileage stress, which is why many distance runners train it alongside their running.
How many times a week should an athlete or runner do Pilates?: One to two classes a week works well alongside a full sport schedule, placed on easy days or after heavy sessions. Runners in a heavy mileage block often hold at one and treat it as quality movement work. In the off season, two to three classes a week gives faster progress. Consistency matters more than volume, one steady class beats occasional bursts.
Can Pilates replace strength training for athletes?: For most competitive athletes, no. Pilates complements heavy lifting rather than replaces it, adding the control, mobility and trunk stability that barbell work tends to miss. Recreational athletes who mainly want to move well may find Pilates covers most of what they need.
Should I do Pilates before or after a run?: Either works. A short, gentle session before a run can wake up the hips and core. Fuller classes sit better after a run or on a separate day, since deep stabilizer fatigue right before speed work can make the run feel flat.
Can Pilates help with running injuries?: It can support recovery by strengthening the hips and core and improving control, and many runners use it while returning to mileage. It does not treat or cure injuries. If you are injured or in pain, speak to your doctor or physiotherapist first, then tell the studio so instructors can offer modifications.
Will Pilates make me a faster runner?: Not directly, speed still comes from run training. What Pilates changes is how much of your effort turns into forward motion: steadier hips, less wasted rotation and posture that holds late in a race. Many runners find pace comes easier at the same effort.

Keep reading

Pilates for padelRotation, shoulder control and lunge strength for the court.Read 8 min read Pilates for golfThoracic rotation, hip stability and a swing you can repeat.Read 6 min read Core strengthWhat the core really is, and how Pilates trains it.Read 5 min read Pilates and muscleAn honest look at strength, resistance and real results.Read 5 min read Pilates frequencyThe honest answer on classes per week, by goal and level.Read 6 min read

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