List of pilates exercises: postures for success by level

Pilates exercise list for beginners

You just have to listen to the mantra of Joseph Pilates, founder of the discipline “In 30 sessions, a brand new body” to understand that pilates has established itself as the benchmark for gentle strengthening. In fact, it is a mix between yoga, gymnastics and meditation. By following a list of pilates exercises you will have a toned and stretched body. 

Double leg lift

The double leg lift is a basic exercise for the pilates method in the leg lift category. This exercise consists of several series, preferably 4 with a sequence of 10 repetitions. After each series, it is important to do a active recovery.

 here's how realize exercise : 

• Lie on your back, arms at your sides, palms facing down, spine anchored to the floor. Then engage your abdominal muscles by tucking the navel towards the spine. 
• Then, raise your legs vertically, knees straight, forming a 90° right angle to the floor. 
• Inhale and slowly lower your legs toward the floor without touching it while making sure your back remains glued to the floor. 
• While exhaling, raise your legs toward the sky again in a slow, controlled movement. 
• Repeat this operation 10 times. 

Double leg stretch

This posture allows you tolengthen your legs and of work your abs. As with the double leg lift, the exercise is performed on 4 sets with 12 repetitions. 

The double leg stretch is done as follows: 

• Lie on your back and raise your upper torso and head until your shoulder blades are level with the ground. Next, bring your knees toward your chest while placing your hands on your shins, keeping your back flat on the ground. 
• During an inhale, stretch your legs forward and your arms behind your head symmetrically, at the same height, so that your body forms a banana shape. 
• As you exhale, return to your starting posture, bringing your legs toward your chest while keeping your upper torso and head off the ground. 

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Finally, stay in this posture for 5 breaths. Then, remain lying on the ground, resting, for 10 breaths. After which you can start a new series. 

Hundred

Exercise Hundred aims to strengthen the abdominal muscles, develop muscular endurance and improve respiratory capacity. It is done on 4 sets of 10 breaths. 

The exercise looks like this: 

• Lie down with your arms at your sides. Then, lift your legs by bending them 90°. 
• Engage your abdominal muscles by tucking in your belly button. 
• Slightly bend your head, shoulders and chin. 
• Raise your arms 5 cm from the ground and pump your arms with short, sharp movements, keeping your arms straight and your hands moving as if they are tapping water. 
• Breathe in for 5 pulses of your arm then exhale again for 5 pulses. Repeat for up to 100 pulses. 

Neck roll

This exercise aims to soften the cervical spine as well as strengthen your back, abs and shoulders. It is effective if you have cervical tension or a lack of mobility in the neck. In addition, it is a fundamental movement of pilates, its mastery is essential to carry out sequences of postures. 

Exercise

Here is the protocol to follow: 

• Lie on your stomach with your hands at shoulder height and your elbows wrist-width apart. 
• Start by pushing up on your arms to stand up in a kneeling plank position. 
• Squeeze your shoulder blades together as you slide them down your back. 
• Press your shoulders back while lowering them. Then engage your abdominal muscles so as not to arch your lower back. Your thighs should form a straight line. 
• Then, tilt your chin toward your chest. 
• During an exhale, rotate your chin towards one shoulder, return to center and on an inhale then turn your chin towards the other shoulder as you exhale. 

Finishing

Repeat the exercise for a series of 10 repetitions, doing 5 on each side, then lie on your stomach with your palms flat and rest for 30 seconds before starting a new series. 

Intermediate level pilates exercises

Intermediate pilates exercises require a sports form and an good body awareness.  

Cancan

The goal of the cancan is to strengthen the obliques, abdominals and hip flexors. Before launching into this pose, make sure you have mastered the double leg lift exercise. Furthermore, this exercise is available in two versions which we will see in a moment. The objective being to make 4 sets of 10 repetitions.  

First level of cancan

• Lean your torso back, resting on your elbows, with your legs together and bent at knee height. 
• While inhaling, tilt your legs to both sides, then on the exhale, tilt your legs back to one side and straighten them fully. 
• For the next inhale, tilt your legs to the right then to the left. 
• On the inhale, tilt your legs to the right and straighten your legs while remaining on the right. 
• Repeat the process for the next breath, reversing the tilt sides. 

Before moving to the next level, you must be able to raise your feet to face height. 

Second level of cancan

The exercise remains the same but you must support yourself on your palms while keeping your legs straight. Also, you must point your feet during leg tilts. All for 4 sets of 10 repetitions, taking 10 breaths between each set. 

Criss-cross

The criss cross helps to rstrengthen the obliques and abdominals thanks to the twisting movement of the bust. The goal ? Hold the pace for a ten breaths. 

The practice

Criss cross is practiced as follows: 

• Place your hands behind your head with your elbows spread as far to the sides as possible. 
• Raise your head and upper torso, your shoulder blades should be on the ground and your knees grouped towards your chest. 
• Then, rotate your torso to one side by straightening your opposite leg then repeat on the other side. 
• Synchronize the twisting of the torso with the flexions and extensions of the legs by turning the torso to the side of the bent leg and simultaneously stretching the opposite leg. 

As you inhale, rotate from one side to the other, follow the same steps for the exhale. Repeat this for 4 sets of 10 breaths. Remember to recover by lying down for 10 breaths before starting a new set. 

Double leg circle

If you are looking to stretch your hamstrings and strengthen your hips and abs, this exercise may be suitable for you. It is done on 4 sets containing 10 breaths by changing the direction of rotation at each turn. 

To reproduce the posture follow the instructions: 

• Lie on your back, inhale as you raise your legs straight, feet pointed. 
• As you exhale, lower your legs from one side in a circular motion. 
• While inhaling, raise your legs to the other side until your legs are vertically extended.
• Start a circle again, turning in the other direction, exhaling on the downward phase and inhaling on the upward phase. 
• Change the direction of the circle with each rotation, this should give 5 circles in each direction. 
• Recover for 10 breaths in a lying position. 

Hollow body rock

Hollow body rock is an exercise from gymnastics that allows you to develop an unfailing sheath as well as massage the lower back foreliminate muscle pain and tension of this area. We count 4 sets of 30 repetitions. 

The exercise looks like this: 

• Place your lumbar and mid-back on the ground and tilt your pelvis, arms and legs forward. Then, lift your head and shoulder blades off the ground. 
• Next, rock forward and backward, being careful to roll over your mid-back and lumbar area, without touching your shoulder blades and tailbone. 
• Keep breathing deeply through your nose for all 30 repetitions. 
• When the set is finished, take 30 seconds of rest. 

Advanced pilates exercises

Expert level pilates exercises are postures complex which require strongly developed back and core muscles and to have integrated the basic movements. 

jackknife

To make the jack knife, it is important to have a ftoe abdominal strap and know how to do the candle pose. Furthermore, there are two versions of the jack knife that we will detail. 

Level 1 

• Lie on your back with your legs straight and your feet on the floor. 
• Press your back and arms against the floor and open your chest. 
• Take a breath and raise your straight legs vertically, your feet towards the ceiling. 
• Place your legs horizontally above your head. 
• Exhale while placing your entire body in a candle position while keeping your arms extended. 
• In the candle position, inhale as you raise your legs above your head horizontally, keeping your head on the ground.
• Rest your back on the ground vertebra by vertebra up to your buttocks and raise your legs to the starting position. 
• Exhale while resting your buttocks on the floor. 
• Do 4 sets of 6 repetitions. 
• Rest by taking 10 breaths between each set in a lying position.  

Level 2

• Lie on your back with your legs straight and your feet on the floor. 
• Inhale as you bring your legs and back behind your head until your feet touch the floor. 
• Exhale as you lift your body up and place your back on the ground, keeping your legs straight vertically. 
• Inhale as you place your buttocks on the floor. 
• Exhale as you lower your legs to the ground. 
• Take 10 resting breaths and do 4 sets of 6 repetitions. 

Boomerang

This exercise aims to stabilize the hips, massage the back and strengthen the abdominal muscles. The boomerang is made up of 4 sets of 10 repetitions. 

To perform the exercise correctly, follow these principles: 

• Get into a seated position with your legs straight and crossed at the ankle, lean your torso forward with your back rounded and the backs of your hands placed at your sides. 
• Then, as you inhale, lean back, lifting your legs above your head until they are parallel to the floor. 
• Exhale while alternating crossing your legs and straightening your legs. 
• As you inhale, pass your arms behind your body, interlacing your fingers while seeking shoulder extension. 
• Lean your torso forward and as you exhale, rest your legs. 
• Rest by taking 10 breaths between each set. 

Hip circles

This is a perfect posture for strengthening the thighs, obliques, abdominals and leg flexors. It is done over 4 sets of 10 repetitions. 

Here's how to successfully reproduce hip circles: 

• Get into a seated position, place your hands behind you with your arms outstretched and your torso inclined at 45° and your legs should be lying on the ground, straight, feet together. 
• Inhale with your arms straight and raise your legs vertically. 
• On an exhale, lower your legs to one side down. 
• While inhaling, bring your legs up to the other side. 
• For the next repetitions, do the same thing but alternating the directions of rotation. 

Between each series, take time to active recovery of 30 seconds by practicing two flexibility exercises: the clip balancing on the buttocks and the clamp legs against the wall. 

The pliers balanced on the buttocks

• Sit down, lift your feet off the ground with your hands holding your calves. 
• Bring your thighs against your chest. 
• Straighten your legs, keeping them against your stomach. 
• Stay like this for 30 seconds. 

Leg clamp against the wall

• Once the 30 seconds are up, continue by resting your lower buttocks and your legs straight against a wall using your arms stretched behind you. 
• Support yourself on your arms and press your torso and chest against your legs. 
• Hold the posture for 30 seconds and attack again on a series of hip circles. 

Open leg rocker

This is an advanced movement in pilates, the goal being to massage the back, soften the hamstrings and strengthen the abdominals. In addition, it is an exercise that takes place in two stages. 

The first step goes like this: 

• Sit up, bend and squeeze your legs and grab your ankles. 
• Then, lift your feet off the ground by straightening your legs. 
• Hold the posture for 10 breaths. 
• Continue with a series of 10 leg openings and closings, inhaling during the openings and exhaling during the closings. 
• Do 4 to 6 sets of 10 repetitions. 

Second step

Once you feel comfortable in this position, you can move on to the next step. This is how it looks: 

• In a balanced position with your buttocks and legs stretched apart, roll onto your back backwards, inhaling until your toes touch the ground behind your head.
• Return to the starting position while exhaling. 
• Do 4 sets of 10 repetitions, 5 opening and 5 closing.  

To conclude

During this article we have seen different types ofexercises. Particularly for the beginners which are the following: 

• Double leg lift

• Double leg stretch

• Hundred

• Neck roll

Then, for a level intermediate, here are the suitable exercises: 

• Cancan

• Criss-cross

• Double leg circle

• Hollow body rock

Finally, regarding the level expert, there are more complex exercises like: 

• jackknife

• Boomerang

• Hip circles

• Open leg rocker

Start Pilates at POSES 

You wish gain flexibility, refine your figure and improve your posture ? Pilates will be your favorite sport for gentle body gymnastics! It is possible at POSES. 

Strengthen your body with pilates flow. Our Pulse&Pose® sequences are 50-minute sessions that mix isometrics, bodyweight exercises and strengthening. Furthermore, thanks to our movements, your deep muscles and balance are solidified. Take full advantage of the exercises that help you gain mobility, stability et strength under a dim light with some coaches who will take care to bring out the benefits of pilates on your body. 

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