Can I Lose Weight with Pilates?

Sheela Cheong
Apr 29
6 min read

"How can I get your body with Pilates?"

The instructor's response was refreshingly direct:

"Body composition is a combination of factors including diet, genetics, and overall activity levels — and any teacher who says otherwise is a liar or uneducated."

It’s strong language, but I fully agree with the heart of her message (see reel below).

Too often, fitness marketing oversimplifies body change into a single solution — when in reality, body composition is shaped by multiple intertwined factors. Beyond diet, genetics, and movement, sleep quality and chronic stress levels also play a powerful — and often underestimated — role.

In this article, we’ll unpack the science behind:

losing weight,
body composition (what's that?)
clarify what Pilates can (and cannot) realistically achieve, and
explore how a Pilates practice fits into a sustainable, whole-body approach to change.

Q1: Can I lose weight by doing Pilates?

A: It depends — and that’s the honest answer. Weight loss, or more accurately fat loss, is influenced by a combination of factors, including:

Caloric intake and nutrition
Daily activity levels
Genetics and hormones
Sleep quality and duration
Stress levels
Type, frequency, and intensity of exercise

Pilates can absolutely contribute to body composition change, but not in isolation. Any teacher who guarantees weight loss from Pilates alone — without considering the bigger picture — is being misleading.

Q2: What’s the difference between weight loss vs fat loss?

A: These two terms are often used interchangeably — but they mean very different things:

Weight loss refers to a reduction in overall body mass. This could mean losing fat, muscle, water, or even bone density.
Fat loss specifically targets a reduction in adipose tissue — the fat stored in your body.

Why does it matter? Focusing only on the scale can be misleading. You might lose "weight" but be losing important lean muscle mass, which can lower metabolism and make long-term fat management harder.

What you should aim for instead is BODY RECOMPOSITION — meaning:

🔽 Decreasing fat mass
🔼 Increasing (or maintaining) lean muscle mass

Pilates helps here by preserving and improving muscle tone, enhancing postural muscles, and encouraging more efficient movement patterns. This is why body recomposition — not just chasing lower numbers on the scale — is a more meaningful, sustainable goal.

Q3: So what exactly does Pilates do for body composition?

A: When practised regularly and correctly, Pilates supports body recomposition in the following ways:

Improves muscular tone and endurance Pilates targets deep stabilising muscles — particularly the transversus abdominis, multifidus, pelvic floor, and diaphragm. Strengthening these muscles enhances posture, trunk control, and silhouette definition.
Increases lean muscle mass Although Pilates isn’t hypertrophy training, it increases muscle endurance and tone.Lean muscle tissue is metabolically active — meaning it burns more calories at rest compared to fat tissue.
Enhances movement efficiency and body awareness By learning to move with more precision and control, people often find it easier to stay active throughout the day — experiencing fewer energy leaks and less pain.

Q4: Does Pilates help with metabolism — and how long does it realistically take to see body changes?

A: Yes, Pilates can positively influence your metabolism — but in a subtler, more sustainable way compared to high-intensity training.And as for visible body changes? The answer depends on consistency, practice quality, and what’s happening outside the studio.

✅ How Pilates supports your metabolism:

Increases lean muscle mass Lean muscle burns more calories at rest than fat tissue1, subtly raising resting metabolic rate over time.
Improves movement efficiency Better muscle recruitment patterns mean better daily energy use.
Supports stress regulation Pilates helps regulate cortisol levels, supporting metabolic and hormonal health.

✅ How long to see results?

Neuromuscular adaptations often start within 2–4 weeks (better control, posture, strength).
External body composition changes usually show around 8–12 weeks with consistent practice (2–3x per week) plus supportive nutrition.

⚡ Progress is rarely linear. Focus on strength, control, and posture improvements — external results will follow.

Q5: But what about calories? Does Pilates burn fat?

A: Pilates burns calories, yes — but it’s lower-intensity compared to cardio methods like HIIT or running.

A 50-minute intermediate mat class may burn between 175–250 calories, depending on factors like body size, class intensity, and engagement level.

However, calorie burn isn’t the only goal. Fat loss comes down to maintaining a sustainable caloric deficit over time — either by eating slightly less, moving slightly more, or both.

Pilates supports fat loss by:

Preserving lean muscle (critical for metabolism)
Improving movement efficiency (helping you stay more active daily)
Reducing stress and improving sleep, both of which indirectly affect fat regulation

Q6: What role do sleep and stress play in body composition?

A: A major one — and it’s often overlooked.

Poor sleep disrupts hunger hormones (ghrelin and leptin), increases cravings for high-calorie foods, and worsens insulin resistance.
Chronic stress elevates cortisol levels, which promotes abdominal fat storage and muscle breakdown.

Pilates helps mitigate these effects:Its emphasis on breath, focus, and mindful control promotes parasympathetic nervous system activity (the “rest-and-digest” mode), improving resilience against chronic stress.

Q7: What are the most important things to get right if I’m using Pilates to change my body?

A: The foundation is coordinating breath with deep core activation. Without this, even fancy shapes and exercises lose their effectiveness.

✅ What does good coordination mean?

Breath supports movement. In Pilates, exhaling during exertion naturally engages the deep core muscles — especially the transversus abdominis — to stabilise the spine and pelvis.
Core activation is subtle, not dramatic. It’s not about sucking in your belly (which mostly pulls from superficial muscles and switches off lower abs). True core engagement feels like the abdominal wall gently tightening like a broad belt — supporting from all sides, without pulling the navel down or hollowing excessively.

🧠 How do you know if you’re doing it right?

In supine (lying down) exercises:

Your legs should feel almost weightless, as if suspended by your core, not gripped by your hip flexors.
Your chest and shoulders should stay relaxed. ➤ If your chest rises and falls noticeably when you breathe, you’re chest-breathing — overusing accessory muscles instead of using your diaphragm. ➤ Chest breathing limits abdominal expansion, increases tension in the neck and shoulders, and reduces core engagement.
Check lower abs activation:
- Place your fingers lightly inside your front hip bones.
- As you exhale and engage, you should feel a subtle firmness — not a dramatic hollowing or doming.
- If you feel no engagement, doming, or pushing outward, you’re missing the deep connection.

📣 Still unsure? This neuromuscular coordination takes practice. Book a private session with a qualified instructor who can give hands-on feedback — it’s the fastest, most effective way to master the foundations.

When you get this connection right, everything else in Pilates — from strength gains to visible body changes — becomes dramatically more effective.

Final Thoughts: So, can Pilates help me lose weight?

A: Yes — but it’s not the sole solution.

Pilates is one powerful pillar in an overall healthy lifestyle. It builds deep strength, resilience, body awareness, posture, and mobility — and helps create the internal environment needed for sustainable fat loss and body recomposition. The most powerful change happens when you:

Practise Pilates regularly with correct breath and core connection
Nourish yourself with balanced, supportive nutrition
Prioritise good sleep and stress management
Focus on strength, energy, and functionality — not just the number on the scale

📚 References:

Instagram reel by Kim Moscatello, posted 27 April, 2005.
Spiegel, K., et al. "Effects of poor and short sleep on glucose metabolism and obesity risk." Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 2009.
Sinha, R., et al. "Chronic stress, cortisol dysfunction, and obesity." Current Obesity Reports, 2018.
Thomas, D. M., et al. "Why do individuals not lose more weight from exercise interventions? An energy balance analysis." Obesity Reviews, 2012.
Wolfe, R. R. "The underappreciated role of muscle in health and disease." The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2006.
Harvard Health Publishing. "Calories burned in 30 minutes for people of three different weights." 2021.
Taheri, S., et al. "Short Sleep Duration is Associated with Reduced Leptin, Elevated Ghrelin, and Increased Body Mass Index." PLoS Medicine, 2004.
Adam, T. C., and Epel, E. S. "Stress, eating and the reward system." Physiology & Behavior, 2007.
Wolfe, R.R. (2006). The underappreciated role of muscle in health and disease. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 84(3), 475-482.
Epel, E.S., et al. (2000). Stress and body shape: Stress-induced cortisol secretion is consistently greater among women with central fat. Psychosomatic Medicine, 62(5), 623–632.
American Council on Exercise (ACE). (2013). How Long Does It Take to See Fitness Results? Retrieved from ACE official website.