5 Beginner Pilates Moves to Restart Your Fitness

Ah, Pilates. A form of exercise like none other, the kind of workout that makes you wonder how you ever stopped moving your body in such beautiful ways. If your current workout plan consists of lifting the remote or stretching for the last piece of pizza, Pilates may be the ticket for you back to the land of the living (er, active). It’s gentle, it’s forgiving, and, bonus, it doesn’t require a gym membership or a closet full of equipment. You will need only a mat (or a towel, or even a blanket if you’re feeling particularly resourceful) and an openness to reconnecting with your body.

Catherine Radford, a Pilates instructor who obviously knows her way around a spine, suggests five straightforward moves that will ease you back into movement. These exercises have been made to be gentle on your joints, which reduces your chances of injury and builds strength gradually. Plus, they’ll enhance your mobility, flexibility, and core strength—the so-called “powerhouse” of your body. Consider your core the CEO of your physical wellness; when it’s doing its job, everything else falls in line.

Here’s the rundown on how to get started. Do two or three rounds of this workout consistently, and you’ll start to see gains in both strength and flexibility. And who doesn’t want to feel like a well-oiled machine?”

Cat-Cow Stretch: The Spine’s Morning Wake-Up Call

This one is all about spinal flexibility and core engagement. It’s sort of like giving your back a light massage while also telling it how to move. The name of the game here is articulation—you can think of this as fancy talk for using each vertebra in your spine, one at a time, as you peel it like a banana (but in a good way).

How to do it:

Begin on all fours, shoulders over wrists and hips over knees, with your back neutral. Look down at the mat.

Exhale: Hunch your back up toward the ceiling, tuck your chin to your chest, and draw your belly button in toward your spine. Pretend you’re a cat stretching its back.

Inhale: Round your back, dropping your belly toward the floor, and raising your tailbone and chest upward. You’re a cow now, mooing at the ceiling.

Transition back and forth fluidly between these two poses for three to five breaths, coordinating the movements with your inhales and exhales. It’s like yoga class for your spine without the incense.

Roll Down: The Vertebrae Waltz

This decision is a gradual, subtle slouch to self-awareness. It’s great for loosening up your back and hamstrings and for teaching you to move with control. Consider it the standing ovation—body edition—of Pilates.

How to do it:

Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your arms at your sides.

Take a deep breath in, then breathe out as you tuck your chin and start to roll down, one vertebra at a time. You’re just going to let your arms hang like wet noodles.

When you’ve folded as much as you can comfortably (there’s no need to touch your toes unless they’re being particularly neighborly), breathe in again.

Breathe out as you roll back up to standing, stacking each vertebra like building blocks. End by raising your head last, as if you’re peering over a fence.

Repeat three to four times. And by the end, you’ll feel like a puppet of Marionette with a very attentive puppeteer.

Pelvic Tilt: The Subtle Core Awakener

This deceptively simple move is powerful for your core and lower back. It’s a little massage for the spine, with the bonus of getting your abs involved. And for the ambitious among you, you can ratchet it up to a full bridge pose. But that’s not what was on the slate first.

How to do it:

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor and arms by your sides, palms down.

Take a deep breath in, then exhale, engaging your abs—pulling your navel towards your spine.

Tuck your pelvis slightly, pressing your lower back down against the mat. Your tailbone will lift gently, like a bashful turtle poking its head out of its shell.

Inhale to return to neutral.

Do it eight to 10 times, breathing as if you’re meditating on a beach. Namaste, core muscles.

The Hundred: The Core Crusher

Don’t let the name scare you—this move is all about building endurance in your core. If it feels too hard initially, there are versions to make it simpler (because, let’s face it, not everyone’s a Pilates prodigy).

How to do it:

Lie on your back, legs up, knees bent 90 degrees. You palms face down; arms by your sides.

Breathe in to prepare, and then breathe out as you extend your head, neck, and shoulders off the mat. Look in the direction of your thighs and continue to press your lower back into the mat.

Raise your arms so they are parallel to the floor and pulse them up and down in small, intentional channels.

Breathe in for five counts, breathe out for five counts, and repeat this for a total of five full cycles.

By the end, you’ll feel as if you’ve just run a marathon—for your abs.

Single-Leg Stretch: The Stability Seeker

It doubles as a triple threat: boosting stability, flexibility, and core strength. It’s a kind of dance for your legs, with your core taking the lead.

How to do it:

Lie on your back and draw your knees toward your chest, head, neck, and shoulders lifted off the mat. Put your hands on your thighs.

Inhale in to prepare, and then exhale as you release one leg, keeping the core engaged.

Switch legs on an inhale, bringing the extended leg in and the other leg out.

Repeat for eight to 10 reps, flowing in time with your breath. It’s like riding a bicycle in slow motion with no handlebars.

So there you have it: five moves that’ll get you back into exercise without the bus-hit feeling. Pilates is about listening to your body, moving with purpose, and perhaps enjoying yourself while doing it. Who knows? You may find that your core has been waiting for this all along. Now go out there and stop our spines like the elegant human you are.