A Pilates routine you can do anywhere in less than 10 minutes

Pilates has been extremely popular over the past decade, and for good reason. But joining a studio with a professional instructor or buying home equipment is expensive, especially if you’ve never tried the workouts. Fortunately, you can get many of the same benefits of Pilates in the studio at home with nothing more than a mat and your body.

Originating during World War I under the name Contrology, Pilates is an exercise method in which low-impact movements are performed in a slow and controlled manner, often using a wheeled platform called a reformer. The exercises can provide relief lower back painbuild muscle and especially strengthen your core while you are recovering from pregnancy.

A few small studies even suggest that Pilates may help with cardiovascular health, although it’s best to do it alongside other workouts such as weight lifting, running or walking, said Benjamin Gordon, professor of applied physiology and kinesiology at the University of Florida.

But you don’t have to go to a studio or buy a Pilates machine to try it out. Studies suggest it’s possible to do it with just a mat and still see some benefits, like better attitude, strength and flexibility together with bearing blood pressure And reduced arthritis pain.

How to get started with Pilates at home

If you choose to try Pilates yourself, “be aware of how your body is feeling,” says Allison MacKenzie, an exercise science instructor at the University of Connecticut and a certified Pilates instructor. “If you feel pain in the neck or pain in your lower back, then it’s probably an exercise that needs to be modified.”

Most experts agree that it’s best to start with an instructor — ideally one certified by the Pilates Method Alliance — who can ensure you perform the movements correctly and don’t get injured.

“For beginners, it’s especially important to understand that movements are all about control, not about using momentum,” says Ashley Goodwin, an exercise scientist at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research.

Here are a few moves you can do at home without equipment. Try each exercise below for a 5- to 10-minute workout. Focus on form, not speed. Take rest if you need it, but ultimately try to go without rest.

If one round is too easy, try it two or three times, with short rests between rounds. Or go to the United Kingdom’s National Health Service for various guided Pilates training sessions including those for chair Pilates and Pilates for people with arthritis, back pain and knee problems.

The circle with one leg

This is one of the safer moves you can do at home, Ms. MacKenzie said. It can help strengthen the muscles on either side of your abdomen, allowing you to rotate back and forth, called obliques, and increasing mobility of the hip joint.

Start by lying on your back with your arms at your sides, knees bent and feet on the floor. As you exhale, lift one knee toward you so that your shin is parallel to the floor. Keeping your knee bent, slowly begin to make small circles. As your hip bones start to move, make the circles smaller. Continue for a minute on each side.

Make it more challenging with slightly larger circles or by stretching the raised leg toward the ceiling. Over time, you can also try straightening the other leg so that it lies flat on the ground.

The Pilates100

One of the most classic Pilates movements, the Pilates 100 strengthens your deep abdominal muscles but also your arms and legs. Be careful when trying it at home if you have back or neck pain.

Start by lying on your back with your arms at your sides, knees bent and feet on the floor. As you exhale, lift one leg, with the knee bent or straight. Then start moving your arms up and down a few inches. Inhale five pulses and exhale five pulses. Switch legs. Repeat this five times with each leg until you reach 100 pulses.

If that doesn’t seem feasible, just leave both feet on the ground. Or make it more challenging by lifting both legs together and holding them there for all 100 arm pulses. Or lift your head and shoulders off the mat and straighten your legs.

The swimming exercise

This move helps strengthen your shoulders and glutes while stabilizing your core and lower back.

Start on your hands and knees. Your hands should be under your shoulders and knees under your hips, with your back flat and your core engaged. As you exhale, extend one arm forward and parallel to the floor, keeping your core stable. Inhale as you place your hand under your shoulder again. Then exhale as you extend one leg behind you, parallel to the floor, and inhale as you return your knee to the floor. Try three sets of 10 on each side.

Make it more challenging by lifting both your arm and the leg on your other side at the same time.

The cat stretches

This stretch, commonly used in both Pilates and yoga, can help reduce stiffness in your spine.

Start on all fours with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Slowly tuck your chin toward your chest and inhale as you round your upper back toward the ceiling. Begin to loosen your chin and exhale as you look forward, lowering your spine toward the floor. Repeat 20 times.

Emma Yasinski is a freelance science journalist whose work has appeared in National Geographic, Undark and more.