09/15/2026
Strength training is about challenging your muscles against resistance. On the Reformer, that resistance comes from more than springs alone. Spring tension, body weight, leverage, range of motion, tempo and exercise selection can all change how much demand is placed on the body.
When programmed with enough challenge and progression, Reformer Pilates can build muscular strength and endurance. But it also asks something more of the body: stability, control, coordination and mobility, often while smaller stabilizing muscles work alongside the larger global muscles.
Does that mean Reformer Pilates replaces every form of resistance training? No. If your goal is maximal strength or lifting increasingly heavy loads, traditional weight training serves a different purpose.
But saying Pilates “isn’t strength training” simply because you aren’t holding a heavy barbell misses the bigger picture.
Resistance is resistance. What matters is how you use it, how you progress it, and what you’re training for.
At SheBoss, we believe there’s room for both.
