How to Build Your Pilates Habit (Without Burning Out)
Consistency is powerful—but sustainability is magic.
If you’ve recently started (or restarted) your Pilates journey, it’s tempting to dive in full throttle. You feel energized, motivated, and ready to commit. But at SOMA, we’re here to help you build a practice, not just a streak—something that supports your life, not overtakes it. The goal isn’t to grind, but to move with rhythm, rest, and refinement.
Here’s how to build a Pilates habit that feels supportive, sustainable, and personal.
The Sweet Spot: 2–3 Sessions Per Week
We’ve seen over and over again that 2–3 sessions per week is the goldilocks zone for most clients. It’s enough to build strength, reinforce good movement patterns, and stay connected to your progress—without tipping into overwhelm or burnout.
This recommendation aligns beautifully with the American Council on Exercise (ACE) guidelines, which suggest adults engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, including a mix of strength, flexibility, and functional movement. A regular Pilates practice checks all of those boxes—and then some.
If you’re coming to SOMA once per week, that’s a solid start—but we encourage you to supplement it with home movement between classes. Even 10–15 minutes of breathwork, core activation, or spinal mobility can help reinforce the neuromuscular connections you’re building in class. (Need ideas? Just ask—we’re happy to help you design a short home sequence.)
Ditch the Hustle, Listen to Your Body
We live in a culture that prizes productivity over presence. But your Pilates practice isn’t a competition—it’s a conversation between your body and your breath. Some days, you’ll crave challenge. Other days, you’ll need softness. Both are valid.
Pilates teaches you to tune into what’s needed—not what’s trending. It’s less about pushing harder and more about moving with precision, control, and integrity.
Book Strategically (and Flexibly)
At SOMA, we purposely operate at 80% capacity to give you room to move. That means there’s often space to book last minute, shift your schedule, or respond to the rhythm of your week.
Still, we recommend a little planning. Look ahead, claim your spot, and treat it as time you’ve set aside for yourself. Think about what kind of movement would feel good: grounding, energizing, focused?
And remember—if your plans change, you’re never stuck. Pilates is meant to support your life, not disrupt it. You can cancel up to 24 hrs in advance.
More Than Just the Reformer: Explore the Full Studio
While Reformer classes are the most well-known, SOMA offers a wide range of apparatus and class styles that work beautifully together. Variety keeps things interesting, but it also keeps your body balanced and your brain engaged.
Wunda Chair builds upright strength, balance, and unilateral control
Cadillac/Tower allows for assisted stretches, decompression, and full-body integration
Ladder Barrel enhances spinal mobility, hip flexibility, and back extension in a supported way
Mat Pilates develops deep core control using your own body weight—perfect for home practice or travel
Barre adds a rhythm-based, endurance-building challenge with a Pilates-informed lens
Each class taps into a different layer of the work, and all of them reinforce SOMA’s foundational principles: breath, alignment, control, and awareness.