A 22-Minute Cardio Pilates Workout That’s Best For Warming Up Your Whole Body

My favorite thing about Pilates is that no two workouts are ever exactly the same. While you always know that a Pilates session will bring that hurts-so-good feeling to every muscle in your body, you never know exactly how it’s going to challenge you—and today’s Trainer of the Month Club workout is a perfect example of that. This 22-minute cardio Pilates sequence with Brian Spencer of East River Pilates will combine classical Pilates moves that you know and love, with cardio moves that you might find in a strength-style workout. We know, we thought we were safe from doing burpees in a Pilates class too, but Spencer will give you a newfound appreciation for them by adding his Pilates magic to the HIIT staple.

Increasing the intensity of your workouts will definitely get the sweat flowing, but there is an additional benefit to leveling up your Pilates game with a cardio boost: increased stamina. Stamina refers to your body’s ability to sustain a challenge action over a certain period of time. Simply put, it’s what keeps you going. When Spencer tells you it’s time to hit some push-ups (spoiler alert), and the little voice inside your head wants to stop after a few reps, you can thank your stamina for being your in-house personal trainer—pushing you to get just one more.

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Here is the rundown for today’s workout: four rounds, four minutes each. After a quick warm-up, you’ll start off with a round of core work, upper body, lower body, and you’ll finish off by putting it all together with a full-body challenge. Each round, Spencer will start you off in a foundational Pilates exercise and progress you to an advanced one, spending a full minute on each movement. “You will feel that a minute is very long in some cases,” says Spencer.

When 60 seconds seems to be 600 seconds for your body, Spencer has something to say about this: “Make sure to listen to your body.” Hearing your body is the best way for keeping up with the next 22 minutes workout. If you want to develop stamina then you need to know when you have to push yourself and when to relax. It’s a good thing to bring your workout to and end in the same strength as you started it. For this purpose, take breaks, decrease the speed, and lower down the impact of certain movements.

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Featured Image by Meng Tang from Pixabay