Do I need to keep my abs engaged during Pilates?

It's one of the most common questions I hear in class — and it's a great one. The short answer is yes. But there's an important but that changes how you think about it entirely.

Yes — but how much depends on what you're doing.

The abdominals do stay engaged throughout a movement. But the level of engagement shifts depending on the exercise, and before we even get there, there's a specific order in which we build it. Get this layering right and everything else falls into place.

Step one: alignment

Before we ask anything of your muscles, we organise the body's position. We want to strengthen you in a balanced way that works with the natural curves of your spine — not flatten them out or force them into something they're not. Alignment first, always.

Step two: the breath

Then we layer on the breath. Can you feel it expanding the ribcage rather than lifting the chest? Are the shoulders staying soft and down? That 360-degree breath — wrapping around the whole torso, front, sides and back — is doing far more than simply keeping you oxygenated. It's preparing the deep muscles to do their job.

Step three: abdominal engagement

Only once the alignment is set and the breath is moving do we add the abdominal engagement. Gently drawn in and up, working, holding throughout the movement. Not popping out, not rising and falling with each breath — just quietly, consistently on while you continue to breathe normally over the top of it.

At the end of the exercise, we release. Then we go again — same recruitment pattern, same layering, next movement.

Why the release matters as much as the engagement

This is the bit people often miss.

Your pelvic floor and abdominals are made of the same skeletal muscle fibres as every other muscle in your body. That means they need to be strengthened, yes — but they also need to be allowed to let go. Keep them continuously switched on and you end up with overactive, fatigued muscles. Tight, yes. Strong? Not in the way that serves you.

The release at the end of each exercise isn't a rest. It's part of the work.

The level of engagement shifts with the exercise

Not every movement asks the same thing of your abdominals. A gentle warm-up requires far less than something like the Hundreds — a higher level exercise where we're building muscular endurance in an isometric hold. The deeper and more demanding the movement, the more we draw in.

Learning to tune into that — to feel what each exercise is asking for — is one of the most valuable things you'll develop through a consistent Pilates practice.

The short version

Alignment. Breath. Engagement. Release. Repeat.

Your abs aren't meant to be switched on from the moment you walk in to the moment you leave. They're meant to work intelligently, in layers, with intention — and then rest. That's how you build genuine, functional strength that you feel everywhere, not just on the mat.

Have a question you'd like me to answer? I love hearing what's coming up for you in class — drop me a message anytime.