Businessman Anand Ahuja, husband of actor Sonam Kapoor, recently mentioned that his perfect Sunday comprises a great Pilates’ session. Posting his photograph on social media, his trainer Radhika Karle said, “Busting Myths-Pilates is not easy & men do pilates (sic).” While Pilates as a fitness regime has always been popular among women, it has now grabbed the interest of men too.
For example, Aayush Koshy, a financial analyst by profession, took up Pilates recently in November 2021. “I had a couple of knee surgeries and due to so many operations, my movement got messed up. Pilates is helping me get my body movement back to its optimal level,” says Koshy, a semi-professional football player who has opted for private sessions currently. But he is aware that Pilates is mostly known as a ‘women-centric exercise’. “That’s a general misconception. Pilates works great for sportsmen because of the wear and tear that they go through,” says the 21-year-old.
From Bengaluru girl Deepika Padukone to fashionista Malaika Arora, one of their favourite fitness routines is Pilates. Instructor Kavita Prakash says the quest of getting the ‘celeb-type of body’ has led many girls to take it up. “In India, it was popularised by female celebrities. But it can be practiced by anybody and across any age group,” says Prakash, who runs Pilates for Well Being on Lavelle Road. Prakash mentions that currently 40 per cent of her clientele is male. “It was considered niche because of the price it came with. We actually try to market Pilates as a universal practice with many of our female clients themselves suggesting that they would like to bring their husband or son along,” says Shetty, who charges around R 850 for group classes and R1,500 upwards for individual classes.
Abdul Kalam, who runs his Pilates studio named The Pilate Health, near Ulsoor lake, has seen a marginal increase in male clients after he opened his studio. “While there is this misconception that Pilates is for women, I would suggest people try it out first before jumping to conclusions,” says Kalam, who practices traditional Pilates.
Men are also warming up to the exercise owing to the increase in male instructors. “While it might not be the primary reason, I feel that opting for a male instructor comes with a certain comfort level and it also gives confidence,” says Navil Ratish, runs an event management company.
All about pilates
Pilates is a movement practice which was introduced by Joseph Pilates during World War 1 to rehabilitate prisoners of war or injured soldiers when he was in a camp in England. He then took the movement practice to the USA and since there was a ballet studio next to his studio, it became extremely popular with ballet dancers who are extremely prone to injuries.