The effects of Pilates breathing trainings on trunk muscle activation in healthy female subjects: a prospective study.
Sung-Tae Kim, Joon-Hee Lee
PMID 28265138WHAT IT FOUND
After two weeks of Pilates breathing training, healthy women showed greater trunk stabilizer muscle activity during curl-ups, chest-head lifts and lifting.
The study was small and included no one with back pain.
Key findings
01Twenty-eight healthy female adults in their 20s were tested before and after Pilates breathing training.
02All measured trunk muscle activities increased after Pilates breathing.
03Statistically significant improvements were observed in transversus abdominis/internal abdominal oblique and multifidus.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Twenty-eight healthy female adults in their 20s were studied, and they had no existing back pain, so the findings do not show what happens in people with back pain or outside this group. There was no control group, so changes after training cannot be separated from simply repeating the tests. The outcome was surface electromyography activity, not pain, injury risk, function, or long-term clinical benefit. The training consisted only of breathing control in the supine position, so it does not show the effect of a full Pilates exercise programme. The post-test was done immediately after the 2-week training, so long-term effects were not measured.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Pilates breathing prevents back pain or should be used as treatment for people with back pain. The study measured muscle activity in 28 healthy women without back pain and did not test pain, injury, or function outcomes.