It Was Never Just About Pilates

By Sophia Wheway

We MUUZ girls love Pilates as much as anyone. The soft lighting, the tidy studios, the slow movements that make you feel like a more refined version of yourself for 55 minutes straight. But the reason Pilates has taken over is because it has become much more than exercise. Pilates isn’t just exercise. It’s branding. And the branding is excellent. It has turned into a lifestyle, a subtle identity shift and a weekly ritual that makes life feel a little more curated than it actually is.

Pilates works because nothing about it is chaotic. You are not sprinting or collapsing or questioning your life choices the way you would in a HIIT class. The movements are controlled and surprisingly difficult, but you still leave feeling aligned rather than defeated.

And the studios matter. The intentional interiors, the neatly spaced reformers, the instructor who looks like she floated in from a skincare campaign. The space is part of the experience. Sunday Sporting Club in London captures this perfectly. It is niche, chic and probably the most curated Pilates experience in the city. Even walking in feels like a soft rebrand.

Becoming a Pilates instructor has even become the girls version of boys becoming DJs. One day you are just booking classes and the next you are announcing you might start teaching, as if this is your natural next phase. But that is the charm. Pilates has become a cultural space, not just a workout.

What actually hooks people though is the quiet sense of community that forms in these rooms. Everyone is tired or overwhelmed, and friendships often require more planning than people have the energy for. Pilates offers a different kind of social life. You show up, move beside other girls and feel connected without needing to speak or perform.

Of course we love the burn, the outfits and the mild fantasy that we are starring in a wellness documentary. But what keeps Pilates addictive is the feeling it gives you. It offers structure, calm and a beautifully put together space to exist in for an hour. It is good for your body, good for your mind and surprisingly good for your social battery.

Pilates has moved beyond fitness. It is a cultural moment and a girl coded ritual. It is the calm, cool, aesthetically coherent community many of us did not realise we needed.

And honestly, it makes perfect sense why everyone is obsessed.

If you’re shopping for the Pilates girl in your life this holiday, take a look at our guide, Gifts for the Pilates Princess Who Owns 12 Matching Sets.