The “Pilates Princess”, an aesthetic defined by lean women in Alo activewear, gracefully stretching across reformer machines, has dominated social media for the past few years. Think glossy ponytails, antioxidant glow and the soft whirr of sliding carriages and springs soundtracking a life of curated calm. It’s fair to say that reformer Pilates has always seemed a very female pursuit.
But another demographic has started turning up to Pilates classes. Enter the “matcha man” (a term I think everyone prefers to the more derogatory “soy boy”), wearing a sporty quarter-zip with a matcha latte in hand. Recent stats from Virgin Active show that an equal number of men and women now take reformer classes across its sports clubs — perhaps inspired by high-profile fans like David Beckham, Ed Sheeran and Harry Styles. Although, anecdotally, men are still something of an anomaly at smaller Pilates studios.
Giles, a 42-year-old fashion lecturer, regularly goes to reformer classes at Boxx in east London, which also offers boxing and strength training. “It does feel very female, which to be honest is a nice environment,” he says. “Sometimes if another man is in my class I feel like we give each other a knowing look, but it makes no difference really.”
Famous fans include Ed Sheeran, David Beckham and Harry StylesFilmMAGIC; GETTY IMAGES; WIREIMAGE
For Giles, the appeal is in how it makes him feel. “In a class I’m concentrating on getting the moves right and breathing correctly, which forces my brain to switch off from life and any worries,” he says. “It’s really satisfying — like a big stretch and then some. Not only do I like the changes in my body, but also I feel happy afterwards.” Rather than checking their phones between reps, as so many do on the gym floor, Pilates fans enjoy a steady state of almost meditative flow — a real luxury in this always-on era. And as Giles discovered, it soothes the nervous system while tightening up those abs. This feeling keeps men coming back after initially giving it a go, having realised (or perhaps been advised) that they need to work on core strength, often following a physio’s raised eyebrow.
“There’s a clear rise in men using reformer as a complement to gym training and sport — many arriving after injury, realising that constant high intensity isn’t sustainable,” says Janine Walters, who teaches at Reform Room Pilates studio in north London. “We’re also seeing more couples training together, which shows wellness and feeling good are becoming part of their shared goals.”
Not everyone is happy about it, though. Hannah, 31, has noticed more men at her reformer class in Leeds, and shudders as she describes performative exhales and “beast mode” grunting. “One man never wears a top,” she says. “And they have such long limbs. If you’re doing leg circles on the reformer next to them, they will bash into you.” Seems as though it’s less a case of #NotAllMen and more #NoTallMen.
Giles says he’s conscious of being a man in a predominantly female environment. “I always wear clean clothes and smell fresh because the room is quite small and you don’t want to get a whiff of BO when you’re in the zone,” he says. “Also, I never try to ‘man up’. If I need harder spring settings, I’m discreet about that, as it’s not a competition. And I always wear longer slim-fitting underwear under my shorts because sometimes you have your legs wide open, and nobody wants an accidental flash.”
Pilates Princess v Pilates Prince
Wears
Princess: Alo or Vuori activewear sets
Prince: Gymshark T-shirt and Adidas shorts
Drinks
Princess: matcha latte
Prince: black coffee (still adds creatine like his gym bro friends)
Smells like
Princess: Le Labo Thé Noir 29
Prince: Aesop shaving serum
The tech
Princess: Oura ring
Prince: Apple Watch
Spotted
Princess: at the farmers’ market, buying organic honey
Prince: flitting between the cold plunge and the sauna
Says
Princess: “It’s really lengthened and toned my body”
Prince: “It’s actually insane for core strength”
If more men can be conscientious and more women can be tolerant, then there’s no reason that we can’t all enjoy reformer Pilates classes together. Particularly since, with more men signing up, we’re going to have to. And isn’t the gendering of fitness — with pink dumbbells over here and deadlifts over there — a bit dated anyway?
Carl Guthrie-Evans, master personal trainer at Virgin Active Kensington, says that he was previously “the male stereotype who would look at a reformer and say, ‘Nah, it’s too easy.’ Then we had to do a staff class and it was very humbling.” Having spent years focusing on boxing and weightlifting, the experience made him hungry for a new challenge. “I saw that it can help with other stuff that I like doing, in terms of being more stable, more mobile, and more aware of my body as well.” Nothing punctures gym-floor bravado like shaking in a slow-motion plank while someone half your size looks serenely unbothered. So he trained as a Pilates instructor and has been teaching for a year and a half. At first, newcomers were a bit surprised to see a big, beefy male instructor, but now his classes are increasingly popular with men and women.
Carl says one of the best things about this is that it’s smashing the culture whereby women do the pretty-looking classes and men do the weights. “I’m seeing women feeling more comfortable about coming into the gym to lift heavy weights,” he says. “Reformer Pilates is bridging two worlds, and people are realising they’re not going to be around a bunch of weirdos. No one’s making you feel uncomfortable. Actually, everyone’s here to do the work.”
He has some reformer etiquette advice for men, though. “Keep your attention on the instructor and on yourself,” he says. “But be mindful of those around you. For example, if you are having to extend your limbs, get in sync with the person next to you. You can participate without trying to dominate the space.”
And in terms of going topless and heavy breathing? “Just don’t do that,” he says, laughing. “You wouldn’t take off your top on the gym floor, so don’t do that in class.”
He says the highly styled aesthetic of reformer Pilates for women is not as present for men, who are more likely to turn up in any old T-shirt (although he personally loves those Gymshark compression tops that really show off your abs). The “matcha man” is certainly a thing, however. “You do see that,” says Carl, who admits to enjoying a matcha on occasion, “but not before a class — it’s a bit heavy to digest.” Meanwhile, other male reformer fans I spoke with insist they prefer black coffee.
If you’re a man who wants to give reformer a go, Carl’s advice is simple. “Don’t overthink it,” he says. “Get there early, introduce yourself to the instructor and tell them that you’re new to it. You won’t ace it first time, like you didn’t ace weights first time or how your first run was terrible. Just listen, commit and have fun with it.”
Because stability, mobility and nervous-system regulation are not gendered pursuits, just grown-up ones. And if the price of progress is the occasional overenthusiastic exhale, it feels like a small one to pay.
