š§š¼āāļø Pilates Is My TherapyāAnd Thatās Okay
Why mindful movement and breathwork might be the emotional support you didnāt know you needed.
This Might Be Controversialā¦
But Iām not a fan of talk therapy.
There. I said it.
Before you come for meālet me be clear: therapy is important. It saves lives. I believe in it. I support anyone who finds comfort in it. But for me, traditional talk therapy didnāt work. Sitting in a room and dissecting a story on a loop made me more in my head. More anxious. More overwhelmed. And thatās what we have to rememberāhealing looks different for everyone. Thereās no one-size-fits-all answer.
What Did Help Me?
Movement.
Breath.
More specifically: Pilates.
I say it often, and Iāll say it again: Pilates is my therapy.
When Iām on the mat, I feel present, grounded, and safe in my body. Iām not spiraling in thoughtsāIām breathing through them. The breath becomes the anchor. The movement becomes medicine. Itās the only thing that has consistently helped me regulate my emotions and connect back to myself.
Why Pilates > Talk Therapy (For Me)
š¬ Talk therapy tries to process emotion through words.
š§š¼āāļø Pilates processes emotion through the body.
Our emotions live in the body:
Stress builds in the shoulders
Grief burrows into the chest
Anxiety locks into the hips
Pilates helps release what words canāt always reach.
The Mental Health Benefits of Pilates (Yes, Science Backs It)
Letās talk about why Pilates is good for anxiety and mental healthābecause itās not just vibes, itās real:
⨠Lowers cortisol: Just one session can reduce the bodyās stress hormone.
šāāļø Boosts mood: Pilates increases serotonin and dopamineāaka your natural mood stabilizers.
š¬ Promotes breath awareness: Controlled breathing helps regulate the nervous system and reduce panic.
š Improves emotional resilience: The physical challenge of Pilates mirrors lifeās challengesāand teaches us how to stay calm under pressure.
This isnāt just exercise.
Itās emotional regulation, nervous system support, and self-trust training.
For Gen Z (And Everyone Feeling Overwhelmed)
If youāre a college student or a young woman navigating school, jobs, relationships, and just lifeāyou get it. Thereās pressure to have it all figured out, to be well, but no one tells you how.
Movement is the how.
Breath is the how.
Showing up for yourself on the mat is the how.
And if talk therapy didnāt help you? Thatās okay. If moving your body is what gets you through the hard stuff? That counts. That heals.
This Isnāt Just About Fitness
Let me be clearāthis is not about aesthetics.
Itās not about abs or perfection or āHot Girl Summer.ā
This is about:
ā Releasing stored emotion
ā Feeling strong and centered
ā Creating a daily ritual that supports your mental health
ā Learning to self-regulate through breath and mindful movement
Itās why I always say:
āLet your movement match your mindsetāor help shift it.ā
Letās Expand the Definition of Therapy
Therapy doesnāt have to mean a weekly appointment with a clipboard.
It can look like:
A quiet morning with your mat and your breath
A 30-minute flow that moves stuck emotions through your body
A practice that grounds you when nothing else will
A walk outside
You donāt have to talk it out to work it out.
Sometimes, you have to move through it to heal from it.
x
b
āļø Journal Prompt:
What movement helps you feel most like yourself? Why?
Wow! TRUTH! .... Excellent article Britt! Share, Share away.