For most triathletes, yes, as one supporting session a week, or two in the off-season, alongside swim, bike and run training and strength work rather than in place of any of them. It is most useful for what the three sports rely on but do not train well by themselves: shoulder and upper-back control for the freestyle stroke, hip and trunk control in a position held for hours on the bike, and holding your running form when you are already tired.
Because training already fills most of the week, a session earns its place only if it is planned around your race calendar and key sessions.
What does each discipline ask of the body?
Swimming: the catch, the pull and the body roll
In freestyle the arm reaches overhead, catches the water and pulls back under the body while the shoulder rotates inward, thousands of times a session, and the body rolls through the upper back so the arm can reach long. Shoulder pain is common in swimmers, and in a review of 12 studies Feijen and colleagues found it was linked to swim-training volume, most clearly in adolescent competitive swimmers1. Hill and colleagues found moderate-certainty evidence linking shoulder pain to joint laxity, the range of inward and outward rotation, and a history of previous pain2.
The aim is overhead reach from the upper back rather than an arched lower back, with the shoulder blades controlled through the pull. Extension over the spine corrector and the push-through on the trapeze table (Cadillac) train the upper back to extend with the arms overhead, close to a long streamline position. Arm work on the trapeze table against Pilates equipment springs follows the path of the pull with the trunk held still, and seated rotation on the reformer or the stability chair trains the turn through the rib cage that body roll depends on.
Cycling: hours with the hips folded
On the bike, and more so on aero bars, the hips stay flexed and the trunk leans forward for hours, while the pelvis has to stay still on the saddle so the drive goes into the pedals. Heavy strength training has the strongest evidence for cycling economy, according to a review by Rønnestad and Mujika3, so loaded leg work is part of the strength and conditioning side of our sessions, similar to what you would do in a gym but with more focus on controlling the movement.
The equipment adds control and range. Single-leg footwork on the stability chair, pressing the pedal down and letting it return slowly, follows the downstroke with the pelvis held level. Bridging and hip extension on the reformer, and leg work on the trapeze table against Pilates equipment springs, train the glutes through the hip range that the bike rarely uses. Lunges on the reformer and extension over the ladder barrel take the hips and spine the other way after hours folded forward.
Running off the bike
Running after cycling is where fatigue shows. Bonacci and colleagues had 15 moderately trained triathletes run after a 45-minute hard ride and found that leg movement and muscle activity changed in 7 of them. The change in ankle angle at foot contact alone explained about two-thirds of the change in oxygen cost of running4. Single-leg step-ups and footwork on the stability chair train the pelvis to stay level on one leg and the ankle to stay controlled. Fiona, a triathlete who trains with us, describes the goal plainly: “In terms of the longer hours training week, I feel I’m better able to hold my form even when I get more fatigued.” Her sessions worked a lot on the glutes, she says, “learning how to engage it, especially when I’m tired.”
How does Pilates fit into a triathlon training week?
In a survey of 390 long-distance triathletes by Luckin and colleagues, training averaged about 15 hours a week, and among those who did no strength training, 53% gave time as a reason and a similar share said they lacked knowledge of how to progress the exercises and do them well5. Fiona put it the same way: “Training for a triathlon takes up a lot of time already, on top of a full-time job. But when I came here, I realized that actually I could be more efficient in all of the three sports.”
A review of five trials in highly trained cyclists by Yamamoto and colleagues found that the studies which replaced part of the endurance training with resistance training improved cycling performance, while the two that simply added it on top did not6. The evidence is thin, but the practical point is to agree with your coach what the session replaces rather than adding another hour.
Off-season and base
This is the time for new and harder work, about twice a week, including anything specific from your assessment, such as restricted overhead reach.
Build phase
As volume and brick sessions increase, drop to about one maintenance session a week, after an easy swim or on a recovery day rather than before a long ride or a brick. Keep the exercises familiar, with small progressions.
Taper, race week and between races
Reduce the load and keep the movements, with nothing new. After a race, spend the first week or two on easy mobility, then reassess before the next block, because the demands of a sprint and a half-distance race differ.
What does the research show?
Well established. Strength training helps endurance athletes. Rønnestad and Mujika found heavy or explosive strength training improved running economy, with heavy training recommended for cycling economy, though effects at the lactate threshold were mixed3. Beattie and colleagues reviewed 26 controlled studies in trained endurance athletes and found strength training improved economy and time-trial performance7. None of this was Pilates.
Specific to triathletes, but small. Luckin-Baldwin and colleagues randomised 25 long-distance triathletes to 26 weeks of progressive strength training plus endurance training, or endurance training alone. The strength group improved cycling economy in the first 14 weeks and running economy in the second half, with no change in body mass, and the endurance-only group did not improve economy8. The programme was heavy lifting, not Pilates.
Associations, not causes. The shoulder reviews link pain with training volume and shoulder range, and Hill and colleagues rated no risk factor as high certainty2. The bike-to-run changes come from one small study in which only some triathletes were affected4.
Specific to Pilates, very limited. We have not found a controlled trial of Pilates in triathletes, so any benefit to triathlon results is unproven.
Practical application. The exercise choices and timing above apply standard training principles: train a movement close to how it is used, add load gradually and manage fatigue around key sessions. They are reasoned recommendations, adjusted after an assessment.
Does Pilates replace strength training, coaching or physio?
No, and at Peak Performance the sessions are not purely Pilates. We combine Pilates principles with strength and conditioning principles, and mix in strength and conditioning work depending on your goal, with more focus on control of movement. Fiona describes the studio speaking to her coaches about the areas she needed to improve and going with her to her bike fitting session. If you are injured, your physiotherapist leads, and we align with your coach, gym trainer and physiotherapist on goals and programming.
Where to start
Start with an assessment rather than a class. The 55-minute initial consultation looks at how you move, compares that with what swimming, cycling and running ask of you, and takes your race calendar into account. The programme, a mix of Pilates and strength and conditioning work set by your goal, is then built, progressively loaded and reassessed through the season, with exercises to take away between sessions.