IS HOT PILATES THE WAY TO SURVIVE JANUARY?
The rising wellness trend with lasting benefits
Words
BRIDGET MARCH
If pickleball was the must-know sport of 2025, hot Pilates was the ‘It’ studio workout, with TikTok videos tagged #hotpilates amassing 1.1 billion views and counting. Getting into a class wasn’t easy though, as Hush’s chief creative officer, Melissa Dick found out. “I finally got booked in at Pause Pilates in Leytonstone,” she shares, “and my first class didn’t disappoint. It was intense and taxing – exactly what I was after.” Intrigued? Grab your grip socks; heated Pilates could well be the warmest, most energising way of getting through January.
Hailing from NYC (where fitness instructor Erez Liebermann is thought to have started hot Pilates circa 2013), workouts are taught in around 30–38°C temps, similar to the cooler end of hot yoga classes, which tend to move slower. Some studios use conventional heat, while others employ infrared – which is preferable. “Instead of heating the room, infrared heats the body directly,” explains Jessie Blum, the founder of Heartcore, which has offered heated Pilates since 2024. “It supports circulation, detoxification, joint mobility and recovery without that ‘overcooked’ sensation that traditional heat can bring.”
As with Heartcore and Pause Pilates, hot Pilates classes typically take place on the mat, although you can find versions on the reformer, too. Truform in Beckenham was the first cab off the rank with this in England, where a Sweat & Burn class aims to “make you burn up to 500 cals per class”.
However, “sweat is not a proxy for superior adaptation,” notes the founder of Absolute Studios, Luke Meessmann, who points out that just because a workout makes you drip, doesn’t necessarily mean it makes you fit. When it comes to hot Pilates, the pros and cons are nuanced.
The good? You’re likely familiar with the general benefits of Pilates – the low-impact, full-body exercise known to improve core strength, posture, balance and flexibility. To add to this, “using heat supports recovery, amplifies the mind-body connection, and helps you feel strong from the inside-out,” explains Blum. More specifically, “it’s great for people who carry tension through the hips, low back or shoulders and want to increase mobility,” she adds.
As with sweating it out in a sauna, the increased blood flow from the heat – and purging of toxins – is great for the complexion, too. “Post-showering, my skin felt wonderful,” Dick says. Plus, psychologically speaking, any break from the biting January chill brings with it a feelgood factor. For many of us who miss warmer weather in the bleak mid-winter months, a heated studio can almost resemble a mini vacation.
And the bad? As Luke cautions, precision and safety can be trade-offs of exercising in heated conditions. “Heat can invite over-stretching and dehydrate people faster; core temperatures above 39.5–40°C have been documented in hot classes, pushing some participants toward heat-illness thresholds. That’s the opposite of the control Pilates is known for.”
For this reason, it’s best to avoid Bikram yoga-style Pilates classes and look for a moderately-heated workout instead. “The key is to combine movement and heat in a way that supports the body rather than overwhelms it,” Jess says, whose Heartcore classes “sit comfortably” between 30–33°C. “So many heated methods push people into a stress response, leaving them depleted. I wanted warmth that feels nourishing, grounding, and quietly energising.”
In terms of suitability, gentler heat or not, you’ll still feel the burn from hot Pilates – and it’s not appropriate for everyone, especially those managing cardiovascular conditions where heat is contraindicated. In addition, those with heat intolerance or skin conditions, pregnant women, and anyone recovering from illness should ask questions before booking in, advises Jessie.
The perfect partner to other workouts, she recommends weaving together hot Pilates and non-heated training while allowing time for rest, recovery and walking in nature. It sounds like a superior recipe for seeing off the winter blues. Count us in.
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Bridget March is a beauty director and consultant. Follow her on Instagram at @bridgetmarch.