Psychosocial health on workers who practice pilates: A descriptive-comparative study

Abstract

The effects of practice of Pilates on psychosocial and occupational health, lack solid scientific evidence. The objective of this study was to describe the levels of psychosocial health of a group of workers who were exercising using the Pilates technique. The influence of the job role of Pilates on psychosocial variables was also studied. 63 full-time workers (47 women and 16 men) belonging to different service sectors participated; 33 of them attended Pilates classes an average of 2.82 days per week, everybody else (the sedentary group) did not perform any physical activity. The results showed that the Pilates group registered higher levels of emotional stability and optimism than the sedentary group in Measurement 1. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that among the Pilates practitioners, managers have more control at work and less depressive symptoms and emotional stability than employees in both measurements. In conclusion, despite the many benefits attributed to practice Pilates and the growing interest among researchers to analyse their effects on health, the present study evidenced the absence of significant differences in psychosocial and occupational health after six months follow up.