Evidence library · Quality of life

Does pilates affect quality of life in menopause? What 11 studies found

Studies of pilates in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women that measured quality of life. 10 reported an improvement and 1 found no difference against the comparison group.

  1. A meta-analysis of 23 trials in people with osteoporosis, 95 percent female with an average age of 67, found exercise such as resistance training, balance training and Pilates improved mental health, quality of life and pain.

    Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 2,120 participants pooled · 19 weeks · 2026PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed

  2. A meta-analysis of 11 RCTs found Pilates improved several quality of life domains, including bodily pain and physical functioning, in postmenopausal women compared to controls.

    Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 2024PostmenopausalCited 8 timesPubMed

  3. A systematic review of randomized trials found exercise, including Tai Chi, aerobic exercise and pilates, improved bone mineral density and quality of life in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.

    Reported an improvementSystematic review · 2020PostmenopausalCited 34 timesPubMed

  4. A review of 5 studies totalling 143 participants, mostly postmenopausal women with fracture risk, found low-certainty evidence that Pilates improved physical function and quality of life.

    Reported an improvementSystematic review · 143 participants pooled · 2022PostmenopausalCited 9 timesPubMed

  5. A systematic review of 13 RCTs with 1,470 perimenopausal and postmenopausal women found aerobic exercise, yoga, Pilates, resistance training, stretching and relaxation improved sleep quality and psychological wellbeing.

    Reported an improvementSystematic review · 1,470 participants pooled · 2025Midlife womenCited 2 timesPubMed

  6. Women with postmenopausal osteoporosis did one year of Pilates or home exercise, and researchers found greater improvement in pain, function and quality of life with Pilates.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 60 women · 52 weeks · 2013PostmenopausalCited 46 timesPubMed

  7. Postmenopausal women with chronic low back pain did 6 weeks of Pilates plus physical therapy or physical therapy alone, with the Pilates group reporting better pain and disability scores at 6 weeks and 1 year.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 101 women · 6 weeks · 2016PostmenopausalCited 22 timesPubMed

  8. Postmenopausal women with urinary incontinence did pelvic floor training or Pilates for 12 weeks and both groups reported improved incontinence symptoms and quality of life, with no difference between groups.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 40 women · 12 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 10 timesPubMed

  9. 115 postmenopausal women with low bone mass did 8 months of high-intensity resistance and impact training or low-intensity Pilates, and pelvic floor related quality of life did not differ between groups.

    No difference foundRandomised trial · 115 women · 32 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 4 timesPubMed

  10. In a trial of 128 postmenopausal women with low back pain, Pilates exercises produced greater improvements in pain, endurance, quality of life and disability than conventional physical therapy.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 128 women · 2025PostmenopausalCited 3 timesPubMed

  11. 30 postmenopausal women did an 8-week Pilates program and reported better menopause symptom scores, quality of life, and sexual function scores than controls who only attended information sessions.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 30 women · 8 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 3 timesPubMed

How to read this. Each line is one study, summarised in plain language from its PubMed abstract, with the authors' own sentence underneath on the study page. A count of studies is not a verdict: trials differ in size, length and quality, and a result in one group of women may not hold in another. Nothing here is medical advice.

Summaries are generated, then checked by machine against the abstract they came from; any summary that could not be matched word for word was left out. Our clinical lead is reviewing the summaries topic by topic, and this note will change when that is done. Corpus last refreshed 2026-11-03. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix the summary or remove the study.

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