If you’re thinking about adding hand weights to your Pilates sessions, here’s my honest answer: most of the time, you don’t need them yet.
Pilates works through control and precision. The challenge comes from doing movements correctly — maintaining alignment, keeping the core engaged, moving slowly and with intention. Add a weight before you’ve got those basics sorted and you’ll find yourself thinking about the thing in your hand rather than what your body is doing.
So here’s my practical guide to weights in Pilates: when to use them, how heavy to go, and what to watch out for.
Start without weights
If you’re new to Pilates, leave the weights at the door. Your body weight is more than enough to challenge you in the beginning. Focus entirely on learning the movements correctly. That foundation will serve you much better than adding load too soon.
I always tell my students: get the movement first. The weights can wait.
When you’re ready: how heavy?
For most people doing Pilates, 1 to 2 kilograms is the right range. That might sound light if you’re used to gym training, but it’s genuinely enough. Pilates exercises are slow and controlled, and the muscles we target are often smaller stabilising muscles that aren’t used to being challenged this way.
Try holding a 1kg weight at the end of an outstretched arm through a full Pilates arm sequence. You’ll feel it.
If 1kg feels genuinely easy throughout an entire set, move to 1.5kg or 2kg. Beyond that, think carefully. Heavy weights shift your attention to the extremity — the weight in your hand — rather than the centre, which is where Pilates focus belongs.
How to tell if you’ve gone too heavy
A few clear signs:
- Your form starts breaking down part way through a set
- Your shoulders are rising or tensing
- You’re gripping the weight tightly
- You’re more aware of your hands than your core
If any of those happen, put the weight down. Go back to bodyweight. The work is still happening — you’re just doing it properly.
What about wrist and ankle weights?
Wrist weights can be useful for some exercises, particularly arm work. Ankle weights are trickier. They add load directly to the joint, which puts stress on the knees and ankles if your form isn’t solid. I’d give those a miss until you’re well practised and working with an instructor who can check your alignment.
My own approach
Even as a Pilates instructor, I rarely use anything heavier than small hand weights in my sessions. Pilates is genuinely challenging without extra load, especially on the reformer where the springs are already doing that job. If I want to specifically build muscle strength, I’ll do separate strength training alongside my Pilates. They complement each other well, but they’re different tools.
The short version
No weights to start. When you’re confident with your movement, try 1kg. Build slowly to 2kg over time. Keep your focus on your core, not on what’s in your hand. And always choose the weight that lets you maintain good form from the first rep to the last.
