Before working with seniors, Pilates instructors should gather as much medical information as possible through a pre-exercise screening. For example, this PilatesWV client is working out just nine weeks after her second hip replacement. Photo courtesy of PilatesWV.

Seniors citizens may not be the first demographic that Pilates programming directors target, but many Pilates studio owners have found this market to be a valuable part of their programming. Older members tend to be loyal, have a higher disposable income and have more time to devote to exercise.

Maria Forrest, owner of Forrest Pilates in Miami, says that about 30 percent to 40 percent of her clientele are senior citizens. They often see results more quickly than younger clients, even if they have physical limitations. By the end of the first or second session, they already are starting to feel more flexible, she says.

For many seniors, increased flexibility is the core reason for sticking with Pilates, says Risa Sheppard, the owner and Pilates master at Sheppard Method Pilates in Los Angeles.

“My older clients aren’t trying to get into a bikini or on the cover of Cosmo,” Sheppard says. “What seniors really want is to have flexibility. Because they haven’t used certain muscles, they feel stiff, and they want to be able to keep moving.”

Sheppard, who has owned her studio for 35 years, estimates that about half of her clientele is over the age of 65. Many of her clients are now in their late 80s and early 90s and still visit her 700-square-foot studio twice per week.

“These clients have stayed with me all this time because I respect their experience, get them results and treat them like a human being rather than an elderly person,” says Sheppard, who just released a workout DVD titled “Pilates! A Gentle Formula for a Strong Body.”

To put her older clientele at ease, Sheppard is offering a specialized mat class for seniors this fall.

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