Is pilates enough?

Hello,

I'm new to this site and this is my first time really seriously dieting and trying to lose weight.  Really what I want to do is develop a healthy lifestyle, not just lose weight that I'll gain right back.

My question pertains to exercise.  I've never really enjoyed sports or exercise very much, though I"m a moderatly active person (I like to go do things rather than sit around, like take walks, go to museums, go shopping, etc.)  My job requires me to be at a desk almost all day, though I do occasionally walk between buildings and to the corner shop.  I'm a writer as well, working towards a grad school application, so that requires a fair amount of sitting still as well.

I realized I needed some kind of exercise regime, not only for weight loss, but because I want to be more flexible, a bit more toned, have more energy and just generally feel better about myself. I generally only have time after work, wich is done at four, til about five or five thirty to work out, and I don't want to pay for a gym membership.  I've found that I really enjoy pilates, and I have a pilates dvd with a number of routines on it that I try to do everyday (though I do skip, which is bad.)

My question is, is pilates alone enough, or do I need to be alternating it with something else? I bought a cardio-dance dvd, but I'm horribly uncoordinated and I felt silly doing it (plus I'm on the second floor and I feel like the people downstairs think an elephant is tap dancing above them haha).  Any thoughts or advice??

In terms of  more details, if they're relevant, I'm about 5'4 and 140 right now.  My goal weight is around 125, but again, i'm most concerned with developing a healthy for life routine.

Thanks to everyone!

Well pilates is supposed to be a full body workout, but then, there are a lot of exercises.  If you wanted to stick with pilates you would probably have to get an advanced dvd or a book after a while.

There are plenty of body weight exercises, squats, lunges, push ups, crunches etc. Most of those can be done with weights too, after you get used to them. Dumbbell kits, witch included a screw on handle and some weight plates, are pretty affordable.

well this time around for me... i started.... with what do i enjoy? type of body do i want? & when do i want it? then i had to keep an open mind & learn patience with my body.

altho i would highly suggest giving other exercises a go for at least 3 weeks (or longer), you dont want to limit yourself & you may surprise yourself at what you enjoy. we can give you advice but ultimately you have to find something you enjoy AND that gives you the results you want, so you stay motivated & want to continue to progress.

I've been doing private pilates lessons twice a week for over 4 months now.  I started it, not for the exercise, but to rehabilitate a back injury so I COULD exercise.

From my experience, I've continued to lose weight over this time period, but no faster than when I was doing nothing.  Although it has REALLY helped me with my injury, I wouldn't consider it a sufficient amount of exercise.

I'm now adding in cardio and weight training now that my back is feeling better, and I'm starting to see results now.

So, I would say it is important as a part of your overall fitness regime, but you will likely need to add to it in the long run.

When it comes to habits I'm strikingly similar to you: sedentary desk job, inclined towards writing & applying to grad school, embarrassing forays into dancing for exercise, not wanting to pay for the gym, and eventually finding a Pilates DVD I could do regularly. I am also 5'4 and in early July I  weighed 132. That's when I found this site and started focusing on calories.

Since early July I've lost 7 pounds, after years of trying unsuccessfully to be more active and lose weight...and the main thing that made a difference for me wasn't Pilates -- it was buying a cross-training machine. I'd always been kind of averse to cardio so this felt intimidating at first, but doing it at home, in front of the TV (the best thing or warding off boredom for people like me who tend to dislike exercise), was when I started to see real results when combined with counting calories (though my eating habits aren't THAT different from what they were before I started CC). I still do the Pilates  when I can and I do think it helps a lot for toning, especially in the stomach area. But for me, it's the cardio machine that's made a difference; it just burns so many calories and as a bonus the endorphins make you feel good, while the high rate of calorie-burn helps maintain motivation to eat sensibly.

So, that's what I'd recommend to you: get a cardio machine (I found mine at a consignment shop) and try to do it regularly to see some real results. Good luck :)

Pineapple, you need to push yourself if you want your body to change. Cardio sucks, but if you want results, you need to get into the habit of doing it. You don't have to run a marathon. Just try adding some walks into your day--at lunchtime, or maybe in the evenings. Being mostly sedentary isn't good for you. I'm like you, I hate exercise too, so I just run a 1-2 miles every night. Not exactly hardcore, but something to get my blood pumping. I also do Pilates, but just doing muscle strengthening exercises without some sort of fat-burning cardiovascular exercise won't do much.

On the contrary, just doing cardio without some sort of actual real resistance training won't do much.

 Check out this article from an actual triathlete who did upwards of 25 hours of hard, hard cardio a week as part of her training to compete in the Iron Man. If you can think of any harder cardio than that I'd like to know about it...
 
 Anyway,  in seven months of training she lost 5 pounds of fat. In 8 weeks of proper strength training, she lost 15 pounds of fat.

 You tell me - which one is more effective?

Don't get me wrong, there's good reason do do some sort of cardio for health reasons - fat loss just isn't one of them. Just like with yoga or Pilates - many reasons to do soft tissue work and flexibility training, but fat loss isn't one of them.