It’s a month-long Mat Pilates CELEBRATION! And I’ve got all of the things you need to start celebrating. Find out what March MATness is all about, grab your FREE March MATness Exercise Calendar, and use my Pilates exercise tutorials to learn all of the original 34 mat Pilates exercises that are being featured (written, photographed, and video demonstrations for each exercise)!
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March is often viewed as the turning point of the seasons. We eagerly await the thaw and anticipate warmer temperatures and sunshine, while praying we do not see another snowfall. It is also the time of year when the NCAA Men’s Basketball begins its March Madness tournament.
In 2013, March MATness was born, featuring the 34 original Mat Pilates exercises featured in Joseph Pilates’ book, The Return of Life Through Contrology. Every March, people around the world share their love of Pilates and community by doing one of the 34 mat Pilates exercises per day. Benjamin Degenhardt, the brains behind March Matness, started the exercise marathon almost by accident and it has now grown into a yearly celebration of Joseph Pilates original Mat Pilates exercises.
Here you go! Download your FREE March MATness Pilates Exercise Calendar now! Save it to your mobile device and click on each day to access that exercise’s how-to tutorial on my YouTube Channel. You can also print it out and hang it in sight to cross off each day’s exercise as you complete them all month long for a sense of accomplishment! I truly hope you give each exercise a try and have so much fun! And remember, all of my March MATness Pilates exercise tutorials are in this blog post also just below this Free download.
Start March MATness today! Download your Free Pilates Workout Calendar with direct links to each of the At Home Pilates Exercise Tutorials
Degenhardt snagged a signed copy of Joseph’s book before heading on a vacation. He studied the book and recorded and photographed his mat Pilates practice along the way. He wanted to start an online community through sharing his mat Pilates practice.
Benjamin took the excitement of the ever so popular NCAA March Madness basketball tournament and simply substituted the letter “D” with the letter “T” in the title and began posting one Pilate exercise image a day in March. Questions started flooding in on if he would do it again the following year, and thus, March MATness was born and it continues to grow yearly. It is now a fully-led community event and anyone can join in and participate in the celebration of the original mat Pilates exercises!
The beautiful thing about March MATness is it is open to anyone! To participate, you can simply print out your FREE March MATness Exercise Calendar below, and follow the daily exercise videos on my YouTube channel and on the PILATESBODY On Demand App. With each daily exercise, you can choose to photograph or record yourself, or a friend, performing the exercise and post it on social media using the hashtag #MarchMATness.
Get creative and think outside of the studio! Mat Pilates can be done and is accessible anywhere – on a beach, at the top of a mountain, in your cozy cabin in the woods, in your own living room for a Pilates at home session! If you need inspiration, you can search the @marchmatness Instagram feed or browse the #MarchMATness hashtag on social media. Have fun with it and put your own twist on the classical mat Pilates exercises!
Posting on social media is not a requirement to participate in the March MATness phenomenon! There are so many ways you can participate in building a solid mat Pilates regimen while helping yourself find the motivation to get on your mat daily all month long, forming healthy habits. Simply following the March MATness Exercise Calendar and following along with my daily mat Pilates YouTube videos will help you dust off your mat and become part of the Pilates community! I also encourage instructors to revisit the original exercises as you may unintentionally drop some movements out of order or routine, especially if you don’t like them or or cannot do them well (we all have those exercises we love to hate!).
It is so fun to see March MATness performed around the world by so many different bodies demonstrating these iconic and well loved (and not so loved) Mat Pilates exercises. It is a great reminder that Pilates is a world wide practice. The @marchmatness Instagram feed is sporting a whopping 19,000 followers and the #MarchMATness hashtag has 182,000 posts! The popularity of March MATness proves what impact Joseph Pilates still has on the community and that it will live on forever.
Ready to start your March MATness sequence? The March MATness mat Pilates exercises are the same every year. Below is the list of daily exercises and social media posting schedule, if you feel like sharing! And below the list is your FREE March MATness Pilates Exercise Calendar for you to download or print! Cross off each day’s exercise as you complete them all month long.
No matter how you choose to participate and celebrate March MATness, I truly hope you give each exercise a try! Be sure to view my tutorials below for each of these March MATness Pilates Exercises! Each tutorial below has written instruction, photos, and video demonstrations. You can click on a date in the list and it will fast-track you to that particular exercise in this blog post for fast viewing.
| Date | Exercise | Hashtag |
|---|---|---|
| March 1 | The Hundred | #hundred |
| March 2 | The Roll Up | #rollup |
| March 3 | The Roll Over | #rollover |
| March 4 | The One Leg Circle | #onelegcircle |
| March 5 | Rolling Back | #rollingback |
| March 6 | The One Leg Stretch | #onelegstretch |
| March 7 | The Double Leg Stretch | #doublelegstretch |
| March 8 | The Spine Stretch | #spinestretch |
| March 9 | Rocker with Open Legs | #rockerwithopenlegs |
| March 10 | The Corkscrew | #corkscrew |
| March 11 | The Saw | #saw |
| March 12 | The Swan-Dive | #swandive |
| March 13 | The One Leg Kick | #onelegkick |
| March 14 | The Double Kick | #doublekick |
| March 15 | The Neck Pull | #neckpull |
| March 16 | The Scissors & Bicycle | #scissors | #bicycle |
| March 17 | The Shoulder Bridge | #shoulderbridge |
| March 18 | The Spine Twist | #spinetwist |
| March 19 | The Jack Knife | #jackknife |
| March 20 | The Side Kick | #sidekick |
| March 21 | The Teaser | #teaser |
| March 22 | The Hip Twist | #hiptwist |
| March 23 | Swimming | #swimming |
| March 24 | The Leg Pull Front & Back | #legpull |
| March 25 | The Side Kick Kneeling | #sidekickkneeling |
| March 26 | The Side Bend | #sidebend |
| March 27 | The Boomerang | #boomerang |
| March 28 | The Seal & Crab | #seal | #crab |
| March 29 | The Rocking | #rocking |
| March 30 | The Control Balance | #controlbalance |
| March 31 | The Push Up | #pushup |
Use my Pilates exercise tutorials below to learn the 34 exercises featured in Pilates March MATness! Each Pilates exercise tutorial below features written instruction, photo demonstration, and video demonstration. FREE Pilates Video Tutorials will be released each day of the month and posted here on this blog featuring that day’s exercise. Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube Channel to be notified, follow along with me on Instagram, or check back on this blog post each day. They will be posted here with their day’s written tutorial and exercise photos. I hope you give each of these March MATness Pilates Exercise Tutorials a try!
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Hundred Exercise promotes circulation, improves coordination of movement with breath, and centers the mind and the body while connecting you to your core.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Roll Up Exercise promotes spinal articulation and increases flexibility in the posterior muscles of the body, and teaches correct pelvic movement and builds abdominal strength.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Roll Over Exercise teaches reverse spinal articulation and lifting the ribs off the hips, and strengthens the abdominals.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates One Leg Circle Exercise lengthens and tones the thighs, stretches and stimulates circulation to the lower body, and teaches pelvic stabilization.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Rolling Back Exercise massages the spine, improves alignment, and increases circulation and promotes relaxation in the body.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates One Leg Stretch Exercise strengthens and builds endurance in the abdominals, and promotes centering alignment.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Double Leg Stretch Exercise strengthens and builds stamina in the abdominals, and teaches body opposition.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Spine Stretch Exercise stretches the lower lumbar spins and hamstrings, promotes a complete exhale, and teaches you how to sit up and out of the hips using your core.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Rocker with Open Legs Exercise challenges balance, control and the ability to initiate movement from the center, and massages the spine and promotes alignment.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Corkscrew Exercise strengthens the ab muscles, lengthens and tones the thighs, and teaches spinal articulation with control in the advanced corkscrew.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Saw Exercise stretches the spine in rotation, strengthens the ab muscles, and improves circulation.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Swan-Dive Exercise stretches the abdominals and strengthens the spine in extension.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates One Leg Kick Exercise strengthens the torso in an extended position, lengthens quads while engaging the hamstrings and glutes, and teaches lifting the head out of the shoulders to support the body with the upper back and abdominals.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Double Kick Exercise increases spinal extension while stretching the chest shoulders, abdominals and quads.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Neck Pull Exercise strengthens the powerhouse, stretches and lengthens posterior muscles, and teaches coordination and articulation of the spine.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Scissors Exercise and the Pilates Bicycle Exercise teaches shoulder stabilization and lifting the pelvis off the ribs. They also stretches and lengthens the legs and promotes coordination.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner & Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Shoulder Bridge Exercise promotes spinal articulation, pelvic positioning and glute strength, stretches the quads, and strengthens the hip extensors and hamstrings.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Spine Twist Exercise teaches spinal rotation, challenges length in the body out of the hips and legs, and improves respiratory function.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Jack Knife Exercise strengthens the back and abdominals, promotes spinal articulation and control, and increases flexibility in lower back.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner
Goal: The Pilates Side Kick Exercise lengthens and tones the thighs, hips and abdominals, promotes balance and how to move the legs from the hips and powerhouse.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Hip Twist Exercise strengthens the powerhouse to maintain and upright posture with extended legs, and promotes control of rotation from the abdominals while challenges balance and core stability.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner & Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Swimming Exercise lengthens and strengthens the spine in extension, and teaches the arms to move from the back and the legs to move from the hips.
Instructions:
Level: Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Leg Pull Front & Back Exercise strengthens, stretches and aligns the entire body.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Side Kick Kneeling Exercise strengthens and tones the abdominals, hips and thighs, promotes balance on a small base of support, challenges core strength and stability, and maintains alignment in the hips.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner, Intermediate & Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Side Bend Exercise stretches the sides of the spine and hips, and opens the ribcage. It also strengthens the obliques and respiratory system.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Boomerang Exercise strengthens and builds endurance in the powerhouse, and challenges full body control and coordination of multiple different Pilates exercises in one.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner & Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Seal and Crab Exercises promotes relaxation and massage the spine as a cool down.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Rocking Exercise helps you stretch and strengthen your back, and elongates your spine and stabilizes your torso to improve posture.
Instructions:
Level: Advanced
Goal: The Pilates Control Balance Exercise teaches reverse spinal articulation and lifting the ribs off the hips, and lengthens and tones the hamstrings and thighs.
Instructions:
Level: Beginner & Intermediate
Goal: The Pilates Push Up Exercise strengthens the torso and upper body in movement together.
Instructions:
Ready to begin Pilates at-home exercises? Here are 2 of my favorite Pilates classes for any skill level to help you get started with Pilates at home today!
Enjoy 1 Month FREE of PILATESBODY On-Demand App using the code FREETRIAL at checkout. Get unlimited access to Pilates workouts designed for all experience levels, body types, and ages of life.
YouTube Back to Basics Mat Pilates Class
Equipment: Exercise Mat
Description: This class is great for the rehearsed Pilates student to review the basics or a beginner just starting out. This workout offers a few variations to the classical Pilates order and incorporates some relaxing stretches within the flow to fuse yoga and Pilates together.
PILATESBODY On-Demand The Classic Mat Pilates Class #85
Equipment: Exercise Mat
Description: If you haven’t been to class in a while, this is a great class to return to. I teach you the classical sequences with some basics and intermediate exercises. If you are newer to Pilates, and are ready to move towards intermediate movements, you’ll appreciate how this class breaks down some exercises like the Hundred, Ab 5 Series, and Swan.
I truly hope you enjoyed yourself during March MATness and got to try all of the featured mat Pilates exercises. Be sure to share your favorite exercise with me below in the comment section! I love to see which ones people love, and which ones people “love to hate”. If you haven’t tried any yet, I’d love to chat with you on how to start!
Your Friend & Pilates Expert,
Kayla Brugger
Founder of PILATESBODY by Kayla
Founder of PILATESBODY On-Demand
Hi, I'm Kayla Brugger. Certified Pilates Instructor & Minnesota Mama of 2.
