The effects of pilates exercises on body composition and flexibility in sedentary women

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of 6-week pilates exercises applied to sedentary women on body composition and flexibility. A total of 18 volunteer sedentary women between the ages of 20-35 participated in the study. Two different groups were formed as the experimental group (n:9 age: 28.30±4.42) and the control group (n:9 age: 28.70±5.41). A 60-minute pilates exercise program was applied to the experimental group 3 days a week for 6 weeks. Weight, body fat percentage, body water ratio, body muscle ratio and flexibility values were measured before and after Pilates exercises. SPSS 22.0 package program was used for statistical analysis of the data. Mean and standard deviation values were used in the statistics of descriptive data. The Shapiro-Wilk Test was used to determine the normality of the data. Independent Samples T Test was used to evaluate the significance of the groups, and Paired Samples T Test was used for in-group comparisons. Statistical results were evaluated at p<0.05 significance level. Statistically significant was found in the weight, body fat percentage, body water ratio, body muscle ratio values and flexibility scores of the experimental group (p<0.05). There was no statistical significance in the parameters of the control group (p>0.05). As a result, it can be said that 6-week pilates exercises applied to sedentary women have a positive effect on body composition and flexibility. Keywords: Pilates, Sedentary, Body composition, Flexibility.