Pilates is a fan-favorite training method for many reasons. This low-impact, total-body workout enhances core strength, flexibility, balance, mindfulness and posture. It’s also a sustainable option for every fitness level to take part in and progress. The slow, controlled movement patterns are effective for sculpting lean, toned muscles and keeping your body in stellar shape.
When it comes to improving posture, Pilates builds strength in the “powerhouse” muscles—including the deep core, glutes, hips and pelvic floor—which offer support to the spine and keep your body properly aligned. This workout helps reduce tension in the shoulders and neck, reversing any hunched-over tendencies you may have developed. Needless to say, Pilates is a stellar addition to any well-rounded workout routine.
During your next session, there’s one particular exercise that’s often overlooked—but it’s excellent for improving posture. It doesn’t engage the abs in a manner you’d expect, which is why it gets so little attention: When most of us think of classic “core work,” our minds naturally turn to planks, crunches, the Pilates hundred or roll-ups.
We spoke with experts who share everything to know about the “Pilates dart”—and how to do it with proper form to reap all the benefits.
Related: The Equipment-Free Move a Pilates Instructor Is Begging Every Woman Over 50 To Do in the Morning
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The Most Overlooked Pilates Exercise for Better Posture
“The dart” is one of the most underrated Pilates moves to improve posture. Its name comes from the swift, dart-like form your body assumes during the movement.
“Dart places the body in a position that directly opposes the one we spend most of our time in—whether that’s sitting at a desk, looking down at our phones or leaning forward throughout the day. It gently stretches the anterior chain while strengthening the posterior chain, helping restore balance and improve alignment,” explains Becca Revier, a Pilates instructor and certified personal trainer at Life Time Edina (Minnesota).
You won’t experience the deep, obvious “core burn” that many associate with abdominal work. Instead, Dart offers something more subtle: a sense of length through the spine and a refined engagement of the powerhouse. “The challenge lies in control and awareness rather than intensity,” Revier tells Parade.
The dart becomes more challenging as your mind-body connection deepens. If it feels like a seamless move, that usually means you’re compensating somewhere—such as flaring your ribs or losing your abdominal “scoop.”
“When performed with true precision, it’s surprisingly demanding. Personally, I consider Dart one of the most challenging Pilates exercises precisely because it moves against our habitual patterns,” Revier adds.
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How To Perform the Pilates Dart
Revier breaks down how to perform the Pilates dart so you can add it to your routine.
- Begin lying prone on a mat with your arms resting beside your body.
- Bring your legs together. If this causes lower-back discomfort, separate them to hip-width.
- As you exhale, gently draw your abs up and away from the mat, elongating the lower back.
- Continue to exhale as you raise your chest, neck and head—keeping your body long rather than lifting high.
- Activate your abs to support your spine.
- Draw your shoulders away from your ears and picture reaching your fingers toward your toes to lengthen your body.
- Hold this position for 2 to 3 breaths, preserving lift and abdominal support.
- Use control as you lower on the next exhale.
Related: 7 Simple Wall Pilates Exercises for Lean, Sculpted Arms After 50
Helpful form cues
In order to make the dart as productive as possible, here are some helpful form cues to keep in mind.
- Prioritize length before lift—reach long through the spine instead of emphasizing how high you’re able to go.
- Draw your abs up and away from the ground.
- Gently activate your glutes to provide pelvic support.
- Gaze down toward the mat to maintain a neutral neck.
- Keep your neck soft by drawing your shoulders away from your ears.
- Picture reaching your fingers toward your toes to elongate your entire body.
Related: Pilates Instructors Say These 3 Moves Are the Fastest Way To See Results in Your Core
How This Exercise Counteracts Common Posture Issues
The dart places your body in thoracic extension—the total opposite of how most of us move each day. It’s common to assume a rounded, forward posture—whether driving, reading, watching TV, sitting at a desk, scrolling through social media or eating.
“The dart interrupts that pattern by encouraging length and extension through the spine,” explains Revier. “It calls for coordinated effort: scapular retraction and depression, proper cervical alignment and deep core engagement—all while working against gravity. Rather than forcing a big lift, dart is about controlled, mindful extension. This control allows the body to stretch and lengthen while building awareness of alignment and posture. It teaches us to move with intention and reconnects us to a more balanced, supported position in our bodies.”
According to Vanessa Johnson, NPCP and director of instructor training at Club Pilates, this move opens up the front of your rib cage, stretches out a tight chest and engages the neglected muscles in your mid-back without being too vigorous on tight upper shoulders.
Related: ‘I’m a Pilates Instructor—These 5 At-Home Exercises Helped My Clients Lose Stubborn Weight’
Why Training the Upper Back and Posterior Chain Muscles Is So Important for Posture
As you age, your “anti-gravity” muscles—particularly the upper back and posterior chain—naturally lose strength. This can cause a hunched posture, also known as kyphosis.
“Strengthening the posterior chain is critical to maintaining balance and preventing the ‘collapsing’ effect of a weak spine,” says Johnson.
Preserving balanced strength between the front and back of your body is also crucial for maintaining mobility, posture and overall function, Revier adds.
That’s where the dart swoops in to build strength throughout the posterior chain, helping you sit and stand taller while keeping your shoulders relaxed, down and back. This promotes more efficient movement patterns overall.
“The stronger and more integrated our posterior chain becomes, the better we’re able to stand tall,” Revier stresses.
By practicing the dart, you’re supporting better posture, movement and healthy alignment as you go about your daily tasks and activities. This exercise is absolutely a keeper, and we suggest adding it to your home workouts ASAP.
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Sources:
- Becca Revier, a Pilates instructor and certified personal trainer at Life Time Edina (Minnesota)
- Vanessa Johnson, NPCP, and director of instructor training at Club Pilates
