{"id":905470,"date":"2026-09-25T22:22:41","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T22:22:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/905470\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T22:22:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T22:22:41","slug":"kerry-washington-49-swears-by-this-simple-pilates-routine-to-build-strength-and-relieve-muscle-tension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/905470\/","title":{"rendered":"Kerry Washington, 49, swears by this simple Pilates routine to build strength and relieve muscle tension"},"content":{"rendered":"

Actor and investor Kerry Washington graces the recent Women’s Health US cover with a Pilates<\/a>-inspired photoshoot that, if we do say so ourselves, is pretty stunning. That\u2019s because the 49-year-old isn\u2019t simply striking poses \u2013 she\u2019s embodying a method she\u2019s practiced for two decades.<\/p>\n

‘Pilates is a place where you can come to do it all,’ Kerry says. ‘It helps with your flexibility. It helps with your strength. It helps with posture and alignment. It’s so good for you and so effective, and I love it.’<\/p>\n

While Kerry partakes in a range of fitness modalities \u2013 she lifts, she swims<\/a>, and she walks \u2013 she says Pilates is the most consistent and cherished part of her exercise routine because of the mind-body connection it fosters. And as part of her cover shoot, alongside her long-time instructor Erika Bloom<\/a>, Kerry gave WH a taste of what a typical reformer workout looks like. <\/p>\n

Kerry Washington’s go-to Pilates routine\"Play\"Video<\/p>\n

The duo start off with single-leg footwork to focus on Kerry\u2019s leg and spinal alignment. As footwork often serves as the warmup for many reformer-based classes, it\u2019s also an opportunity to set a consistent breathing pattern for the rest of the session. (Breath is big in Pilates!)<\/p>\n

Next, they move on to roll down on the long box \u2013 a move that emphasises the articulation of the spine. Bloom also likes this exercise for Kerry because it helps release her psoas \u2013 the muscle that connects the spine to the femur \u2013 where Kerry tends to hold tension while filming.<\/p>\n

‘I think my proudest achievement in fitness, honestly, is coming to terms with the connection between my mind and my body,’ Kerry says. ‘It’s so important in my work as an actor, but also just in my everyday life, that I come to fitness to be embodied emotionally, psychologically, and physically.’<\/p>\n

Swan, a back extension exercise, comes next, followed by legs (or feet) in straps, which Bloom has Kerry perform squeezing a magic circle<\/a> in between her legs to activate her inner thighs. And, finally, the session ends with a standing lunge for a stretch.<\/p>\n

For Kerry, Pilates truly does touch almost every aspect of her life.<\/p>\n

‘There’s so much that you get out of Pilates that you can take into all of your other workouts,’ she says. ‘I’m a better swimmer when I do Pilates. I’m a better weightlifter when I do Pilates. I’m a better runner when I do Pilates. I’m a better mother, human being, friend \u2013 all the things.’ <\/p>\n

Executive Editor Abigail Cuffey
Photographer Dana Scruggs
Stylists Rob Zangardi + Mariel Hanne
Styling Assistant by Lee Hayman
Hair Nai’Vasha Grace using Curl Queen + Oribe
Makeup Keita Moore at The Only Agency using Nars
Nails Pattie Yankee at Opus Beauty using Essie
Set Designer Natalia and Odin
Pilates Instructor Erika Bloom
Deputy Visual Director Muzam Agha
Creative Director Jamie Prokell
Video Executive Producer Dorenna Newton
Video Producer Janie Booth
Video DP Alvah Holmes
Video Editor Josh Archer
<\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Amy Wilkinson is a contributing entertainment editor at Women’s Health, where she edits the magazine’s celebrity cover stories and writes health features. She has previously held editor titles at Entertainment Weekly and MTV News. In 2021, Amy completed her 600-hour teacher-training at Core Pilates NYC to become a comprehensively trained Pilates instructor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Actor and investor Kerry Washington graces the recent Women’s Health US cover with a Pilates-inspired photoshoot that, if…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":905471,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[64,63,232204,229866,428,473361,430,538,137,310278,429,473360,366213,232202],"class_list":["post-905470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-collection-celebrity-workouts","tag-collection-pilates","tag-content-type-news","tag-contentid-7ed7f256-ec2c-4ae5-b69f-710d35aee5c4","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-issyndicated-true","tag-locale-gb","tag-shorttitle-kerry-washingtons-pilates-routine","tag-sponsored-false","tag-subsection-workouts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/905470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=905470"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/905470\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/905471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=905470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=905470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=905470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}