‘Wellness is on the ballot’: Why did so many pilates studios tell me to vote in the midterms?

Owners of pilates and yoga studios across the United States took a political stance and encouraged their followers to vote during the midterms. Fitness and wellness accounts flooded social media platforms like Instagram with posts discouraging the typical focus on core strengthening, and instead promoting the importance of exercising civic duty.

These posts garnered a significant amount of engagement, ranging from 70 to over 10,000 likes per post. Pilates instructors, such as Frederick Ocansey, who goes by flyfreshfreddy on Instagram, shared messages like, "A strong core is cute. Having a voice is powerful. Go vote." In Brooklyn, a pilates studio called KGC Pilates posted a reel with the caption, "An election no-show costs all of us."

Meanwhile, a pilates studio in Maine posted a sign outside their door, saying, "No Pilates on Mars. Vote." Celebrities have long used their influence to encourage voting, but the use of fitness instructors to mobilize followers has been a relatively new tactic. Kiersten Gibson-Cooper, owner of a New York City pilates studio, explained that wellness is closely tied to politics, as elections impact healthcare, wages, and costs of everyday necessities.

Pilates has become a popular fitness trend in the US, with studios hosting pop-ups in various settings, often in collaboration with big corporate brands. In Houston, the League of Women Voters hosted a pilates pop-up to encourage women to vote, and Sabine Hodge, a development manager at the LWV and pilates instructor, emphasized the empowering nature of both pilates and voting.