Once a Week Won't Cut It: What the New Exercise Guidelines Mean for You
The way we think about staying active as we age is changing. Australia's physical activity guidelines have recently been updated, with greater emphasis on strength, balance, mobility and reducing prolonged sitting, alongside cardiovascular exercise.
For adults over 50, the message is clear: exercise isn't just about reaching a step target. It's about maintaining the strength, confidence and physical capacity to keep doing the things you enjoy.
The role of Clinical Pilates led by physiotherapists
Clinical Pilates is a versatile, accessible form of exercise that can be adapted across the lifespan and to a wide range of physical capabilities. Its principles support mobility, balance, coordination, movement control and postural strength, making it a valuable part of a comprehensive exercise program.
From a physiotherapy perspective, Clinical Pilates can provide a safe, controlled and progressive pathway back to exercise more quickly following injury or surgery, including ACL reconstruction, spinal surgery or joint replacement. Exercises can be modified according to symptoms, movement capacity and strength, then progressed as function improves. For those who spend much of the day sitting (yes, desk workers, that includes you), Clinical Pilates can help counter the stiffness, reduced mobility and postural demands that come with prolonged sitting and static postures.
Building strength appropriately as we age
There is, however, another important piece of healthy ageing: progressive strength training.
Strength naturally declines with age, particularly when activity levels drop. Progressive resistance training involves gradually increasing the demands placed on the muscles, bones, joints and connective tissues to stimulate adaptation. This may be achieved through increased resistance, repetitions, range of movement or exercise complexity. The aim isn't simply to lift heavier, but to build the strength and physical capacity needed to maintain function and independence.
While Pilates can develop strength, traditional Pilates exercises don't always offer enough progressive loading to maximise strength and bone adaptations. Combining Pilates with targeted resistance training gives a more comprehensive approach to maintaining strength, function and physical capacity as we age.
Bringing the two together
At Prana Physiotherapy & Health, we don't believe exercise should follow a one-size-fits-all approach. Our semi-private Clinical Pilates sessions are individually prescribed and physiotherapist-led, so we can incorporate Clinical Pilates-based exercise and progressive strength training principles according to what each person needs.
For some, this may mean a greater focus on spinal mobility, core activation and movement control. Others may benefit from more emphasis on progressive resistance training, incorporating weights, resistance machines and gym-based exercises to build strength and physical capacity. In some cases, the priority may instead be symptom management and restoring functional capacity. Often, the most effective approach combines all of these things.
This is one of the advantages of exercising under the guidance of a physiotherapist. Your program can be adapted around an injury, persistent pain, surgery, osteopenia or osteoporosis, or simply your current level of strength and fitness.
Getting the dose right
The right dose of exercise is the one that gives enough stimulus to create adaptation, while still allowing you to recover and stay consistent.
The updated Australian guidelines, as of 2026, recommend:
Muscle and bone strengthening activities on 2 or more days per week
A minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity on most days (brisk walking, cycling, swimming, jogging or recreational sport all count)
Activities targeting mobility, balance and coordination on 3 or more days per week (standing balance exercises, single-leg work, mobility exercises or coordination challenges)
For our existing Clinical Pilates participants, that's worth sitting with for a moment. One session a week is a great start, but it sits below what the guidelines now recommend for both strength and balance. This isn't about doing more for the sake of it. It's about matching your program to what actually helps you stay strong, capable and independent.
As your strength and capacity improve, your exercise also needs to keep pace. If your sessions no longer feel particularly challenging, or you're consistently doing the same exercises at the same resistance, it may be time to progress your program.
Our physiotherapists at Prana can help identify where your program could be progressed, and whether a second or third session each week, or adding gym-based strength training, would help you get closer to what the guidelines recommend.
