“A Flat Tummy Is No Longer the Goal”: A Pilates Trainer on How Women’s Fitness Goals Have Changed Over 18 Years

Just a few years ago, a trip to the gym for most women was associated above all with weight loss, a flat tummy, and getting ready for the beach season. Today the focus is gradually shifting: workouts are increasingly chosen not for the number on the scale, but for a good sense of well-being, healthy posture, mobility, and confidence in one’s own body. This is what pilates and postpartum recovery trainer Susanna Revtye-Ivanova told the Wave RBC.UA publication in an interview, having witnessed firsthand over 18 years in the fitness industry how clients’ requests and women’s attitudes toward their own bodies have transformed.

From a “Set of Zones to Fix” to a Living Body

According to the expert, the idea of the ideal female body has changed several times over the past decade and a half. At the beginning of that period, the cult of thinness prevailed: women aimed for the lowest possible number on the scale, a flat tummy, and slim legs. The body was often perceived as a set of separate zones that needed to be “fixed” — lose weight in one spot, tone another, or get rid of certain areas. Later, a different image came into fashion — a maximally athletic and sculpted look: a defined abs, strong arms, intense training. Women competed with themselves, trying to become perfect.

Today, according to Revtye-Ivanova’s observations, the ideal figure has given way to the concept of a “living body.” “Women don’t just want to be thin; they want good posture, open shoulders, mobility, and the absence of swelling,” the trainer noted. For her, the modern ideal is a body that allows you to comfortably live an ordinary day: move without constant discomfort, have enough energy for everyday tasks, and stay active. “A flat tummy is pointless if your back constantly aches or you have no strength to climb to the third floor. Today’s ideal is health that is visible from the outside. When you can see that a woman is at ease and comfortable in her own body. And this is the best trend that could have happened to us,” the expert emphasized.

Training as Care, Not Punishment

What has changed is not only the perception of the body but also the attitude toward sport itself. In the past, physical exertion was often seen as a way to “work off” dessert, dinner, or extra calories — a kind of punishment for eating. Today, activity is increasingly becoming part of self-care. Among clients’ main requests are energy, resources, a good sense of well-being, and a desire to get rid of constant physical discomfort. Slimness remains important for many, but it is increasingly no longer the sole goal. “Slimness has become a pleasant bonus to feeling good, not an end in itself. We have finally stopped fighting ourselves and started using movement to feel happier and stronger. Today women choose not exhaustion, but quality of life,” Revtye-Ivanova added.

Pilates as a Tool for Regaining Comfort

The specific reasons why women sign up for training have also changed. If requests like “lose weight by summer,” “get rid of my tummy,” or quickly preparing the body for an important event were once popular, today clients more often talk about posture, pain, stiffness, and overall mobility. There is also noticeably more attention paid to pelvic floor work and proper breathing — topics that were discussed far less often before. According to the expert, women are gradually moving from a desire to “fix themselves” to a striving to better understand their own body and interact with it without constant struggle.

It is precisely pilates, according to the trainer’s observations, that has become for many women a key tool for regaining comfort in their own body. In class, attention is paid not only to muscles but also to posture, coordination, breathing, and movement control. “When you open up your shoulders and find your…,” the expert began, emphasizing that body work in pilates is systematic: first the “foundation” is built — even posture, the absence of discomfort, restored mobility — and only then does work on shape begin. “A woman no longer wants to put up with daily back pain, swelling, stiffness, and physical stress in the body. Today beauty is perceived from within. The main need has become beauty through functionality,” Susanna Revtye-Ivanova summed up.