Reformer pilates

[JerryTubs]

Am I missing something? Yes it’s good exercise, yes the studios look insta perfect, yes it’s lovely to do with friends now and again but who can afford the price of the classes on a regular basis? You can’t get it for less than £12 for 45 mins around here and that’s with a discount code!! Are any if you doing it on a regular basis? I would still need gym membership on top if that as I like to do cardio too. It can’t be people going week in / week out surely?

None UK also...its about £60 a class here 😂

Also not in the UK, I pay around £8-9 per 55 minute class to do it twice a week. If I went more than that then it would be cheaper, but I also swim twice a week. There are 5 reformers in total but there is usually only 2 or 3 of us in the group, so it is good value. I have also done it on my own before which was a bit too intense!!

The only reason I do reformer pilates is because it was/is the cheapest class at the gym I joined when I moved here - group yoga or kickboxing classes are more expensive, and I dont like doing "just" gym stuff on my own. I doubt I will continue doing it if/when I return to London though if it is about 3 times the price as I dont "love" it, it is just conveinient.

Yes I am fully aware they can charge what they want it’s just a shame for those who can’t afford it. You pay 17 euro which is £14.75. They are charging us £25-30 a class which is 29-34 euros… vastly different from 17 in case you’re incapable of maths.

Id happily pay £15. I cannot pay £25. You’re prioritising a price that’s a third less than is available near me.

My gym does. It's a chain as well

The machines are about £2500 each plus equipment you’re looking at £2800 per piece of equipment. Any decent instructor needs to be mat qualified first (cost of the course ranges from £1200-1800) then there is the Reformer qualification itself (~£1000) plus all the hours of attendance and teaching required to qualify so you can get insurance.

The layout costs are huge if you then factor in floor rent and utilities.

If you “pay peanuts you get monkeys”, instructors who aren’t fully capable of teaching or not understanding and conveying the Pilates movement principles of Alignment, Breath, Centering etc. or you end up crammed into a 10+ class where there is very little personal attention and support from the teacher as the studio is trying to be a profitable business running it like a conveyor belt of classes.

Pilates Reformer is part of a method, it’s not a stand-alone exercise but I’d definitely say this aspect of Pilates teaches unilateral mobility (not flexibility- that’s something different and not a permanent change). It’s a fantastic way to build strength and mobility through low impact exercises, focusing on good posture and learning functional movement. My Reformers are from Align and are raised - making it easily accessible for those who can’t get down on the mat.

It’s expensive and no supplement for resistance and cardio but people have made excellent progress and I see lots of referrals at my local studio from physios and Osteopaths to help their patients. Sorry, not a helpful post in terms of cost but might give people an understanding why the class charge is so high.

I do a mat work class twice weekly, and that costs £100 per month in a group. Reformer locally is 1-2-1 only and £45 ph. However, the instructor is brilliant, and it is a fun class, and I'm fit and fairly strong at 70. And I am by no means the only woman my age in class; many are older!

Yes I can count, thanks. No need to be so snarky.

The reason my classes are cheaper is that I buy them in bulk, like I said. I just checked and individual classes are €24 each, I guess it varies massively depending on location.

Tried it a few years ago and enjoyed it but it wasn't sustainable or affordable. Was impossible to book the same class each week and I felt like one work out a week probably wouldn't make that much difference. But most of all it was £25 a class.

The yoga teacher can pay for the room only for the hours it’s being used as there is no fixed equipment. The reformer Pilates studio needs it 24/7 as the machines are too heavy and bulky to move in and out. Also the yoga class could have 3-4x as many participants as the reformer Pilates one which is limited by the number of beds (often 6)

Finally it’s a lot more expensive to train as a reformer instructor than a yoga or mat Pilates teacher. My own mat Pilates instructor who has been teaching for many years would love to train as a reformer instructor but can’t afford it.

I suspect the insurance is also a lot higher as you could do yourself a serious injury using the reformer incorrectly- less so in yoga or mat pilates

I go once a week and will do for the foreseeable - it helped me stay strong and protect my pelvic floor during my second pregnancy (after a terrible prolapse with my 1st)

the classes are only 6 people and the instructor knows my body and is rehab trained.

It’s cheaper than PT and in my opinion money well spent to keep my pelvic floor, core and glutes in good working order!

I still lift weights 2-3x a week as well and consider my reformer like pre-hab to prevent injuries and make sure I’m getting the most out of my gym sessions.

In my mind, tons of people think nothing of spending £18 a week on a few bottles of wine or picking up a few extra nice bits every time you go to the supermarket. It would cost me that just to drive to town, pay to park and have a coffee and a cake!

So I think given the tangible benefits to my health (and consequently mental health) it’s actually very good value for money!

There's a Lidl one in stores from this weekend I think, less than £100 and looked pretty good. Was sent a message about reserving it a few days ago. Did reformer pilates about 10 years ago with a friend who was an instructor at the time. No classes near me now (too rural), so hoping its a good machine for the money and youtube classes to try and follow! Need to improve my core

@Dutchhouse14im at David Lloyd also and some of the classes are free - about half and then the other half are an extra £10 a class. The free ones are difficult it book though! Are none of your classes included?

Lots of people by me are doing a reformer Pilates instructor course which is done and dusted in about 3 days, without the need for the qualification in classical/mat Pilates.

But I still enjoy the classes, and at £15 a go would spend the same on an espresso martini.

I love reformer and go 2x a week to an excellent studio with small classes. I tried another place with class size of 20 and it was not good at all - music in the background, fast movements, teacher had a headset and wasn’t watching the participants. So quality definitely varies in my experience.

I go every week. £65 a week for private 1-1

Worth every penny! It’s physio, exercise and therapy all in one

All the other classes are included but not reformer pilates.
And yes need to be very quick to book onto the classes that are included in membership.

Would you recommend it postpartum or is regular Pilares better for that? 🙂

I did it once and it made me violently travel sick!! Therefore I’ve potentially saved myself a fortune as I could never go back

It’s the only thing post partum that fixed my body and I tried many things.

That being said I don’t believe you can do reformer properly in groups. It’s all about stability, neutral spine, core, strength.

You really need someone spotting you permanently. ‘That’s not neutral’, you dropped a hip, your moving this or that, your not straight.

My instructor has 40 years experience. She considers herself classical Pilates and not this new flash stuff you see on insta. She has a full suite, reformer bench, Cadillac, wonder chair etc. She won’t teach more than 2 on benches at a time and she doesn’t even really like that. She says to do it properly it really needs to be 1-1 unless the person has years of experience.*

And to caveat that I have been doing it 1-1 weekly for 3 years. I still wouldn’t join a group!

I also go to David Lloyd the mat Pilates at mine are excellent with a good teacher. Same with reformer classes it’s all down to the teacher. I go weekly at £10 a class plus my membership fees that I pay each month

I go twice a week at £20 a class. Love it! I have biceps and abs now! I get my cardio in for free by walking everywhere

We don’t have the free ones at my David Lloyd only the payable reformer classes. Are the free ones good?

Oh but please don’t buy your own machine until you know what you’re doing, I’ve seen some awful injuries including losing all front teeth!

Im abroad, pay about £70 twice a week for one to one hour sessions. Worth every penny, my body is healthier and slimmer than ever before.

If you have the space you can have your own