Six reformers, six people, £24 a class, in the room at the back
Reformer Pilates
Six reformer beds in the room at the back of the schoolroom, six people to a class, taught by Sam and Ruth: the springs and the carriage make Pilates precise for beginners and demanding for the experienced, and six to a class means the teacher adjusts every one. Booked only, £24 a class or five for £110.
The reformer is a sprung bed with a sliding carriage, and it is the piece of Pilates equipment that most people find makes the method make sense: the springs show you where you are cheating and support you where you cannot yet. Six beds, six people, and a teacher who adjusts each of you, which is why it costs more than a mat class.
Reformer classes run in three levels like the mat classes. Reformer foundations is where everyone starts, whatever their mat experience, because the equipment has its own vocabulary: three sessions and you have it. Open reformer is the standing, kneeling and side-lying work with the box and the jump board; strong reformer adds the long spring work and the harder series. Every class is fifty minutes and every bed is cleaned between classes, with grip socks required and sold at the desk for £6 or brought from home.
Reformer is the class physios most often send people to for a back or a knee, and Ruth, who teaches most of the foundations classes, has thirty years in it. Private sessions on the reformer (£65 an hour, or £90 for two of you) are how people with a specific problem start, with a plan to move into the six-person classes when ready. Reformer classes are booked only, up to two weeks ahead, because six spaces go quickly; the waiting list in the app works.
What is included
- Six reformer beds, six people
- Foundations, open and strong
- Taught by Sam and Ruth
- Fifty minutes, beds cleaned between classes
- Private sessions to start, then the class
- Booked two weeks ahead, with a waiting list
What it costs
£24 a class, five for £110. A private hour on the reformer is £65. Not included in the unlimited mat pass; a first reformer class is £18. The schedule page has every class, the levels explained, every pass and every price. Mats and props are provided.
Questions about reformer
Do I need mat experience first?
No. Reformer foundations assumes nothing, and some people find the springs easier to learn with than the mat. Three foundations classes before an open class is the only rule.
Why is it not on the unlimited pass?
Because six people to a teacher costs us more than fourteen, and an unlimited pass that included reformer would have to be twice the price for everyone. The five-class reformer pass is the sensible route.
Your first class is £8. Read the first-visit page, then come.
Any gentle or open mat class, mats and props provided, the teacher told you are new, and the kinder version of every pose offered without being asked. Book in the app, send the form, or walk in ten minutes early; the desk is open half an hour before each class.