Last month I had the pleasure of working with a fellow Pilates instructor whose current Pilates journey is delving into the Pilates boom and discovering more about Pilates for herself.  We had a lovely few hours introducing her to the classical reformer and chatting about the history of Pilates as well as the “evolution” of Pilates. 

My First Classical Pilates Lesson | 1:1 Training with Master Instructor

What brought Sarah to my studio? The underlying question on the tip of everyone’s tongue, the elephant in every gym…. Is gym reformer really Pilates?  After such a positive experience with Sarah, here is my personal answer.

A Brief History of the ‘Expansion’ of Pilates

First off, let's take a broad look at the large changes to the use of the word ‘Pilates’ over the decades, after Joseph Pilates’ death and from when the method was being formalised.

80’s/90’s:  Formalising The Work. The work of Joe Pilates was first formalised into a training program and manual by Romana Kryzanowska. While other proteges of Joseph Pilates were training teachers, they mostly focused on their interpretation of the work. Romana’s focus, driven by her own teachers and studio clients, was encapsulating the entire methodology.

Joseph Pilates

90’s: The OG Pilates boom. Pilates grew in popularity due to more training centers and studios being established, articles and books being written, and an increase in the number of manufacturers of Pilates apparatus.  

Romana Kryzanowska

2000’s: Anything Goes.  The copyright legal battle ended and Pilates was a deemed generic term.  The use of the label of Pilates exploded with changes to the exercises and apparatus, driven by incorporating physical therapy, science, and modern commercial structures for classes and training.  The concept of contemporary vs classical developed to both preserve the original and to market new versions.  Mat classes grew in popularity in gyms, driving mat training programs.

2010’s: - What have we Created?.  Various organisations were established to try to regulate a widening industry.  Inexpensive apparatus alternatives incorporated into mat classes to increase commercial use in homes and gyms.  Social media and pilates websites began hosting material, increasing the visibility of Pilates and the drive to maintain a corner share in the market.  

2020’s: Mass Production. The Zoom era brought online hands off teaching and cheap global access to online teachers -inexpensive alternatives to in depth training - to complete the commercial boom of a previously very niche methodology. Entire apparatus and training programs developed with no basis on the original method.  The complete commercial capitalisation of the term Pilates and benefits of the original method,  without the actual Method.

Today, gym reformer workouts incorporate almost nothing of the original methodology.  Entire training programs are now based on applying gym based exercises to the reformer for low weight resistance, creating thousands of teachers with no understanding of the original work and hundreds of thousands of clients using apparatus barely resembling the original reformer with no semblance of original system or methodology. 

Is This Evolution?

Evolution is a process of formation and growth, building from the original foundation.  Has Pilates evolved?   Well, the real question is if the pilates you do has no bearing to the original, is it still pilates?

To quote Joseph Pilates:  “Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness”.  While mass production of Pilates does not contain the critical tenants that make Pilates, well, Pilates,  it has brought enjoyment of movement to many.  If you love your dynamic flow reformer funkypump workout at the gym because it gets you moving, than that is better than not moving at all.

Joseph Pilates

Is gym reformer Pilates?  I recommend you decide for yourself.   Try a classical Pilates private session, understand how Pilates was intended to address the ideal goals for each individual body, to utilise a whole studio of apparatus to engage the body, and most importantly, to build a connection between the mind and the movements of the body within that system.