truth: gyms don’t work!
CNN reports that 80% of gym memberships go unused. The average cost of a gym membership is $60/month. What does that mean? People want to lose weight, feel better, look better, relieve back pain, but they do not like the gym environment.
In fact, gyms don’t even want you to come and work out! The average commercial health club needs 10 times as many members as its facility can handle. That means they promise you the world to get you to sign up and then do everything they can to discourage you from coming. Those smiles from the membership salesperson and trainer during your initial consultation turn into rolled eyes and dirty looks as you try to find a space in a popular class. Beyond that initial consultation, do you ever get help from a trainer again? No! Not unless you buy personal training sessions, of course. And that’s $100/hour on top of your membership!
Then there is the meat market aspect to going to a typical gym. Personally, I find a gym intimidating. Whether it is the gym rats who look at me like I am in their way or the lurkers who I want to get out of my way, I am just not comfortable there.
I want to go somewhere I feel comfortable, am encouraged to work hard, make friends, feel part of a community and see results! This is what we’ve designed the studio to be. Come in, be part of a very small class where the trainer knows your name and gives you individualized instruction. Make friends, share a cup of coffee or tea after class. After a month or two, you’ll notice that your back doesn’t hurt anymore. People will tell you that you look taller. You’ll be able to bend down and pick things up without thinking about it.
myth: pilates is too expensive!
I hear it all the time. “Pilates is so expensive.” “I can take mat classes at my gym for free.” “I loved the class but I just can’t afford it.”
I understand. I have 3 kids and a mortgage too. I am committed to making the studio accessible to everyone! We will be looking at alternative pricing models and other options to make it affordable to everyone. As I discussed above, if gyms really wanted you to come and be successful, they would have to charge a lot more – certainly a lot more than coming here.
You need to make the choice on your own. Do you want an amazingly powerful workout that can change your body and leave you feeling wonderful, in a beautiful Nantucket-style studio. Or do you want to walk through a room of guys lifting weights and go into a packed, smelly room full of sweaty bodies, receiving no individual attention from the instructor? Generally in life, you get what you pay for.
Oh, and I can save you money on coffee and tea from Starbucks 🙂
myth: pilates is just stretching
There are a ton of misconceptions about Pilates. I’ve heard that it’s just stretching, like yoga. I’ve heard that it doesn’t help you lose weight. I’ve heard it’s just for dancers. Let’s remember why Pilates was developed – to help injured soldiers rehabilitate after WWII. That’s right – injured soldiers, not ballerinas.
I’ve worked with several (very in-shape) male athletes who could not believe how challenging their workouts were. Quite simply, Pilates is a strength building workout. It will focus on strengthening your core, but it will also strengthen and lengthen every single muscle in your body. You will be instructed by highly-trained, highly-skilled professionals. With our small class sizes, workouts can be customized for every single person. After 30 sessions, you will stand taller, look leaner and feel wonderful. I promise!
