Calls for Reformer Pilates regulation amid boom

Calls have been made for Reformer Pilates to be formally regulated, as the boom in the industry has led to a shortage of qualified instructors.

Statistics show that the amount of Reformer Pilates businesses in the UK rose by nearly 1,000 per cent between 2024 and 2025.

But the rise has led to intensive in-house training being run to meet demand, with teachers' association Pilates Foundations warning that classes are "potentially dangerous in the hands of someone who has had a short period of training", and that there have already been documented cases of injuries.

Rebecca Hosking, an instructor at Maison du Pilates in Bournemouth, believes that more should be done to regulate the industry.

Reformer Pilates focuses on controlled movement, targeting muscles you might not even know you had.

Although the craze is high right now, Reformer was invented by Joseph Pilates during World War I, when he adapted hospital beds with springs to help rehabilitate patients.

But despite Reformer Pilates becoming increasingly popular, with celebrities such as Ed Sheeran taking up the exercise, the industry is not formally regulated.

Nathan Benjamin-Smith, owner of Reformer Pilates Bicester in Oxfordshire, said: "From my perspective, it's less about a shortage of instructors, and more about the rapid growth of the industry outpacing the availability of highly experienced, well-trained professionals.

"As demand has increased, there's also been a rise in shorter training courses, which can vary significantly in depth and quality."

Hosking says "there is always evidence evolving and changing" and that "you never stop training as any exercise professional".

"There's so many training providers now, you seem to be able to get a training in a very short amount of time," she said.

"I was definitely trained in an era where it was quite a remedial approach to teaching Pilates.

"I feel that with the increased amount of reformer studios it's more of maybe an athletic approach which is probably coming over from across the waters... there's a lot of changes in the industry and I definitely feel that there's space for some more control and just to keep people safe."

Nicki Fussell, who teaches Reformer Pilates at The Barns in Reading, as well as Barnsgrove Private Members Club and Optimum Sports Injury Clinic in Hampshire, said she is concerned that people will get injured if they are being taught by an under-qualified instructor.

"I'm a big believer in Pilates for everyone, but I would hope, which is what you do see, an inexperienced instructor often then goes and retrains with a good organisation because they feel out of their depth or they get told what to teach," she said.

"If they don't have the in-depth knowledge and they haven't got Pilates in their body, it's very hard to embrace it and to love it."

Fussell took her exams in Polestar over a two-year course, which involved more than 200 hours of work, and has since taught more than 10,000 classes.

She said it would be "amazing" if the industry could introduce minimum training standards and added that every client should check what qualifications their instructor has.

Done safely, Reformer Pilates can bring significant benefits, including improved posture, increased flexibility, and full-body muscle toning.

Jessica Rowe, who has been doing Reformer Pilates consistently for nearly a year, said as well as her strength improving, she has also built good friendships.

"It's the community here... it's nice to have a dedicated class that is so focused around your body for women," she added.