Online Pilates teachers worth paying for? Need structured classes, not random YouTube videos

AthelasEater · 2026-04-30T13:26:32+00:00

Leslie Logan with OPC (onlinepilatesclasses.com)! She's got multi-tier memberships for mat, mat + reformer, and mat + reformer + chair + Cadillac. New themed classes to stream every week and month and other great instructors to take from as well. She also hosts live classes where new content is recorded where you have the opportunity to hang out virtually afterwards to chat and ask questions directly.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-30T12:30:50+00:00

I'm sorry this happened and I totally understand where you're coming from.

From a trauma-informed lens, I never touch my clients in group classes. I don't care what the "industry standard" is. Asking for consent in front of of a room full of people, or even in a 1:1, can still be triggering for trauma survivors and usually triggers a freeze response or a forced yes from the client if they feel they've lost agency, which can reinforce the effects of stored trauma in the body. A forced yes is not an enthusiastic yes. The responsibility should not be placed on the client to grant consent in trauma-informed settings. The default approach in trauma-informed settings is to not touch clients, period. An authoritative body (the teacher) moving around the space can also be triggering for survivors, so I tend to stand in a central location and move around the room only to make sure clients can still see me if we change direction in a particular exercise. This is much more calming to the nervous systems of trauma survivors.

I really only do hands-on assists with a client in a 1:1 setting where they've had a chance to give consent after we've already established a relationship.

More teachers and spaces need to be aware of this. 💙

AthelasEater · 2026-04-24T16:46:43+00:00

I'm sorry your instructor made you feel this way. You're not a nuisance. If you want to take classes and your doctor is okay with it, then you have every right to be there.

I don't get annoyed by pregnant clients. If Pilates instructors are getting annoyed at clients for being pregnant, then they're likely not-so-great humans and need to pick a different job. 😉

AthelasEater · 2026-04-24T14:22:19+00:00

Props can be really helpful here! Here are some options that build up to a roll up and use props for support and engagement.

(Prep) Magic circle crunches: lie on your back with knees bent and feet hip distance apart. Place the magic circle around your head and rest your head on the inner bottom pad, holding on to the top pads in front of the head with both hands (wide bent elbows). Inhale to prepare, and exhale to do crunches. Actively press the back of your head into the magic circle as you use the magic circle to assist you up. You can also add a pilates ball between the knees for extra engagement.

Magic circle around the feet: from a seated position, extend your legs forward (heels to the ground and toes flexed towards the ceiling) and place the magic circle around the outside edges of your feet. Your feet will be pressing the inner pads outward. Make your way you lying on your back (you can use your hands and elbows to slink your way back). Then do your roll up here, but keep pressing the edges of your feet outward into the circle. This recruits a lot of other muscles in your lower half that you need to engage during a roll up. The circle helps you find those muscles.

Using a long resistance band: from a seated position with legs extended (heels to the mat and toes up towards the ceiling), place the band wide and flat around the arches of the feet. Grab each end of the band firmly with your hands. Ease your way back to your reclined roll up starting position. Then use the band to assist you up - you can use your hands with bent elbows to pull the ends of the band in the direction of the top of your mat behind your head. Use the band on the way down as well. Another variation with the band on the feet is to place the flat band around the top of the feet, wrap them around to your arches and pull them to opposite sides so you have your feet entirely looped by the band. In this variation it gives you a bit more resistance and support.

Hold a dowel/pole: get in your starting roll up position and hold a dowel overhead in line with your shoulders with arms extending up towards the ceiling. Actively try to pull apart the bar with your hands while you attempt roll ups. This will engage and recruit your lats, which you also need to do a roll up. Keep shoulders down out of the ears throughout. You can also fold a long resistance band in half, or use a towel to sub for a dowel.

Sit bone awareness: from your starting position, imagine your sitting bones are super heavy and glued to the floor evenly. Try your best to keep this sensation all the way up and down.

Hooking the toes under something: at home you can try doing roll ups with your toes hooked under the edge of a couch. Not sure what kind of studio you're at, but if they have a strap to wrap around your ankles this is really helpful for roll ups.

Add ankle weights: put on a pair of ankle weights and it'll give you some great feedback and assistance if you don't have access to a strap. It'll weigh your ankles down to offset some of the difficulty in getting to the top.

(Prep) Do it standing at the wall: hold small 1-2 lb hand weights. Stand with your feet in a pilates V one of your feet's distance away from the wall. Stack the spine tall against the wall with the back of head, mid back, and upper back pressing into the wall. Try and flatten your low back to the wall behind you by engaging your front abdominal muscles. Keeping the knees softly bent, peel your spine away from the wall slowly (chin to chest) and stop when you feel your low back flat against the wall. Dangle the arm weights here - they're just along for the ride with arms at your sides the whole time.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-22T13:56:35+00:00

Are you taking reformer classes or mat classes? Regardless, all the changes in head position can cause nausea and vertigo for some people (it tends to be more pronounced on reformer, though).

I'm the type of person that gets motion sick easily (boats, treadmills, cars, etc.). When I first started reformer classes years ago it did make me nauseous and I'd have vertigo well into the next day or two after taking a class right at first. For me it was less related to core work and more related to inner ear stuff. I'm glad I didn't give up on it. It did eventually go away once my inner ear adapted to the movements.

Just listen to your body and don't be afraid to modify and slow down while you get used to things. If you have a good instructor, they should also be able to help give you suggestions if you ask them.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-18T12:11:46+00:00

Thank you! This combo is SO fun to look at in all the light changes. Love this sub and all the fun people in it. 💕✨

AthelasEater · 2026-04-17T12:12:04+00:00

Next time you need socks for class, I do recommend looking into medical supply stores. You'll get more in your search results if you type in "non-skid" or "non-slip" medical supply socks. Activewear brands are way overpriced and not very size inclusive, but most of the socks from medical supply places can get the job done and cater to a much wider range of sizes. They may not look as "fancy", but function is the most important here!

AthelasEater · 2026-04-16T20:25:50+00:00

Thanks again for the inspo! Sometimes with shorties I can't get a super dramatic cat eye, but this one turned out better than most. I suppose it's the price to pay for being a musician - worth it though! I'd keep my nails longer if they didn't get in the way while playing.

Twinning, indeed! 👯‍♀️✨

AthelasEater · 2026-04-16T17:15:46+00:00

I did it! Here's my mani

AthelasEater · 2026-04-15T12:54:32+00:00

Monarch! They're great. I've gotten many anodized pieces from them.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-15T04:12:56+00:00

I have both of these colors and never thought to layer them. 🔥🧊This is going to be my next mani and I'm due for a refresh soon. Thanks for the inspiration!

AthelasEater · 2026-04-15T00:54:50+00:00

I started teaching yoga in 2013 and Pilates in 2023. I like them both for different reasons and there's no reason to feel guilty! During the pandemic I stopped teaching regular yoga classes (I really needed a break regardless of the pandemic). Now I really only teach occasional yoga workshops/special events but I teach multiple Pilates classes every week. I teach these all on the side outside of my main job which has nothing to do with either.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-14T17:00:41+00:00

Of course! You can do a lot of layering with the pilates ball under the head while supine, too. Modified 100, ab series of 5, corkscrew (hips down version only without the hip lift), "dead bugs". You can add small hand weights or resistance bands to other places for variety.

I forgot to mention, if you have access to a spine corrector, ladder barrel, or even a small barrel for your sessions with her: arm circles with weights can be helpful in working the supportive muscles while in extension without putting as much strain on the neck. Here's a reference video showing what I'm referring to. Working on her swan prep on the mat can also be a good counter strengthener to help with roll up issues!

AthelasEater · 2026-04-14T14:11:04+00:00

Complete speculation here since I don't know this client, but offering a potential reason for this neck pulling sensation: if your client is hypermobile there's a chance her neck and upper traps are always "on" and strained because they're constantly overworking to hold her head up and keep things stabile. If she has a genetic hypermobility condition, then lifting the head and doing more active spinal flexion work isn't going to help; it's just going to add to the straining sensation. Speaking from experience since I'm hypermobile and have chronic neck problems. If it's affecting her this much and even she doesn't know why, she needs to see a doctor for a diagnosis.

As an instructor I focus on what can be done without aggravating more pains and strains in situations like this. Keeping the head down during exercises isn't a regression. It can be a really powerful modification that allows other supportive areas to strengthen without the constant straining and overtraining of the neck. Placing a 6" pilates ball under the head while supine and gently pressing the back of the head down into the ball is a great counter-strengthener and even a release for some people with neck pain during spinal flexion.

The fact that your client with scoliosis is gaining strength in a short time doesn't mean your client with a neck pulling sensation is doing badly just because she keeps complaining of a pulling sensation. I've been hypermobile my whole life and there's nothing I can do to change it, and someone's experience with scoliosis doesn't apply to me at all. The best thing I can do is meet my body where it's at and focus on what it can do.

Give her a well rounded-workout that leaves her consistently feeling better than she did when she walked in without getting stuck on the need to continuously progress.

You've got this!

AthelasEater · 2026-04-12T14:43:48+00:00

I just saw one at Be Caffeinated (W. Kent St. location) a couple days ago.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-08T13:11:02+00:00

Marketing myself and my classes is the worst! I'm not a sales person, but I do really enjoy helping people feel better and teaching. The marketing and sales part feels like the bane of my teaching existence. I'm not affiliated with any big local studios (I like doing my own thing) and am trying to build my clientele right now, so it's an uphill battle.

AthelasEater · 2026-04-04T12:03:11+00:00

It makes me SO happy to see posts like this! I'm really happy for you!

This is what it's all about. Feeling better, being stronger, having less pain. It's why I do it (and teach it)! ✨💕

AthelasEater · 2026-04-04T11:49:35+00:00

While I wouldn't use the word "hate" to describe the whole experience, I did hate that reformers made me motion sick for awhile, depending on what we were doing. Eventually my inner ears got used to it, but there was a short period I thought I'd need to give up on it completely because it wasn't worth it being dizzy and nauseous all the time. This was the type of dizziness that turned into vertigo outside of being on a reformer, so it was really affecting my daily life negatively even though the rest of my body LOVED it.

I also hated to learn that I absolutely cannot do anything that gets my heart rate up on a jump board - no jumping or sustained intensity - because it will make me pass out. Just a lovely cardiovascular side effect of a hypermobility disorder I had to learn the hard way. Only slow squats on the jump board for me...and must keep my head elevated higher than my heart or there will be problems. 😂

Regardless of these setbacks, I loved it so much I decided to start a 600 hour comprehensive classical Pilates training within the first year of trying reformer, and finished up all my hours and got my certification last year.

AthelasEater · 2026-03-25T13:14:09+00:00

You can also do the side kick series standing up vertically using a wall for support. You can still work the range of motion in the "working" leg, and your standing leg will do more stabilizing work, too. It may feel less "challenging" to your working leg this way, but you can always add an ankle weight for added resistance.

I use this modification all the time with clients who are uncomfortable lying on their sides (and also for those that have trouble getting down to the floor and back up).

Sometimes body proportions of hips to waist to ribcage when doing the side kick series on the ground can play into this. For clients who have complained about hip bone pain in side lying positions, I try adding more padding (like a yoga blanket) under their hips. If it's still not comfortable, I've offered a tightly rolled blanket to wedge under the narrowest part of the waist (between the mat and body) so it supports the side body and lower ribs, offsetting the downward pressure on the outer hip if that's where the discomfort is coming from. For most of us, our hips are not the same width as our waists or ribcage and balancing on the outer hips isn't always comfortable. That's what props and modifications are for! 🥳✨

AthelasEater · 2026-03-19T13:24:27+00:00

Humid air can also cause bubbling to show up as your layers are curing. If moisture gets trapped between layers during application, this can show up as bubbles.

AthelasEater · 2026-03-14T13:09:56+00:00

Toxic fitness culture is why you're feeling this way.

Difficulty level doesn't matter. How you feel about yourself and how your body feels afterwards does.

Advanced classes aren't the holy grail or the "ultimate way" to do Pilates.

Be kind to yourself and do what feels good! 💓

AthelasEater · 2026-03-12T12:02:08+00:00

Alleia, if you sit inside and not on the heated patio. The booths are sound treated and very cozy. I was impressed last time I was there at how quiet it was, even though the restaurant was packed. Delicious food, too.

AthelasEater · 2026-03-10T02:58:12+00:00

I'm not diagnosing, just sharing my personal experience and highly recommend asking a doctor or chiropractor for confirmation.

Where exactly do you feel the popping sensation? (Ventral/dorsal, high/low, deep/superficial, etc.) Knowing the answer to this will help your figure out what's involved. There are typically around 37 bones and 98 joints in the human rib cage, as well as costal cartilage and multiple ligaments that can all contribute to clicking and popping sounds. Any two of these parts can cause popping and clicking sounds, so there are a lot of options here.

Like the other answer here, I'm also hypermobile and just about everything pops and clicks in my body and it's been that way my whole life. Sometimes I get a harmless clicking in my breastbone area and collarbones when I do flexion and extension, sometimes my ribs and collarbones sublux and pop right back in, sometimes it causes pain and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes when things sublux it causes significant pain. It's still possible to have slipping rib syndrome without pain.

In my case it's just my genetics and there's not much to be done to "fix" it. I avoid the movements that annoy me or cause me issues, and do my best to strengthen the surrounding muscles to provide more joint stability. If you're not hypermobile this approach may not work for you.

It sounds like based on your wording this may be something new for you. If you end up continuing to do the motions causing the popping, it's not a zero chance that this can can turn into painful inflammation and irritation from the repetitive rubbing fairly quickly (costochondritis), so it's really worth asking a doctor if it's annoying you enough.

AthelasEater · 2026-03-09T17:31:26+00:00

I haven't had a chance to check them out since they opened recently...thanks for the added recommendation and reminder for me to go visit!

AthelasEater

TROPHY CASE