Pilates for beginners

Updated

Pilates for beginners starts with one decision, mat or reformer, and one booking: a class labeled intro, fundamentals or level 1. Wear fitted clothes, bring grip socks for reformer, arrive 10 to 15 minutes early and tell the instructor you’re new. Plan on a few weeks of beginner classes before moving up.

Step 1: Choose mat or reformer

Both teach the same method. The difference is equipment and price.

  • Mat pilates uses your body weight on the floor. It’s cheaper and easier to find, and gyms often include it.
  • Reformer pilates uses a spring-loaded machine. It costs more per class, and the first few sessions include learning the machine.

Not sure? Start with whichever is closer to home and fits your budget. You can switch later. The trade-offs are laid out in reformer vs mat pilates, and every other format is in types of pilates classes.

Step 2: Find a beginner class

The class name tells you more than the studio’s marketing. Look for:

  • Intro, introduction or first class
  • Fundamentals, foundations or essentials
  • Beginner or level 1

“All levels” classes welcome beginners, but instructors won’t stop to explain much. Save them for your second or third week.

Search beginner pilates near me to find studios near you. Each studio page lists hours with the date we last checked them, plus the Google rating and any prices the studio publishes.

Step 3: Use the intro offer

Many studios discount your first class or first week. Club Pilates, for example, offers a free 30-minute intro class with no credit card required[3]. Independent studios more often sell a small starter pack or an intro week.

Try two or three studios this way before you buy a pack or membership anywhere.

Step 4: Get ready for class one

What to wear: fitted leggings or shorts and a fitted shirt. Loose clothes slide around when you lie down and can catch in reformer springs. Full list in what to wear to pilates.

What to bring: grip socks for reformer classes (most studios require them and sell them at the desk), a water bottle, and nothing that jangles.

When to arrive: 10 to 15 minutes early. You’ll sign a waiver, and in a reformer class the instructor will show you the machine.

What to say: tell the instructor it’s your first class, and mention any injury, surgery or pregnancy before class starts.

Step 5: Know what happens in the room

Mat classes start on your back on the mat and move through short series of exercises, with the instructor calling breathing and counts. Reformer classes do the same on the machine, with spring changes between series. Our reformer pilates for beginners guide explains the machine part by part.

Expect to feel slow and a little lost the first time. Everyone in the room was a beginner once, and most of them remember it.

Step 6: Plan your first month

Book beginner classes for the first few weeks. Twice a week is a common starting pace: often enough to remember the set-up and the names of exercises between visits.

Move up to all-levels classes when you can follow the cues without watching the person next to you. On the reformer, that also means setting your own springs.

What your first month costs

Across the 61 studios in our directory that publish a drop-in price, the median single class is $39. Range: $10 to $99. A month of twice-weekly drop-ins adds up fast, so price a pack or membership once the intro offer runs out. For the full breakdown, see how much pilates classes cost.

Etiquette in one paragraph

Arrive on time, since late arrivals miss the set-up. Silence your phone. Wipe down your reformer or mat if the studio asks. Reset the springs at the end of class if the studio asks you to. Cancel inside the studio’s window if you can’t make it, because many studios charge for late cancellations.

Find a beginner-friendly studio

We list 12,992 pilates studios across the US, and 15 cities have their own page so far. Search pilates near me, or start with a city below. New to the method itself? Read what pilates is first.

FAQ

Can a complete beginner do pilates?

Yes. Studios run classes for people who have never done pilates, usually labeled intro, fundamentals or level 1. You don’t need a set fitness level or any experience. Tell the instructor you’re new, and mention any injury, surgery or pregnancy before class so they can offer options during the exercises.

Should beginners start with mat or reformer pilates?

Either works. Mat classes cost less, are easier to find and teach the method without a machine to learn. Reformer classes cost more but give spring support and resistance. If budget decides, start on the mat. If a reformer studio near you offers an intro class, that’s a good way to try the machine.

How often should a beginner do pilates?

There’s no required number. Twice a week is a common starting pace, often enough to remember the exercises and set-up between classes. Once a week works if that’s what your schedule allows. Pick a rhythm you can keep for a month, then adjust. Studio memberships are often priced around weekly attendance.

How long until I’m not a beginner anymore?

There’s no fixed point. A practical sign is when you can follow the instructor’s cues without watching others and, on the reformer, set your own springs and straps. For many people that takes a few weeks of regular classes. At that point, try an all-levels class and see how it feels.

What should I avoid in my first pilates class?

Avoid booking an advanced or all-levels class, wearing loose clothes that ride up, and pushing through anything that feels wrong. Don’t skip telling the instructor about injuries or pregnancy. On the reformer, don’t step on or off the carriage until the instructor shows you how, because it slides.