Classical Pilates: Not Rigid, Just Simple
The Contrology Journal
Published: August, 2026
I came to Classical Pilates with my guard up.
I had been a Registered Massage Therapist for over 15 years and a certified Pilates teacher trained in a contemporary program. I thought I understood the method. I knew the exercises. I knew the choreography. And yet something was missing, and I couldn't name it. I found myself lost, adrift in the noise of the contemporary Pilates world, the endless Instagram reels and YouTube tutorials, each one pulling the method in a different direction. I kept asking myself: how is this any different from going to the gym, except that we're on apparatus’?
I had heard of Classical Pilates, of course. But from the outside, it seemed stuffy. Rigid. Unwelcoming. A world with its back turned to anyone who hadn't been trained in a particular lineage. So I stayed away until I brought my frustration to my mentor, Lauren Brandt. I feel lost, I told her. I don't understand what we're accomplishing. She listened, and then said something simple that changed everything: Get curious about the classical world.
