Hi, I'm thinking of taking up a course on becoming a pilates instructor in london.
I've looked into Body Control Pilates, Alan Herdman pilates, Pilatesfoundation, future training, OCR training at Citylit and LearnDirect... but can't figure out which one I'd go for, especially since prices and the duration are different..
If anyone has actually taken courses in any of the above or other training courses, I would very appreciate if you could tell me about the pros and cons, or just any general remarks about the pilates training industry.
Many many thanks:)
RE: Pilates teacher training
dear apple,
i have studied pilates from the age of abou 15 where we took pilates mat classes at ballet school. im now 28. i took my training in london at a private studio. need less to say the training was very good and practical it took just over a year and a half. i was pleased but when you get out in to the bitchy world of pilates if you dont have a certificate that come from a recognised studio then its only trouble, as i found out for legal reasons, being attatched to body control is not a good idea because in the industry if you are a proffessional body control is nowhere near the standard you should be at when you have finished training. I surgest you take some classes with different teachers and research their backgrounds and choose which one you would aspire to be like in terms of depth of knowledge and teaching techniques.
I Think the pilates world is going down because of the usa ruling that pilates is a generic form so on one persons own the right ot call his or hers the only way to do pilates. so in london there are so many organisations wanting to own the name which increases the lack of quality of instructors produced and the expensive raining. that to me is greed 7,000 after to become a full mat instructor!!! no way.
find a list of all the studios visit them with out disclosing your intentions and just feel if you like the studio the course. your body knows which course you need to do. take your time in choosiing and enjoy the pilates classes. i spent 6 months researching the course. just be aware that the pilates boom is over and that the quality of your training determins the lenght of time you stay with teaching and the sucsess afterwards.
i hope that has give you a useful insight to the dilema and i wish you much luck and love for the future.
tina
RE: Pilates teacher training
Hi apple
I trained as a Body control pilates instructor qualifying in june 2003 and found the level of teacher training extremely good. The teacher trainers come for a variety of backgrounds - dance, sports, massage, physiotherapy and most have been teaching for a number of years.
There is now a national standard for Pilates teaching so whoever you go to should meet this if you want a professional qualification recognised by the medical community.
The Body Control Pilates Academy is currently in the process of having its course content ratified by the Qualifications Curriculum Authority (QCA) ( and is the first training provider to do so) which will mean that it is classed as a Level 3 qualification. This is the same level as a personal trainer and means you get about 100 hours of classroom tuition followed by a minimum 50 hours supervised teaching as well as your personal study.
Body Control Pilates is recognised in both the industry and by the medical profession as being a quality provider of teacher training and indeed shares courses and information with other teacher training bodies.
Personally I think that Pilates is here to stay as its intentions and appeal go way beyond fashion. Many of my clients are referred to me by osteopaths and physiotherapists who recognise the long term benefits of Pilates. I disagree with rose77 that the Pilates world is a bitchy one - if you keep an open mind most teachers are quite generous with their time and knowledge. However I do agree that you should investigate all the options though to find a course that suits you.
good luck
Dawn