The reformer looks like a piece of gym equipment that got lost on its way to a physiotherapy clinic, which is roughly accurate. People arrive expecting either a punishing workout or a lie-down. It is neither, and the gap between expectation and reality is the main reason first sessions feel strange.
The first ten minutes
Your instructor will ask what hurts, what you do all day, and what you want to be able to do in six months. Then you lie down on the carriage and do almost nothing. Footwork, breathing, learning where the springs bite. It feels underwhelming and it is doing more than you think.
The middle
A typical first session runs as a small circuit between the reformer and the chair, with three clients moving through at their own pace. Nobody is watching you. Everybody is thinking about their own feet.
Expect around six exercises, each repeated eight to ten times, with the springs adjusted between them. The adjustment is the actual work of the instructor, and it is why sessions here are capped at three people.
The last five minutes
We finish with something restorative and then you stand up and walk around, which is the part that surprises people. You are meant to notice how walking feels afterwards. That contrast is the feedback loop the whole method is built on.
What to bring
Grip socks and clothing you can move in. Nothing else. If you have an injury or a recent surgery, tell us when you book rather than on the day, so we can build the session around it.
