Balanced Body Education®

All Balanced Body educational programmes highlight movement principles that are universal to the way the body moves, strengthens and heals. These principles incorporate the most up-to-date biomechanical theories of movement and exercise science. Understanding these principles in relation to the programme of study creates a dynamic learning experience which can be immediately incorporated into practice.

A Balanced Body certificate is the gold standard throughout the mindful movement space and beyond. As a result, our instructors are respected innovators and contributors to the fields of movement science, physical therapy and fitness. A Balanced Body certification gives you access to some of the best instructors in the world, the most innovative educational curriculum, and a wealth of online support such as educational videos, virtual learning workshops, conferences and streaming workouts, and marketing materials.

Balanced Body students and instructors not only have access to best-in-class educators in the field of mindful movement but are also supported by our dedicated and experienced infrastructure with over 40 years in the industry. Once you have taken the Balanced Body Pilates curriculum you will receive 5%* off Pilates equipment and accessories for a full year after your last course registration. In addition, a Balanced Body instructor has access to continually updated and progressive educational content, virtual learning workshops and conferences, and streaming workouts.

*Discount applies in the US, Canada and direct sales countries only. Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Macau, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, and Ukraine may also offer student discounts. Please contact your Balanced Body distributor in your country for information.

Our Pilates programme is set up as modular course offerings. Courses are most often offered on weekends to allow those working or with busy weekly schedules to be able to participate. If virtual, courses may be taught in shorter, 4-hour segments. Each course covers a specific amount of work designed to create an educational arc of learning that is digestible and easily integrated into practice. Courses have a hierarchy and, though some can be taken independently of other courses, they are often taught as stepping stones toward completion of your certification programme of choice.

For example, if you want to become a Mat instructor, you would take Movement Principles, Mat I, Mat II and Mat III courses to be eligible to test out. Mat II cannot precede Mat I.

Yes and no. Since our courses are structured in an educational hierarchy, some of them have prerequisite requirements. For example, you must take Reformer I before taking Reformer II. However, our introductory courses, Anatomy in 3 Dimensions™ and Movement Principles, may be taken as individual courses.

First and foremost, Balanced Body acknowledges that many of the currently top-rated instructional teacher training programmes have great value, merit and a level of quality that creates a thriving and diverse instructor population. Though we cannot speak to what other programmes offer or do not offer, we can speak to what Balanced Body has to offer.

Balanced Body respects the traditions of Joseph H. Pilates’ original works while also incorporating the best of contemporary research from exercise science to leading full-body movement theories. Students not only learn the exercises but strategies on how to use the exercises to best meet a client’s individual needs.

Our manuals and teaching materials are some of the best in the world. The curriculum, created by Nora St. John, has been taught since 2006. With over a hundred thousand courses being taught and thousands of instructors accessing our trainings, it is safe to say our curriculum leads the industry in how it educates new Pilates instructors.

Finally, Balanced Body prides itself on providing you with the educational tools to help you teach and grow as a practitioner. We do not dictate “how” you should teach. We encourage each of you to find your voice, your rhythm and your style as practitioners. Our Balanced Body Educators are your guides and mentors and will help to empower you as you create your place within the Pilates community.

It is perfectly clear to a seasoned instructor when a student shows up to a test out and has not completed the required hours. For this reason, the hours are self-reported and on the honour system. While we believe it is good to observe and complete hours at the studio you take courses at, this is not required. In truth, we highly recommend that you teach, observe and practise in as many different environments as possible. This allows you to hear cues, observe hands-on techniques and employ strategies from a wide variety of teachers. It also makes you think about what good teaching is and how best to approach it.

Movement Principles is the gateway course and is highly recommended as the starting place for your course work. If it is not possible to start with Movement Principles, please contact your chosen Balanced Body Educators and see if they will permit you to start with either Mat 1 or Reformer 1 (the introductory course that is appropriate for you is dependent on the level of certification you desire. For example, Mat 1 for Mat, Mat and Reformer and Apparatus certification, and Reformer 1 for Reformer certification only).

We have a robust network of Balanced Body Educators all over the world, so chances are there is a studio hosting courses near you. Visit our Education Finder to see a list of current course offerings and our Balanced Body Educators page for information about the Balanced Body Educators teaching in specific areas.

If you have started your course work with another recognised Pilates teacher training programme, you can have some, and possibly all, of your prior courses credited toward your Balanced Body Education. If you have either completed a certificate programme from another education programme or you have taken coursework but have not yet tested out, Balanced Body Education offers an easy bridge opportunity. Contact us for more information.

Balanced Body offers you the opportunity to bring our education into your facility via an onsite. Please email education@pilates.com for information on hosting an onsite.

Yes. Our Balanced Body Pilates certification will allow you to sit for the National Pilates Certification Program exam. As a third-party testing organisation, NPCP certification is an industry standard that indicates you, the instructor, have met a high standard of excellence.

No. In fact, we often encourage students to take courses from different instructors as it provides an opportunity for the student to experience different teaching styles and techniques. As long as you take courses in the appropriate sequence, you can take them anywhere in the world that suits your needs and schedule.

To complete your programme of choice, there is a test out which consists of a practical and a written examination. Depending on the course of study, the practical examination requires each student to demonstrate competence in class design, appropriateness of exercise choices, exercise progressions and regressions, as well as equipment setup, safety and suitability. The written examination consists of multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank and essay questions.

A materials fee includes an Instructor Training Manual and web access to the DVD content via streaming video. All courses require a manual; some courses require both the manual and access to video streaming. Many manuals are available in multiple languages, but video streaming is currently only available in English. Digital manuals will be available in 2023.