Through the passion of Pilates Education, the temperature of the Pilates industry can be felt. According to what we are seeing both in empirically in research and anecdotally through our international network of Educators and Teacher Trainers, post covid, world-wide, Pilates is indeed hot. Studios and facilities are struggling to find qualified instructors and, inclusive of online and hybrid learning opportunities, quality teacher training has become more important than ever. Across our vast international team of Educators, all trainings are seeing increased numbers and consistency of offerings. We are also seeing that the student learning is shifting and changing to meet the needs of studios, to support student learning preferences, and to fill the consumer demand for quality Pilates mind-body instruction.
Without exception, worldwide, facilities need instructors who are as skilled and adept in teaching groups as they are teaching individuals. Post-covid, the trend toward group Reformer classes has skyrocketed. Instructors who are not only excellent in front of a group, but who can provide and deliver a dynamic Pilates experience safely and effectively, are in high demand. This trend is showing up in places such as the Middle East, the UK, and Canada and has been present pre-Covid in Australia. The opportunity, and the challenge, is the responsible delivery of Pilates education to support a safe, effective, and truly Pilates experience in a group environment.
The learner expectations have also changed. With Zoom and other online/virtual learning options available, students can study with masters who can be anywhere in the world. Literally, every classroom is potentially an international one. Here we see opportunity and challenge. What is our responsibility, as teaching agents, to set standards of education? How can you take the best of the digital tools we have used to support our interests during covid and use them to their best advantage in an ongoing learning environment? Regardless of my personal bias (whenever I talk about digital learning I feel old and try to refrain from stating… ‘in my day we didn’t even have manuals’), my daughter and her generation will know only education that is blended, asynchronistic, diverse and international, which means we need to seek answers to these questions as we continue to settle into the changing teaching landscape.
This brings up the last point, the end user, the client. The client, just like the learner, prefers the high-quality, high-touch experience of in-person. But, enjoys mixing it with and adding in digital options. The consumer and client are also actively engaged in reading about, researching and seeking Pilates for what it brings as a wellness modality and for its support of total health and longevity of activity. This is universal, across the globe, and by far the most promising of outcomes as it means Pilates, as Pilates, and, for Pilates, and, about Pilates, has become synonymous with health and wellbeing. This is good news for the longevity of career and professional opportunities within our industry.
Regardless of language, space, time and experience, Pilates is a worldwide brand. Our post-covid tools allow us to interact, support and nurture the global community and provide Pilates professionals with tools that can help to support continued growth. It is my hope that we meet this new blended learning world with the sense of responsibility required to grow the Pilates brand by going deeper into the roots of awareness and experience that have made Pilates, the movement tool of choice to empower, support, strengthen, and engage the world-wide audience who seek to unlock their own potential.
