Hot Mat Pilates at Sweat and Tonic – My Thoughts

For my birthday this year I wanted to try a hot mat Pilates class at Sweat and Tonic in Toronto. The room was packed—about 50 people—with the instructor up front, mic’d up and guiding us through a high-energy sequence with blaring music. It was a vibe, no doubt.

We started with some core work, moved into side-lying clamshells, hip abduction and extension, tons of planking, more clamshells on the other side, then back to abs—leg raises, ab curls—and finished with a lunge series using yoga blocks. Total booty burner. Each sequence was prefaced with “next on deck” and some exercises were coined “the finisher”. It was sweaty, intense, and trendy. And I get the appeal.

But here’s the thing—this isn’t Pilates. It’s a fitness class using Pilates-inspired exercises. As someone who has been teaching Pilates for over 13 years, and not because I’m clinging to the past, I say this from a place of deep respect for the method. I’ve built a career around understanding and teaching the original work and its principles and most importantly understanding human anatomy and the physiology of each exercise.

This class didn’t include the fundamentals Joseph Pilates intended: concentration, control, precision, breath, centering, and flow. There were no form or alignment corrections, no real cueing beyond a countdown. It was more like HIIT with Pilates-flavored movements. And that’s fine. It’s having its moment, and it’s drawing attention to the method—which I think is a positive thing.

But let’s be clear: this is not classical or even contemporary Pilates as it was meant to be practiced.

Boutique studios that stay rooted in the method aren’t going anywhere. We hold onto the foundation because it works. The trends will come and they will go, but the method will remain. So if you own a small boutique studio like me, I can re-assure you that these spaces are not your competition, they are not even in the same class. We’re talking about two entirely different business models and both cater to specific needs. So keep doing the classical or the contemporary, be true to your teachings, but also be open to learning about what’s out there and what people are saying, what people want and what people need.

Bottom line, boutique studios are here to stay, nothing compares to what we offer.

Jocelyne Pelchat · MSc-Neuro
President & Founder - Cornerstone Movement Institute
Movement Specialist - CPT · NCPT® · 
RYT - ELDOA®
905-631-8352
www.cornerstonemovementinstitute.com