Club Pilates — Local services in Houston

I hate to leave a semi-negative review, but I have to be honest. This was my first time taking Pilates, and I attended the Center and Balance 1 class with Eve. I specifically chose this class after speaking to the owner, Alex, who assured me that either Reformer Flow 1, Restore 1, or Center and Balance 1 would be a good starting point for a beginner. Since Center and Balance fit my schedule, I decided to try it.

The class started fine but unfortunately became a very negative experience. When we reached the resistance band exercises, I didn’t fully understand the instructions. Eve asked if it was my first class, and when I said yes, she replied, “They didn’t have you take the intro?” I said no, and she responded, “Wow, that’s interesting,” in a judgmental tone. She brought this up several more times during the class, making me feel self-conscious and out of place.

Instead of helping me learn in a constructive way, Eve continued to point out that I should have taken the intro class, which wasn’t helpful in the moment. For example, when she tried to assist me with an exercise, she used jargon like “Pilates V,” which I didn’t understand as a beginner. I asked to lower the resistance because I was tired from a prior workout but still wanted to try, and she dismissed my request, laughed, and said it was a “lost cause for today.” Eventually, she handed me a ring as a modification, but it took an unnecessarily embarrassing back-and-forth to get there. At other times, instead of offering clear modifications when explaining the exercise, she would vaguely say, “We’ll figure something out if you need it,” which wasn’t supportive or encouraging.

Her tone throughout the class was judgmental and unwelcoming. At one point, when my carriage closed quickly during an exercise, she screamed dramatically, drawing unnecessary attention to me. This overreaction made me feel even more uncomfortable.

Because Eve spent so much time pointing out my inexperience in front of everyone, other students felt emboldened to chime in. Toward the end of class, one student even called me by name and said I should probably take the intro class as well. This added to the humiliation and made it impossible to focus on the class itself—which I otherwise enjoyed—but instead left me feeling embarrassed and out of place.

What made this experience particularly frustrating is that I had consulted with Alex, the owner, before booking this class. Alex specifically recommended this class for a beginner, yet they never followed up to ask how it went when I walked out, even though they knew it was my first time. This lack of engagement and oversight made the experience feel even worse. When I called to cancel my membership, I also wasn’t asked why, so clearly they don’t care.

Another aspect that stood out was how Eve failed to use beginner-friendly practices I’ve seen in other fitness classes. Most instructors introduce themselves at the beginning of class, ask for names, and identify who’s new so they can offer extra guidance. None of that happened here. Eve didn’t ask for my name until the very end of class, and even then, it was just to reiterate that I needed to take the intro class before coming back. There was no encouragement like “do the best you can” or “show up where you are today,” which are the kinds of supportive comments I’ve heard in other studios.

After this experience, I decided to cancel all future classes at this location and book at other studios where the instructors are more supportive.

It’s disappointing because the studio itself is clean, and Alex seemed kind during our initial conversation. However, experiences like this discourage people from trying Pilates. I genuinely enjoyed the class content and had planned to make it part of my routine, but the way I was made to feel overshadowed everything else. I hope this feedback helps the studio improve how they handle beginners and create a more inclusive, supportive...

I really didn’t want to leave a negative review, but after some reflection, I feel other first-timers and newcomers should know about my experience.

I initially took a free intro class here and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Pilates always seemed intimidating, but I found that, while it's a tough workout, it's not as scary as I thought. The sense of camaraderie in class and the challenge of improving my strength was fun!

After the intro class, I continued to attend Level 1 classes to get more comfortable with the routine and the machine. My third class was with Laura, and unfortunately, it was a turning point for me.

I’m aware that I'm not the fittest person in the room—strength training is new for me, and I’ve never shied away from acknowledging that. I run half marathons but wanted to try Pilates for overall strength, so I stick to Level 1 classes for now.

During that class with Laura, she stood at my machine the entire time, correcting me in front of everyone for nearly every move. While I appreciate correction, especially for hands-on learning, it felt overwhelming and discouraging to be corrected constantly in such a public way. At the end of class, she told me I needed to focus on getting fitter and that I’d “get there” eventually. I tried to brush it off, but it definitely made me hesitant to return.

A few weeks later, I joined a friend at another location—much further away—and had a completely different experience. The class was still challenging, but I felt supported and was able to keep up much better. I've even seen physical improvements, like toning in my arms and legs, which is exciting!

After a 1.5-month break, I returned to the original location, only to find myself in another class with Laura. I’d forgotten why I typically avoid her classes, but this time, I was determined to show up as my strongest self. I felt confident, especially with my progress. Despite my efforts, Laura again singled me out multiple times for corrections, even when I felt I was keeping pace with the class.

During a particularly tough sequence, I couldn’t do many reps but pushed myself to do as much as I could. Laura came over, told me I was doing fine, and reassured me not to worry about keeping up with the others. I felt relieved. But when she turned to the other new student, she spent much more time correcting her, and then, in front of the entire class, said, “Sorry, everyone, we have some newbies here, and it’s taking a while.”

At the end of class, Laura complimented the other new student, telling her she just needed to “listen and she’ll get the hang of it.” When she got to me, she said, “You’ll get there, you need to get fitter.” In that moment, I felt mortified. I had thought I was keeping up, doing my best, and challenging myself just like everyone else. A few of the other students even stopped me in the parking lot to tell me I did great and weren’t sure why Laura said that. That’s when I realized it wasn’t just in my head.

While I’m trying not to let her comments discourage me, I’ve decided I’ll be attending classes elsewhere in the future. It’s important to me to feel encouraged and supported in my fitness journey, not singled out in a way that leaves me feeling worse...

I’ll start by saying overall, I did enjoy the introductory class and it was a good re-introduction to Pilates. By the time things got going, all was well so I will be joining a studio, but not this one.

I’m not sure if the staff was just ready to go home for the day or something but they were less than welcoming for a Saturday intro class at 12:15p with Laura H. While there were several things that made me uncomfortable in a matter of maybe 5 minutes, there was one thing that really stood out. Like many others, my 2 friends and I wear Apple Watches and as the instructor began her intro spill on why she likes Pilates and teaching, we all went to start the workout on our watches. The instructor then took it upon herself to go on a tangent about why “phones aren’t allowed in the back” in a class of 7 people. This was completely unprofessional and unnecessary given the fact that 1) you shouldn’t have assumed we were texting or anything else because I’m sure we’re not the first people to use a watch in your class and 2) you weren’t providing any instructions related to the workout and had literally just decided to switch from “waiting for 1 more person” to beginning your intro. I was extremely turned off at that point but the actual instruction part began maybe 1-2mins after so I didn’t leave.

It’s a no for this location for me. Even though I did enjoy the workout it wasn’t a...