A Review of Spring Pilates in in Noe Valley, San Francisco

Spring Pilates-
1414 Castro Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 282-8850
email studio@springpilates.com

I have been attending pilates classes at Spring Pilates for nearly a year and have thoroughly enjoyed each and every class. Here is my take on the studio.

Spring Pilates is a small studio on Castro St. in Noe Valley, San Francisco. Two young women own the studio, run the day-to-day, and also teach classes. There are several other teachers, all young women, and all extremely friendly and likable. The studio consists of one large wood paneled floor with a lot of natural light and windows, as well a back studio where the reformer equipment is located.

Spring Pilates offers two different kinds of classes in San Francisco-mat classes and reformer classes. The reformer is an elaborate piece of equipment that is used in advanced pilates exercises and technique. The reformer allows the practitioner to keep good posture while obtaining a constant amount of resistance. The versatility of the reformer enables the exercises to adapt to the ability, strength, and needs of the practitioner. Spring Pilates has several group reformer classes as well as one-on-one reformer classes to introduce students to the complex piece of exercise equipment.

Mat classes are often more traditional pilates classes, performed on a cushioned mat on the floor in the group class room. The classes range from beginner level to advanced levels, but the teachers are always willing to adapt certain exercises to suit the abilities of the students. Exercise variations are always offered for students with certain physical injuries or particular muscular weaknesses.

Spring Pilates in San Francisco also teaches a set of innovative classes called "pilates mat with props"; these classes are variations of the traditional pilates mat classes and are very interesting. Pilates exercises are done with different "props", such as the bosu ball, the magic circle, resistance bands, stability ball, and others. These props allow for the class to remain varied so students never get bored with repetitive movements or exercises. The use of props also can make certain movements much more difficult than their pure-mat counterparts, so be prepared!

Spring Pilates offers a set of yoga classes in the San Francisco studio. These yoga classes are varied and taught in different yoga styles (Vinyasa and Hatha yoga schools). Lastly, there are continually changing intensive workshops offered in groups of 3 classes. There are many different workshops and are ever changing, so make sure to look at the website to determine if any of them interest you.

All of the teachers and other staff members at Spring Pilates in San Francisco are friendly; the studio is small and therefore feels like a close neighborhood or family studio. Classes are generally very small, mostly capping out at 10 students per class. One-on-one classes are offered for those who need more individualized attention, although group classes also offer a forum for individual attention and help.

Classes are moderately priced, and I recommend purchasing a package to lower the cost. While single mat classes are a whopping $17, a class is only $13 when a package of 10 is purchased at a time. Reformer classes are more expensive at $30 a class when purchased in a package of 10 classes. Check out the website for more details on pricing.