VIP Pilates Convention

This Clinical Pilates update focuses on how current research can inform and develop traditional Pilates practice.

It explores contemporary approaches to pain, rehabilitation, movement assessment, load management, motor control and strength development, helping instructors build on traditional Pilates principles while creating individualized programs that reflect each client’s symptoms, abilities, goals and response to exercise.

What does it really mean to teach Pilates? Beyond exercises, repertoire and technique lies the responsibility to understand the method, develop an individual teaching approach and maintain high standards of quality.

Drawing on her education in the USA and years of experience teaching and running her own studio, Petra Kosović Šestan will share the principles, values and standards that guide her work. Through real-life examples and open discussion, the session explores what we choose not to compromise on, where Pilates can lose its identity and how the method can evolve without losing its essence.

Dynamic stability is not about holding the body still. It is the ability to remain organised while movement, load, direction and support are changing.

In this Reformer masterclass, Michael King uses the carriage and springs as teachers. A focused sequence explores what happens as the base of support, lever length, spring resistance, tempo and direction change. The class progresses from bilateral to unilateral and multidirectional work.

Teachers will leave with practical ways to progress, adapt and cue familiar Reformer exercises without losing the purpose or principles of the Pilates Method.

One of the most commonly used small props in Pilates technique worldwide is the small Pilates ball. Learning how to introduce it and create harmony between Pilates principles and this highly useful prop is an art that every serious Pilates teacher or instructor should master.

We will open the VIP Pilates Convention with an ultimate masterclass, and you will be able to take your prop home with you.

Discover how BOSU, fitball, rings, mini balls, elastic bands, foam rollers, tonic balls, Fluiballs, balance discs and other simple props can expand the possibilities of the Reformer.

This practical workshop explores how props can provide sensory feedback, support alignment, improve body awareness and modify demands on strength, mobility, balance and coordination, with purposeful variations that can be immediately applied to private sessions, rehabilitation programs and group Reformer classes.

The body does not move in one plane at a time. Everyday movement combines forward and backward movement, side bending, rotation, spirals and changes of direction.

In this Matwork masterclass, Michael King explores how familiar Pilates exercises can develop into three-dimensional movement experiences. The emphasis is on allowing movement to travel through the whole body while maintaining control, precision and freedom in the joints.

Core activation – the powerhouse, Pilates breathing, flowing connected movements and complete isolation of movement and the body in space form the whole that Mr Pilates called Contrology.

Through movement and the application of these principles, this creates an ideal environment for strengthening one of the body’s most sensitive segments – the spine. Decompression, stabilization and proprioception are just some of the effects you will experience through the therapeutic approach of Spine Pilates.

Experience Classical Pilates through the method and teaching philosophy of Romana’s Pilates. Indira and Sara will take you through the Classical Matwork with a focus on flow, precision, control and the powerhouse.

The masterclass offers an opportunity to refine your Classical Matwork, deepen familiar exercises and discover new connections within the work while experiencing the rhythm, dynamics and precision characteristic of the Romana’s Pilates method. Level: intermediate.

The client should not have to fit the apparatus. The apparatus should be selected and adapted to meet the needs of the client.

In this practical workshop, Michael King takes one client and one movement goal across four pieces of Pilates apparatus. Participants will examine how the Reformer, Cadillac or Tower, Chair and Barrel can each offer a different solution, and how thoughtful apparatus selection can make movement more accessible, more specific or more challenging.

Pilates is more than a collection of exercises. It is a method guided by principles that shape how movement is taught, experienced and developed.

In this Matwork masterclass, Michael King explores the difference between teaching an exercise and teaching the Pilates Method. A focused movement sequence demonstrates how breath, control, precision, alignment and movement quality can transform familiar exercises.

The Pilates Ring is much more than a tool for creating resistance. In this masterclass, we will explore how the Ring can be used to enhance body awareness, precision, connection and proprioceptive feedback.

Through a carefully selected repertoire, we will move beyond simply “squeezing the ring” and discover how changes in placement, pressure and intention can transform the way we experience and teach familiar Pilates exercises.

Joseph Pilates transformed a hospital bed into an ultimate training apparatus with the help of springs and named it the Universal Reformer. Today, the original purpose he introduced is often far removed from the way the Reformer is used.

Reformers have become props for performing extravagant, unusual and nearly impossible movements for striking photos and videos. We will return to Pilates.

First we will observe, adapt, strive for precision and work very hard. Without glitter or extravagant exercises, we will push the boundaries of what is possible. This is the Universal Reformer.

This lecture revisits the principles and structure of the classical Mat repertoire through the lens of modern exercise science, biomechanics and movement education.

We will explore what should be preserved, what can be adapted and how traditional exercises may be modified, progressed or reinterpreted to meet the needs of today’s clients—combining the integrity of classical Pilates with contemporary perspectives on spinal movement, core function, breathing, strength, mobility and functional transfer.

A Reformer workshop exploring the difference between knowing an exercise and truly understanding the Pilates method behind it.

Through selected Reformer exercises, we will explore purpose, precision, observation, cueing and intelligent adaptation. The Reformer is a powerful tool, but the quality of the work depends on the teacher’s understanding of why, how and for whom the movement is taught.

Effective teaching begins before the teacher gives a cue. It begins with observing how the person moves, breathes, responds and organises effort.

Participants will consider alignment, movement pathways, rhythm, breath, unnecessary tension and the strategies a person uses to complete an exercise. The aim is not to correct everything that looks different, but to recognise what matters and choose the cue that will make the greatest difference.

A dynamic Reformer masterclass combining functional movement, strength, mobility and creative sequencing.

Traditional Pilates exercises connect with contemporary movement patterns through purposeful combinations featuring multi-planar movement, unilateral loading and integrated whole-body work, while participants learn how to build sequences progressively and adapt their complexity for different levels without compromising flow, control, safety or technique.

Pilates small apparatus can do much more than simply add variety or intensity to an exercise. Used with purpose, they can help us understand the body, create deeper connections and change the way we experience Classical Matwork.

In this interactive workshop, Indira and Sara will explore how selected traditional Pilates small apparatus can be used to support, connect and challenge the body within the Romana’s Pilates method. Participation in the Classical Mat Masterclass is recommended as an ideal foundation, but is not required.