Classical Pilates in Los Angeles

Classical Pilates is the method as Joseph Pilates taught it. He called it Contrology, and he described it as "complete coordination of body, mind, and spirit." We teach it one-on-one, in a private studio on N Highland Ave, near West Hollywood.

What classical means here

Joe built a set repertoire of exercises, a set order to move through them, and his own apparatus to do them on. Classical teaching keeps all three. The order matters because each exercise prepares the body for the next one, so the hour builds rather than jumps around.

What changes from session to session is you. Your teacher watches how you move that day and decides where to slow down and when you are ready for more.

The teaching line

Joseph Pilates · Romana Kryzanowska · Carrie Samper · Yonatan Elkayam

Romana Kryzanowska learned the method from Joseph Pilates himself. Carrie Samper was certified by Romana, and she went on to build the Pilates teacher training program Equinox runs nationwide. Yonatan trained under Carrie and earned that certification in 2019. More about both teachers is on our about page.

The apparatus

We train on the Contrology line by Balanced Body, built to Joseph Pilates' original specifications: the reformer, the Cadillac, the wunda chair, the arm chair, the ped-o-pul, the ladder barrel and the spine correctors, plus mat work. A framed portrait of Joe hangs in the room.

Marcel, a client, put it this way:

"Yonatan is clearly passionate about Pilates, he's very knowledgeable about the history and development of this exercise modality and I felt like I understood his directions with a great degree of depth because of all the context he was giving me about the movements we were practicing."

Classical and contemporary

A lot of the Pilates in Los Angeles is contemporary. It often happens in a group class on a reformer, with exercises that have been adapted over the years, and plenty of people love it. If you want to learn the original method, in Joe's order and on his apparatus, that is what we teach, and we only teach it privately.

Sessions and pricing

Each session is 55 minutes with one teacher, and only one session happens at a time. The first is $65. After that a single session is $150, and packages lower the rate. See the full list on our services page.

How to start

Book the $65 intro session, or book a free 15-minute call with Yonatan first. You do not need any Pilates experience. Our beginners page explains how the first session goes.