People who think about becoming Pilates instructors tend to fall into a few camps.
Dancers and Gymnasts as Pilates Teachers
Dancers are a major demographic in the Pilates world. They tend to have good body awareness, discipline, strength and flexibility, and experience taking and sometimes teaching classes. Frequently, they have also practiced the Pilates method for many years.
Gymnasts can use the core strength and balance that Pilates builds in their gymnastic practice, and their experience of being coached can give them insights into Pilates teaching.
Fitness Instructors Can Transition to Pilates
Fitness instructors sometimes find that mainstream personal training and group fitness can be hard on the instructor's body. Since teaching Pilates doesn't involve spotting heavy weights, demonstrating high-impact exercises, or participating in clients' entire workouts, it can be an ergonomic choice. Many fitness instructors also enjoy the logic, variety, and adaptability of Pilates.
Athletes Make Ideal Pilates Instructors
Athletes such as runners, cyclists, triathletes, hurdlers, rugby and soccer players, footballers, cricketers – all can benefit from Pilates during their sporting careers, and many find that teaching Pilates can be an excellent way of transitioning into a career that is still physically active and offers scope for high-level physical achievement. They are also ideally placed to tailor a Pilates business for other athletes.
Yoga Teachers Appreciate Pilates
Yoga teachers sometimes find that Pilates provides core strength and alignment that complements their yoga practice, and allow them (and their students) to practice both disciplines safely and effectively.
Physical Therapists, Osteopaths and Chiropractors
Physiotherapists and other medically-based practitioners often choose Pilates because it allows them to spend valuable time with individual clients. The method has a well-deserved reputation for post-rehabilitation and injury prevention, so physical therapists can find it immensely satisfying.
Massage Therapists and Bodyworkers
Hands-on practitioners of such disciplines as Swedish massage, Thai massage, Rolfing, Feldenkrais, the Alexander technique, reflexology, Bowen therapy, and the like may find that Pilates supports their practice well by allowing their clients a regular opportunity to exercise while focusing on the alignment and balance they have gained through hands-on therapies.
Sedentary People Need Pilates Too
Sedentary people are often enthusiastic Pilates students as they discover that they can enjoy the work even if they are not traditional gym buffs. When they become instructors, students often appreciate their understanding of the challenges of mastering Pilates without a dance or athletic background.
No matter what his or her background is, anyone who embarks on a Pilates certification program can draw on previous life experiences, including sports and other physical disciplines, to enrich and inform his or her study of Pilates.
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