Spa spy Harness your energy

A Pilates Reformer session is less daunting than it sounds but still very effective

The treatment

A 55 minute long Apprentice Reformer Pilates session at Reform Studios, Edinburgh, £18 for one class (with one month expiry), £80 for five (three month expiry), £150 for ten (six months expiry), other options available.

Why go?

The world has gone yoga crazy, meaning the equally core strengthening and muscle lengthening activity of Pilates seems to have taken a back seat. Rediscover it at this studio. They offer Apprentice Reformer sessions for newbies, or Dynamic Reformer sessions for the slightly more advanced. Dress code: comfy T-shirts and leggings with bare feet.

Our Spy Says

I did Pilates for years, though it was mat work. I’d always see the reformer machine in my former studio and feel a bit intimidated, since it vaguely resembled an instrument of torture.

Not in this small but slick-looking studio, where there are just six of these contraptions – fancy ones, which look more like pieces of Danish furniture, rather than an Edinburgh Dungeon prop.

The teacher and studio manager, Jenny, talks me through how to work one. There is a main carriage, as well as coloured springs that you hook onto pegs at the end to increase resistance, foot/wrist straps to hold onto, shoulder rests, a foot plate, a bar at the end that can be moved to various degrees, and other bells and whistles.

Usually when equipment is introduced to exercise classes, I get overwhelmed, however, because this class involves such a small group, Jenny is always there to help, and make corrections.

We warm up by pressing our feet against the bar and slowly straightening our legs. The moves are repeated, then held before little pulses help to increase the burn.

The hardest moves for me include the glute-strengthening Pilates classic that is the clamshell, when you open one bent leg to the side. Teamed with one of the pulleys round your foot, this is hard, especially on my right leg (the withered one).

Whenever I’m flagging, I enjoy the motivational music that’s playing and Jenny’s catchphrase “Yes you can!”.

The arm exercises, with pulleys crossed over, are also difficult. We work triceps, biceps and shoulders.

Another routine involves a box that’s detached from the reformer. One leg goes on this and the other on the carriage, in order to perform a single leg squat with one leg sliding behind. After this, there are sit-ups, bridges and planks, before the lights are dimmed.

Some of the muscles I activate seem to have been long dormant, like mummies in their tombs.

The results

I am no longer frightened of the reformer. It’s a toy and tool, rather than punishment device. Yes I can! n Reform Studios, 1st Floor, 26 Howe Street, Edinburgh (0131-285 5285, www.reformstudios.co.uk)