How to Grow Confidence as a Pilates Teacher — Especially When Clients Have Injuries

class planning special populations Jun 09, 2021

Teaching Pilates can feel intimidating at first — especially when a client shows up with pain, limitations, or a medical history you’ve never seen before. You’re not alone in that feeling. Many teachers question whether they’re “qualified enough” or worry they might accidentally make someone’s condition worse.

A Shift That Changes Everything

A physical therapist once asked me a simple question that completely reshaped how I think about teaching:

“Are you working around the problem… or on the problem?”

That question changed everything for me. It made me realize that “I didn’t learn this in my training” wasn’t a good enough answer anymore. My clients were trusting me, and I needed to take that responsibility seriously — by learning more, not avoiding the hard stuff.

Teaching Group Classes: Start by Keeping Students Safe

When you teach group classes like Mat or Reformer, you don’t have time to dive deep into every individual’s condition — and that’s okay.

Here’s what you can do:

Ask students if they have injuries or limitations before class begins.
If someone mentions an issue you’re unfamiliar with, take time after class to learn about it.
Find out what movements are safe and what should be modified or avoided.

Being able to keep someone from making things worse is a strong first step toward confidence.

One-on-One Teaching: Focus Fully on the Person in Front of You

Private sessions eliminate the multitasking stress of a group class. You can observe, listen, and adapt based on what you see.

Start by learning:

Which movements could aggravate their issue?
Which movements are safe and supportive?
How the body responds during movement.

This approach of working around the problem gives you a solid foundation to build real confidence.

When You Want to Go Beyond “Safe” to Effective

Once you know what not to do, the next step is clear: find ways to improve the client’s condition within safe parameters.

If your client is seeing another professional — like a physical therapist or chiropractor — ask for permission to communicate. Many clients can share written recommendations or movement guidelines from their clinician, which gives you language and direction you can trust. (It’s also a great way to build professional relationships that can lead to referrals.)

Choosing the Right Movements With Purpose

Once you understand what movements to avoid and which ones are supportive, it becomes easier to pick exercises that:

Respect the client’s limitations
Target the movement goals that matter
Support progress without risk

In structured resources like Pilates Encyclopedia, you’ll find contraindications and options for alternative exercises — so you can confidently design sessions tailored to individual needs.

Pain Without a Diagnosis? You Can Still Help

Not every client will come with a clear diagnosis. “Back pain,” “neck pain,” or “shoulder tension” might be their only description — and that’s okay.

Even without a medical label, you can ask the right questions, observe movement patterns, and use a deconstruction approach to select exercises that help rather than harm.