Knowing exercises vs understanding them
Most Pilates teachers learn exercises first. The deeper understanding usually comes later.
And that makes sense in a very real way.
At first, focusing on choreography, transitions, and managing the flow of a session feels like the most important thing . . . because at that stage, it usually is. There’s already so much to think about while you’re teaching that simply getting through a session smoothly can feel like a huge accomplishment.
But eventually, most teachers hit a point where they realize something:
Knowing the movement pattern of an exercise and truly understanding it are two very different things.
Because once you start teaching real people consistently, you realize movement is rarely as straightforward as it looked during training.
Clients don’t always move the way you expect.
An exercise that seemed simple during training suddenly becomes much harder once you’re teaching real bodies.
A cue that worked beautifully in one session falls completely flat in the next.
And sometimes you can tell a client is technically “doing” the exercise, but you also know they aren’t really getting the benefit of it.
That’s where deeper understanding starts to matter.
Inside the brand-new Pilates Encyclopedia platform, we look beyond the exercise itself.
Not just how the movement looks, but what it’s asking from the body, where people tend to lose connection, and what experienced teachers learn to notice after years in the studio.
That depth has always been part of our work. The difference now is that the brand new platform makes it easier to access, organize, and apply that support while you’re actually teaching.
You can find exercise breakdowns, teaching insights, modifications, and real-world observations more easily . . . so you’re not left digging around when you’re trying to understand what’s happening with a client.
Because good teaching is often less about giving more cues and more about seeing more clearly.
Cheers,
Mara Sievers
P.S. If you want support that helps you move beyond memorizing exercises and start understanding why clients respond differently, why exercises might not work as intended, and what to adjust when something isn’t clicking, that’s exactly what Pilates Encyclopedia was built for.
>>> Read this article to see how you can deepen your understanding of exercises with PE 3.0.
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