— Guide
Reformer vs mat Pilates, and how to choose
Reformer Pilates is taught on a sprung carriage whose springs can assist a movement or resist it, so exercises scale up and down precisely. Mat Pilates uses only your bodyweight on the floor, which makes it the purer test of control. Both train the same principles, the equipment just changes how you meet them.
At Bare Wellness, a boutique studio opening inside Bloom Arjaan on Saadiyat Island in Q3 2026, the two practices live in different rooms. Reformer classes run in a dedicated ten-bed Reformer Studio, and mat classes in the Open Studio, so you can learn each one properly and move between them as your goals shift.
— At a glance
The difference at a glance
Springs assist and resist
The reformer's springs can support a movement you are still learning or load one you have mastered, which is why it suits beginners and athletes alike.
Mat builds control
On the mat there is nothing to help you, so every exercise trains your ability to stabilize and move with your own strength.
Same method underneath
Breath, alignment, and deliberate tempo run through both classes. Skills learned in one carry directly into the other.
Two rooms, one studio
Bare Wellness teaches reformer classes in a ten-reformer studio and mat classes in the Open Studio, so you never have to choose only one.
How the reformer changes the work
The reformer is a sliding carriage set in a frame, with springs at one end, a footbar, and long straps. Every exercise happens against, or with, the tension of those springs. Lighten them and the machine supports you through a movement. Add spring and the same movement becomes loaded strength work.
The carriage also gives feedback the floor cannot. If your alignment drifts mid-exercise, the carriage wobbles or stalls, and you feel it immediately. That is why reformer Pilates is often described as precise: the equipment tells the truth about your technique, rep by rep.
What the mat asks of you
Mat Pilates strips the method back to a mat, your bodyweight, and occasionally a small prop like a ball or resistance band. Without springs to assist, your own control does all the work: the deep core stabilizes, the breath sets the tempo, and nothing hides a weak position.
That makes mat Pilates deceptively demanding. The hundred, a roll-up or a slow leg circle looks simple until you try to perform it without momentum. The reward is a kind of strength that travels: once you can control your body on the floor, every other form of training gets easier.
Which one should a beginner start with?
Either works, and the honest answer depends on how you like to learn. The reformer is more supportive than it looks, because light springs assist the very movements a beginner finds hardest. Mat classes ask more of your control from day one, but they teach fundamentals you will use everywhere.
Coaching matters more than the equipment. Reformer classes at Bare Wellness are capped at ten by the room itself, so the instructor sets your springs and corrects your form individually. Whichever you choose, tell the instructor it is your first visit and read up on what to expect in a first class.
Where to start, by goal
If you are choosing your first class from the schedule, let the goal decide. Neither practice is the advanced one, and instructors adjust both to the room in front of them, but each has a natural strength and it makes sense to begin where your priority lives.
Treat the list below as a starting point for your first month rather than a verdict. Most members end up mixing the two once they know both rooms, and the timetable, with more than sixty classes a week at opening, makes it easy to pair them.
- Posture and desk-related stiffness: start on the reformer, where spring feedback teaches alignment quickly.
- Core strength and body control: start on the mat, where nothing assists and control is the whole exercise.
- Returning after a break or new to exercise: start on the reformer with light springs and a beginner-friendly class.
- Building a foundation for sport or the gym: start on the mat, then add reformer sessions for loaded strength.
- Working around an old injury: speak to your doctor first, then start on the reformer, where movements can be assisted.
Do you have to choose?
No, and the strongest routines usually do not. A common rhythm is two reformer classes and one mat class a week: the reformer builds loaded, full-body strength, and the mat keeps your control honest. Because the principles are shared, progress in one room shows up quickly in the other.
The studio is set up for exactly that. Mat classes run in the Open Studio alongside yoga, barre, and hot classes, while reformer sessions have a room of their own. Booking works through the website and the iOS app, and if a class is full, the waitlist can book you in automatically when a spot opens, if you opted in.
— Good to know
Frequently asked
- Is reformer Pilates harder than mat Pilates?
- Neither is inherently harder. Reformer classes can be loaded heavily through the springs, and mat classes can be just as demanding precisely because nothing assists you. Difficulty comes from the class level and tempo, so check the level listed on the schedule rather than the equipment.
- Should a beginner start with mat or reformer Pilates?
- Both are beginner-friendly at Bare Wellness. Start on the reformer if you want the springs to support you while you learn, or on the mat if you prefer to build control with your own bodyweight first. The foundations transfer either way.
- Can I do both in the same week?
- Yes, and many members do. A mix such as two reformer classes and one mat class works well, since the practices reinforce each other. With more than sixty classes a week at opening, the schedule leaves room to combine them.
- Do I need grip socks for both classes?
- Yes. Grip socks are required for reformer and mat classes, for hygiene and for stability on the carriage and the floor. Wear fitted, comfortable clothing so your instructor can see your alignment, and arrive ten minutes early for a first visit.
- Which is better for back pain, reformer or mat Pilates?
- Speak to your doctor first if you have active pain. Once cleared, many people start on the reformer because the springs can assist movement while strength returns. Flag the condition in your profile so instructors can offer modifications in either class.
- Are the reformer and mat classes in the same room?
- No. Reformer classes run in a dedicated Reformer Studio with ten reformers, and mat classes run in the Open Studio alongside yoga and barre. Both rooms are inside Bloom Arjaan on Saadiyat Island.
— Keep reading
— Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi
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