Certification in Mat Pilates

[Terri1222]

Has anyone here gone for certification in Mat Pilates? If so, would leave to hear some info about it - cost, hours involved, what did you end up doing or hope to do once you were certified, where did you go to get certified, etc.

Just something I've been thinking about....

Terri

[KathAL79]

Terri, I've toyed with the idea, too, but I'm not quite ready to take the plunge.

I have peeked at the Stott Method's requirements, being a bit of a Stott girl myself. That particular system is very comprehensive (I believe you learn the various apparatus and machines as well as matwork, and you are expected to complete coursework in subjects like anatomy, too) and as a result it's uber $$$$. It makes sense to think of it as akin to getting one's classroom teaching license, not just in terms of cost and time needed to complete study but also the need for continuing education and re-certification (and the resulting time and financial commitment that entails). The latter was the major reason two different Pilates instructors at my gym cited for letting their Stott cert. lapse.
I was very disappointed in a Pilates instructor who claimed to have only completed a YMCA certification; he was a certified group instructor, personal trainer, and coach, so he apparently took a class or two at a convention or something of that sort and considered that proper training. Y certifications may be more comprehensive than he let on, however.

A few people identify themselves as certified instructors on this thread: Any Certified Pilates Method Instructors here? If you don't get more responses, I'm sure you could PM or email them individually.

[dnk]

I have my certification through the Physical Mind Institute. The path is Mat, Standing, then Apparatus. You are not considered certified to teach mat until you complete the standing curriculum as well. I did the first two and was very underwhelmed with the instructors.

A few years later, I looked into apparatus certification and wanted anyone *but* Physical Mind. The costs and time involved in the other program was prohibitive, so I reluctantly went to speak to the new PMI teacher trainer. To my surprise, she knew what she was doing. I had a great experience and would recommend *her* to anyone. My point is that it all depends on the person you train with.

Having said that, if you're confident in the trainer, I would recommend PMI. I priced it out at one point, and if you wanted to do the whole shooting match with Stott, you'd be out well over $15k. As I've mentioned elsewhere, Stott took a lot from the PMI syllabus, but they charge considerably less- closer to $3k. You also get the feeling with certain schools that they aren't making money off of actual clients as much as they are off of their trainees.

As for hours involved for mat, it was 32 in total, again, including Standing. I did this in 2003, and it cost me a little over $800. (FYI, Apparatus was 40 hours of classroom, 60 hours of practice, 45 hours of observation and 75 hours of apprentice teaching, or thereabouts. Then a 9 to 12 month period where you must be teaching, then testing out for certification.)

Hope this helps.

Deb

[Kiwi Katie]

Originally Posted by Terri1222

Has anyone here gone for certification in Mat Pilates? If so, would leave to hear some info about it - cost, hours involved, what did you end up doing or hope to do once you were certified, where did you go to get certified, etc.

Just something I've been thinking about....

Terri

Hi Terri

I did my initial training through PhysicalMind back in 2003, in New Zealand. The course I attended was a weekend only, and in no way did I feel ready to be let loose on other people's bodies! Luckily the tutor on this course had a fantastic amount of knowledge and asked me to teach mat at her studio, and I learned a lot through her. I then became qualified with Polestar as a mat instructor and am currently working towards my Polestar Studio exam (apparatus).

Although I've never done any Stott courses I've seen some of their Pro Series DVDs and manuals and I think they're superb. Had there been Stott training courses available in NZ when I was looking then I'm sure I would have trained through them.

As someone else said, it's a lot of $$$. Most of the courses I did were in other parts of the country so I had additional travel expenses. There were lots of hours of observations, personal practice and apprentice teaching - and the learning never stops once you're certified! However I don't regret it for a second. I find it immensely rewarding, always interesting, and I'm never short of work.

Please feel free to PM me if you have any questions!

Katie

[FitBoop]

Hi Terri! I think you would make a fantastic pilates teacher! AFAA has a certification in pilates and mat science, through workshops. It's $129, although I think it is sometimes available for $99. I think you would have to first get certified by AFAA as a personal trainer or group instructor, which is $299. I have a few certifications through AFAA, and their instructors were excellent. You take a written and practical exam for each certification. It might be a good way to start out, since it's not too expensive, and you would get a certification that a lot of health clubs recognize.

Another less expensive mat pilates certification is given through AAAI, and you can take it in Atlantic City and also do the whole convention (which I may go to in June, and used to go to every year). The instructors at AAAI are excellent, too.

[Terri1222]

Thank you all so much for the information!!!!

I totally thought about shelving it when I heard how expensive it was, but now that I see there might be other ways around that, I'm going to continue to pursue.

You guys are the best!

Terri