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The Pilates Academy

Mat + Reformer certification · most chosen

Mat + Reformer Teacher Training.

400 hours. The combination studios actually advertise for.

Both repertoires, the anatomy underneath them, and the judgement to move a client between mat and machine inside one session — including 27 hours one-to-one with your mentor.

Total hours400
Taught instruction95 hrs
FormatsOnline or in person
CredentialNPCP Mat (PMC)

About the credential: Mat + Reformer makes you eligible to sit the NPCP Mat examination and hold the PMC credential, and qualifies you to teach on both mat and reformer. The NCPT is the broader credential and comes with the 450-hour Comprehensive.

On the day you certify

What you’ll be able to do.

Not what you’ll have sat through — what you’ll be able to walk into a studio and deliver.

  • Teach mat and reformer classes, group or private, start to finish
  • Move a client between mat and machine inside a single session
  • Set springs correctly for each body, each exercise and each goal
  • Build a class plan for a level, a goal and a room of mixed abilities
  • Modify or regress any exercise on either apparatus, on the spot
  • Correct a client safely, including while the carriage is moving
  • Recognise when an exercise is contraindicated and what to offer instead
  • Apply for the roles most studios and boutique gyms are hiring for
The syllabus

Four hundred hours, content area by content area.

The curriculum is taught by a Go Pilates Academy instructor. Everything below is identical in both formats — only the location of the hands-on work changes.

Curriculum content areas — taught by a GPA instructor 95 hrs

History and Philosophy of Pilates5 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Functional Anatomy18 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Special Populations10 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Teaching Methodology and Cueing14 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Mat Repertoire and Magic Circle16 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Reformer RepertoireThe largest content area in the programme26 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Safety, Screening and Contraindications3 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

Business Practices and Professional Conduct3 hrs

Live or live online, and in person on the studio days.

How your 400 hours are allocated 400 hrs

Instruction — lecture, repertoire and classroom95 hrs

Taught by a GPA instructor, covering every content area above.

Observation of an experienced teacher90 hrs

You observe experienced teachers — in our live sessions, or a teacher you arrange locally. A written observation analysis is submitted for each one.

Self-practice115 hrs

Structured practice assignments per module, with a practice log and periodic video check-ins. Equipment access required for the reformer work.

Practice teaching — logged55 hrs

You teach real bodies and log every session. We guide you through how to arrange it.

Practice teaching — mentor observing liveOne-to-one20 hrs

Your mentor watches you teach in real time and debriefs with you afterwards. One-to-one, live — the part of the programme that turns knowledge into a teacher.

Mentor sessions — you as the studentSmall group18 hrs

You receive instruction from a GPA mentor and perform the exercises yourself, one-to-one or in a small group.

Assessment — written and practical7 hrs

Written theory examination and a live practical teaching assessment against weighted criteria. Proctored, live or live online.

Every hour is documented. Observation analyses, practice logs and video check-ins are submitted as you go, so nothing has to be reconstructed at the end.

Where the hours go

Four hundred hours, accounted for.

Certification hours are not all the same thing. Here is exactly what yours are made of.

Self-practice115
Instruction95
Observation90
Practice teaching, logged55
Mentor observing you teach20
Mentor sessions as a student18
Assessment7
27

hours of your programme are one-to-one with your mentor — watching you teach, and teaching you.

Two ways to earn it

Same syllabus. Same certificate.

Every content area above is identical in both formats. What changes is where the equipment work happens.

Online
$3,915
  • Instruction delivered live over video
  • Practical work guided by your mentor on camera
  • Self-practice completed on your own equipment
  • Your training kit ships to your door
About online study
In person
$5,400
  • Eight studio days in Los Angeles or New York
  • Hands-on corrections on real equipment, never more than twelve
  • Mat repertoire first, then reformer, back to back
  • Your mentor continues with you online afterwards
About in-person study

Wondering whether to add Comprehensive instead?

Speak with an advisor
Assessment

How you actually qualify.

01

Complete the instruction hours

All 95 hours of taught instruction, covering the eight content areas above.

02

Complete and document your hours

Observation analyses, structured practice assignments with a log, and logged practice teaching — submitted as you go.

03

Teach with your mentor watching

Twenty hours in which your mentor observes you teaching live, one-to-one, and debriefs with you afterwards.

04

Pass both examinations

A proctored written paper and a live practical teaching assessment scored against weighted criteria.

Included in your tuition

Nothing here is an add-on.

Personal 1-on-1 mentoring

Twenty-seven hours one-to-one across the programme, with a mentor who knows your name and your progress.

Group Practice Lab

You teach in front of others and watch them teach. The rehearsal room for your practical exam.

Functional anatomy included

Eighteen hours, taught live and recorded for life. Many schools bill anatomy separately at $250–$980.

Your training kit

Shipped to your door, so you’re not sourcing equipment before you can start.

Lifetime access

Every lesson and recording stays yours, including material we add after you graduate.

The Go Pilates Club

Workshops, member discounts and a global instructor network, open to you after you certify.

Or go all the way

Comprehensive is 450 hours.

It adds the Wunda chair, Cadillac, barrels and multi-apparatus programming — and it’s the certification that makes you eligible to sit the NCPT examination. If you want the full studio floor, it’s only fifty hours further on.

Compare all certifications
Before you ask

Mat + Reformer, answered.

Why take both together instead of one at a time?
Taken separately, Mat and Reformer are 400 hours between them and you’d repeat the shared foundations twice — history, anatomy, special populations, teaching methodology. Combined, those are taught once. You reach the same qualification for less time and less money, which is why it’s the track most of our students choose.
Is the NPCP credential different from Mat alone?
No, and we’d rather tell you that plainly. Both make you eligible to sit the NPCP Mat examination for the PMC credential. What Mat + Reformer adds is the reformer competency itself — which is what boutique studios hire for and what Mat alone doesn’t qualify you to teach. If a higher NPCP credential is the goal, that’s the NCPT, and it comes with Comprehensive.
Do I need my own reformer?
You need access to one for the reformer portion of your self-practice hours — your own, a studio membership, or a rental. The mat work needs only your training kit. Tell us your situation on your call and we’ll be straight about whether it works before you enrol.
Do I need experience before enrolling?
Teaching experience, no — most of our students have never taught. A regular personal Pilates practice, yes. You should be comfortable in the work in your own body before you start guiding someone else through it.
How long does it take?
Four hundred hours takes real time and there’s no honest way to compress it. How long depends on the hours you can give it each week and how quickly you arrange your observation and practice teaching. We map a realistic timeline with you before you enrol rather than after.
Can I do this while working full-time?
Yes, and most of our students do. Instruction is scheduled around your week and the rest is yours to arrange. What it asks for is consistency rather than a cleared calendar.
What happens if I don’t pass an examination?
Retakes are included without penalty, with support to prepare. Our assessment exists to confirm you’re ready to teach safely, not to catch you out.
Can I upgrade to Comprehensive later?
Yes. Every hour you complete carries forward — you continue from where you stopped rather than starting again. Many students take Mat + Reformer, start teaching and earning, then add Comprehensive once they know the direction they want.
Are payment plans available?
Yes, on both formats. We’ll walk through the options on your call so you can plan properly rather than guess.
Ready when you are

Is this the right certification for you?

A short conversation about where you want to teach, what equipment you can access, and whether this or Comprehensive serves you better. We’ll tell you honestly if a smaller certification is enough.

700+ graduates across 30+ countries · NPCP Mat (PMC) eligible

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