Contributor
Cora Linwood
Certified Classical Pilates InstructorCora has taught classical Pilates for 15 years in a converted barn studio in Maine. She'll teach you the breath before she teaches you the hundred.
📍 Camden, Maine
Latest from Cora
The Pilates Hundred: What It's For and Why It Comes First
The Hundred opens almost every mat class for a reason: it warms you up, trains your breath pattern, and tests your deep core all at once.
Nov 14, 2026
The Pilates Toning Balls: What They Add and When to Skip Them
Toning balls add a light layer of resistance to a handful of classical Pilates exercises. Here is what they do…
Nov 11, 2026
Pilates for Hip Bursitis: What Helps and What to Avoid
Hip bursitis and Pilates can coexist, if you know which moves help the glutes and which ones just add pressure…
Nov 9, 2026
Does a Pilates Reformer Fit Every Body Size? An Honest Answer
A classical instructor's honest look at whether standard Pilates reformers fit every body size, and what makers already built to…
Nov 8, 2026
Pilates for SI Joint Pain: What Helps and What to Avoid
Sacroiliac joint pain responds to the right kind of core and glute work, and gets worse with the wrong kind…
Nov 6, 2026
Classical vs. Contemporary Pilates: What Beginners Should Know
Classical Pilates follows Joseph Pilates' original sequence; contemporary adapts it. Here's what that means for a beginner choosing a studio.
Nov 3, 2026
Ankle and Wrist Weights in Pilates: Worth Adding or Not?
Ankle and wrist weights promise more challenge in a Pilates class, but the research on joint strain tells a more…
Oct 23, 2026
Pilates for Runner's Knee: What Helps and What to Avoid
Runner's knee is rarely just a knee problem. Hip, quad, and single-leg work in Pilates can genuinely help, with honest…
Oct 22, 2026
The Pilates Overball: What It Adds and How to Use It Safely
A small, inflatable Pilates ball that costs almost nothing but changes how your core, inner thighs, and spine feel the…
Oct 21, 2026
The Pilates Slider: What It Adds and How to Use It Safely
A cheap disc that turns ordinary mat exercises into slower, more controlled ones — here's how to use Pilates sliders…
Oct 18, 2026
Pilates for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: What Helps and What to Avoid
Carpal tunnel syndrome and Pilates can coexist if you change how your wrists are loaded in plank, quadruped, and reformer…
Oct 17, 2026
The Pilates Resistance Band: What It Adds and How to Choose One
A resistance band won't replace a reformer, but it's the cheapest way to add real, adjustable tension to a mat…
Oct 16, 2026
The Pilates Box: What It's Actually For and How to Use It Safely
The reformer box does two different jobs depending on how it's placed: a seated short box series, and a long…
Oct 14, 2026
Pilates for Rotator Cuff Pain: What Helps and What to Avoid
Rotator cuff pain responds to patient, scapular-first Pilates work, not overhead stretching — here is the safe way in and…
Oct 10, 2026
Pilates for IT Band Syndrome: What Helps and What to Avoid
IT band pain on the outer knee usually comes from weak hips, not a tight band. Here is what Pilates…
Oct 7, 2026
The Pilates Jump Board: What It Adds and Who Should Think Twice
A reformer jump board turns mat-level cardio into a low-impact plyometric workout, with real benefits and real limits.
Oct 3, 2026
How Much Does Pilates Cost? A Realistic Price Breakdown
A clear, honest breakdown of what Pilates actually costs, from $10 mat classes to $360 monthly memberships, and how to…
Sep 30, 2026
Reformer Tower Conversion Kits: What They Add and What to Check First
Thinking about adding a tower to the reformer you already own? Here's what conversion kits actually require, cost, and add.
Sep 28, 2026
Pilates for Sciatica: What Helps and What Makes It Worse
Sciatica isn't one thing, and neither is the fix. Here's what actually helps nerve pain down the leg, and what…
Sep 26, 2026
How to Choose a Pilates Instructor: What to Look For
Certification tells you someone was trained, not whether they fit you. Here is what to check, ask, and watch for…
Sep 25, 2026
Buying a Used Pilates Reformer: What to Check Before You Buy
A studio owner's checklist for what to inspect before buying a used Pilates reformer, from frame welds to spring age.
Sep 23, 2026
Private vs. Group Pilates Classes: Which Should You Book?
Privates buy you correction; group classes buy you consistency. A studio teacher on what each format is worth and how…
Sep 18, 2026
The Pilates Cadillac and Tower: What They Do and Who Needs One
A Cadillac is a trapeze table with a canopy; a Tower is the same apparatus without one. What each does,…
Sep 17, 2026
The Pilates Chair: What It Does That a Reformer Can't
The chair takes away the support a reformer gives you. Here is what that buys you, what it costs, and…
Sep 13, 2026
Why Am I So Sore After Pilates? What's Normal and What Isn't
Soreness after Pilates usually peaks around 48 hours and fades within three days. Here is what it means, what helps,…
Sep 12, 2026
Pilates With Osteoporosis: 7 Exercises to Skip and What to Do Instead
Osteoporosis does not rule out Pilates, but it does rule out a few of its most familiar exercises. Here is…
Sep 10, 2026
Neutral Spine vs. Imprint in Pilates: When to Use Each (And Why)
Two cues, one confused room. A classical instructor explains what neutral and imprint actually are, when each belongs, and how…
Sep 8, 2026
Pilates for Beginners at Home: A Complete 30-Day Starter Plan
You don't need a reformer, a studio, or a single piece of equipment to start a real Pilates practice. You…
Apr 8, 2026
Pilates vs. Yoga: 9 Real Differences Every Beginner Should Know
Pilates and yoga get lumped together because they both involve mats and breathing. But they have different origins, different goals,…
Apr 1, 2026
How Often Should You Do Pilates Per Week? An Honest Answer
Studios will tell you four times a week. Influencers will tell you daily. Joseph Pilates himself said three times. Here's…
Mar 11, 2026
Pilates Breathing Explained: Why It's Different From Yoga
Lateral breathing — also called rib breathing or three-dimensional breathing — is the foundation of Pilates and the one thing…
Feb 4, 2026
When Will You See Pilates Results? A Realistic Timeline
The marketing answer is '10 sessions and you'll feel different, 20 sessions and you'll look different.' That's a quote from…
Jan 21, 2026
The 6 Classical Pilates Principles (And Why They Still Matter)
Concentration, control, centering, precision, breath, and flow. These six principles are what separate classical Pilates from the floor-exercise version sold…
Jan 7, 2026
Wall Pilates: Does It Actually Work? An Honest Review
Wall Pilates has taken over TikTok with promises of dramatic body transformation in 28 days. As a classical Pilates instructor,…
Nov 25, 202515 years of teaching.
Cora trained at a classical Pilates studio in London before relocating to coastal Maine, where she's taught from a converted barn studio for the past 12 years. Her teaching style emphasizes the original Pilates principles — centering, concentration, control, precision, breath, and flow — and resists the modern temptation to turn every class into a workout.
She writes from the position that most people doing Pilates today have never done classical Pilates, and that the difference is bigger than they think.
