full-day in-person private in-service for physical therapy clinics
Pilates Reformer
for Neuro Rehab
Get the most out of your equipment for faster patient progress
Taught by a Comprehensively Trained Pilates Instructor with 15+ years experience working with neuro population
Pilates equipment can be a game-changer for supporting your SCI & Neuro client’s movement discovery and development - if you know how to use it.
If you’re using your reformer as a glorified leg press machine
or your trapeze table is a staging area for other equipment,
it’s time to learn more about how your pilates equipment can bring value to your program.
Workshop Curriculum
The tool is only as good as the user…
Getting trained on your pilates equipment will not only bring value to your program, but also provide a SAFE experience for your clients and team.
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This presentation teaches you about the features of pilates equipment, explores which clients are best suited for the different pieces and several exercises to build your confidence in actually using the equipment in real client sessions. Stephanie will guide staff in Pilates exercises for themselves on and off the equipment so they have a better understanding of what it feels like for their clients.
We’ll be exploring ONE piece of pilates equipment per workshop. Choose from:
Reformer
Tower w/ push-through bar
Trapeze Table (with the overhead canopy)
Please note if you have a Reformer + Tower Combo, this constitutes as TWO pieces of equipment.
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With equal parts lecture and lab, we’ll explore each technique and exercise with traditional presentation slides along with interactive clinician movement experiences on your equipment.
Then we’ll see the magic unfold in your arranged demo clients in the afternoon.
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Learn about the Pilates method and how it’s principles support full-body integration after SCI.
Explore your pilates equipment: beneficial features & safety considerations.
How transfer clients on and off the equipment safely.
Learn several exercises on each piece of equipment, how to coach them and when they are appropriate to program.
Experience pilates equipment with staff & with demo clients.
Discuss which types clients are best suited for each piece of equipment.
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This workshop is offered as a full-day in-person workshop, privately booked for your team.
If you have two pieces of equipment you would like to explore, we can book two back-to-back days, giving us enough time to learn each piece.
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This workshop comes with:
A copy of FGTU for your staff resource library
ZN Squish Ball for each participant
Printed & bound Guidebooks for each participant
About the instructor
Stephanie Comella has been working with spinal cord injury and neurological populations since 2011, beginning her career in an activity-based therapy clinic before discovering the powerful carryover of Pilates equipment in neuro rehabilitation.
She pursued formal Pilates training through Balanced Body in 2015 and earned her comprehensive certification with NCPT (the official certifying body in Pilates) in 2016, completing advanced study across all major apparatus, including the Reformer, Trapeze Table/Tower, Chair, Barrels, and Mat.
Stephanie went on to develop a Pilates-based neuro pilot program within a boutique studio setting, where she refined her approach to adapting classical Pilates for individuals with neurological conditions. Her work bridges the gap between traditional Pilates instruction and the complex needs of neuro rehab, emphasizing accessibility, adaptability, and clinical application.
She later self-published From the Ground Up, a 300-page resource outlining her neuro recovery Framework with an extensive library of adapted Pilates exercises designed for real-world implementation (download a sample here).
Her work has also been featured in a collaborative case report publication exploring the use of Pilates-based programming to support gait recovery in an L1–L3 spinal cord injury, contributing to the growing evidence supporting Pilates in neurological rehabilitation.
Today, Stephanie uses Pilates equipment as a primary tool to facilitate movement through kinesthetic learning with her neuro clients — helping individuals develop dynamic stabilization, reflexive control, and integrated mobility.
Stephanie has taught physical therapists, occupational therapists and other neuro rehab professionals how to integrate pilates principles and safely use pilates equipment into their clinical practice all over the world since 2023.
A note on Pilates Teacher credentials
Comprehensive Pilates certifications are both rigorous and highly specialized. Training typically includes 20–60 hours of instruction on each piece of equipment, along with extensive supervised teaching practice.
A full comprehensive certification often requires 500+ hours of education and hands-on experience, with an investment ranging from $10,000–$15,000—reflecting the depth of knowledge required to safely and effectively apply this method.
Interested in digging into pilates certifications for yourself?
Find Stephanie’s recommended Pilates Teacher Training schools here.
FAQs
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For safety reasons, I highly encourage an in-person experience. Specifics to spotting and guarding are important to keep you and your patients safe.
But I understand that budgets can be tough.
Virtual presentations will not include practical application with real neuro clients, but will share video examples of Stephanie working with clients instead.
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Short answer, no.
The full-day format allows enough time for concept introduction, theory, personal experience with the material and practical application with REAL demo clients. We definitely need a full day to cover all of this!
However, if you would like to book back-to-back days to explore two pieces of equipment, we can consolidate the second day because we will not need to learn foundational concepts - skipping right to the equipment exercises.
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Yes - I’ll adjust my curriculum to reflect the make/model of your equipment.
We’ll work off our base curriculum to place an extra emphasis on the areas you are looking to develop.
For example, if you are interested in programming specific for ambulatory neuro vs. cervical level SCI clients, we’ll spend our time discussing this subset of your clientele and select appropraite demo clients for the lab time.
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Typically, no. This presentation is designed for LIVE interaction. Let's coordinate a time when the entire team can attend!
*For remote presentations, team members can zoom in remotely.
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This in-service is not currently approved for CEUs, however I can:
Apply directly with your state board unpon booking the workshop
Provide certificates of completion for each of your staff to submit for review directly to their board.
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Absolutely, in fact, I encourage it!
The afternoon module exlores practical application with demo clients.
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Each participant wil recieve a
Printed & bound Guidebook/exercise library
ZN Squish ball to keep or gift to a client