When life gives you COVID, your business changes. I found myself seeing the potential to bring Pilates to every body. Jonathan saw a better design. Together we are building ONYX Pilates, the first connected Pilates reformer for home.
The pandemic changed my life and had me re-thinking how I would be working in the fitness industry moving forward. I found my studio closed, then opened, then closed again by COVID protocols. Then when classes were banned for the third time, I decided to put my reformers out for clients to use on their own and follow the workouts on a television set up in the studio. It worked and they could do the workouts for the most part. This was the first glimpse of at-home fitness workouts with the reformer.
At the same time, my co-founder, Jonathan Montet was finding that the at-home reformer experience was lacking. So out of the pandemic, the Pilates Reformer by ONYX Interactive was born. We are bringing Pilates to the mainstream instead of locking it in a fitness studio where only those who can afford personal trainers can have access. We are breaking down the barriers so that everyone can have the best Pilates experience.
As Jonathan said, "Pilates was the most requested workout that was missing from the Peloton Platform." So we set out to be the Peloton of Pilates and started working on ONYX. Jonathan started with a sketch and soon I found myself seeing more than just a Pilates reformer. I saw the potential to bring it home to more people.
But working out on a reformer is different than working out on a treadmill or bike, where you stay facing forward to follow an instructor on a fixed screen. When you're working out on a Pilates reformer at home, it is almost impossible until now. With a traditional Pilates reformer, the workouts have you moving in all four directions. Certain pulling and pushing movements can only be performed facing the front or back of the machine because the springs and handles come only from one side. This means that to perform a connected Pilates workout, you would be twisting your neck to see the screen. This puts the body out of alignment and makes it difficult to follow any instructions. That's where the ONYX Reformer is different. It has new, patent-pending technology so that you can stay facing the screen and follow the workout without interruption. The ONYX carries the features of a mega-reformer with its twin base platforms. This means you can stand on the platform facing forward from either side of the carriage. This makes it the perfect hybrid reformer for both classical and athletic styles of Pilates exercises.
ONYX has the best workouts for every body and at every level. From beginner to professional athlete, ONYX's instructor-led programs offer safe, effective, on-demand, and live workouts for all fitness levels and abilities. The workouts will have four unique offerings for you to follow including classical flow, athletic strength, beginner, and pain prevention classes for those recovering from injuries. Pilates is well-known for focusing on strengthening the core muscles, breath engagement and spine movement. Joseph's Pilates designed a reformer to "reform" the body to improve daily living. These teachings were focused on the spine structure which today is referred to as the core. ONYX takes these teachings and opts to create more movements, more function, and deliver the most comprehensive programming library for a safer workout.
