This Black owned Pilates studios list is for anyone who has watched Black Girl Pilates take over their feed and is ready to get on a reformer with an instructor who looks like them. Pilates was the most booked workout on ClassPass for the third straight year in 2025, with reservations up 66% from 2024, and the Black Girl Pilates trend has put Black instructors front and center. Every studio below is Black owned based on the owners’ own pages or local reporting. Schedules and prices change often, so check each studio’s booking page before you go.
Two names come before any city. Black Girl Pilates is the community Sonja R. Price Herbert founded in 2017 for Black women who teach Pilates. Herbert, who is based in Atlanta, has grown it into a network with mentorship, workshops, events and an instructor directory, which makes it the first stop if you want to book a Black instructor in a city not covered here. Diversity in Pilates, created by Tonya Amos in partnership with equipment maker Balanced Body, offers free Pilates certification to aspiring Black instructors.
Both carry forward the legacy of Kathy Grant, the Pilates elder who trained under Joseph Pilates himself and spent decades teaching the method. Every spot on this Black owned Pilates studios list is building on what she started.
Atlanta
Stretch ATL is credited as the first Black owned Pilates studio in metro Atlanta. Dr. Tanya Stephenson, a chiropractor, opened it on Metropolitan Parkway in 2013 and later added a second location in Buckhead. Her approach blends Pilates and stretching into what she calls stretch therapy, and classes are built for everyone from total beginners to professional athletes.
Kinfolk Pilates opened in 2023, founded by an instructor who moved to Atlanta from New York in 2020. The name is a deliberate nod to the community the studio was built to serve.
GRND Pilates in Atlanta and Ctrl Pilates in Mableton round out a metro area that now has more Black owned Pilates options than any city on this list.
Charlotte
70Flow in north Charlotte is owned by Alyssa Ly Nicholson and Vicky Habersham. The studio drew a waitlist soon after opening in 2025, so book early.
Durham
Prevailing Pilates is owned by Sabrina Seymore, who built the studio while the industry was still recovering from the pandemic.
Washington, D.C.
FOURPilates in Park View is a Black and woman owned studio offering both mat and reformer classes.
New York and New Jersey
The Fit In in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, is owned by Ife Obi and has become a home base for people of color who want affordable Pilates. The studio also offers teacher training for anyone looking to move from student to instructor.
Pilates X Three in Union, New Jersey, was founded by Deanna and Najmah, who built the studio around Pilates as both a physical and emotional release for their clients.
Cornerstone Pilates on Communipaw Avenue in Jersey City was founded by Jersey City local Kyra Balan and takes reformer work seriously without losing its neighborhood feel.
MKT Ready on Yale Avenue in Jersey City was founded by Kendra Beauford and Yves G. It combines Pilates, strength training and social fitness clubs, and Hoboken Girl readers voted it Best Pilates Studio in Jersey City in 2025.
Ken Pilates on Washington Street in Hoboken was created by Ken Montes de Oca and Matthew Cunningham and has grown from a neighborhood studio into one of the city’s go to spots for Pilates, sculpt and strength.
Chicago
Tab Pilates is led by a founder with more than 30 years of teaching experience and a seat on the National Pilates Certification Program board, which makes it one of the most credentialed stops on this Black owned Pilates studios list.
Cincinnati
The Pilates Table is owned by Amber Goin, who opened the city’s first Black owned reformer Pilates studio with six reformers. Her goal is to make reformer classes feel less intimidating and more welcoming.
Los Angeles
Embody Pilates was founded by Camai Brandenberg, a former Division I college athlete, who started it virtually in 2020 and opened a physical studio in 2024. Her reformer studio in Beverly Grove runs semiprivate reformer and tower sessions capped at three people, while mat classes next door take up to 18.
Hills and Heights Pilates in West Adams was founded by Brandy Robinson, who chose the location so Black Angelenos would not have to drive across town to find a reformer studio that felt like home.
Houston
Pendulum Pilates is a Black woman owned studio in The Heights that celebrated its grand opening this year.
Teacher Training
Pilates 804 in Glen Allen, Virginia, run by Danica Kalendaraglu, and The Pilates School San Francisco, run by Rayannah Salahuddin, are both known for inclusive, affordable certification and mentorship programs for anyone ready to teach.
