By Rebekah Rotstein

Rotstein demonstrates with the PilatesStickBack when I was seeing private clients in their homes, I would lament not having Pilates equipment with me. Many of my clients have specific conditions and past injuries, so I rely heavily on the machines for the neuromuscular feedback, assistance and challenge that springs provide. The need I had for transportable equipment—a need I’m sure that many instructors still have—would be diminished now, thanks to the PilatesStick®. This clever device allows you to set up a resistance unit in your own home, or anywhere you like for that matter. Just secure it into a door and you have your own springboard with a rolldown bar.

The brainchild of exercise physiologist Charles Blount, the PilatesStick is a portable kit containing a bar, a thick resistance band called Slastix, cotton loops for the feet or hands, a foam anchor to secure it into a door and a yoga mat. All this comes in a sleeve making it as easy to carry around as a yoga mat bag, with the Slastix serving as a strap to throw over your shoulder. The basic kit will run you about $150. The system also offers additional items for purchase like wall mounts and a ballet bar attachment.