Stott Reformer Workout Plan: Free Downloadable PDF

Free Stott Reformer Workout Plan: Essential & Intermediate Repertoire

If you’re a Pilates teacher looking for a ready-made reformer class plan, this free downloadable reformer workout plan gives you a full Stott-style Essential and Intermediate reformer sequence to use, study, adapt, or lovingly scribble all over with your own teaching notes.

The plan was created using the Online Pilates Lesson Planner, and includes a long teacher version, a short class version, and a streamed online version.

This is a big, generous reformer plan.

It moves from footwork and single-leg foundations into feet-in-straps, short spine, midback work, coordination, rowing, stomach massage, long box, short box, mermaid, Elephant-style weight-bearing work, kneeling arm work, leg circles, long spine, knee stretches, running, hip work, thigh stretches, front splits, back splits, side splits, and Star.

In other words, the reformer gets a proper outing. It may need a small lie down afterwards. Possibly a cup of tea.

Free Downloads: Stott Reformer Repertoire Plan

Each Pilates lesson plan created with the Online Pilates Lesson Planner comes in three useful versions:

1) Long Teacher Version: This is the full teaching version, with exercise descriptions, benefits, cues, modifications, precautions, and video links where available. It’s the version to open when you want to understand the whole class before teaching it.

2) Short Class Version: This is the compact version to take into class. It gives you the structure without making you look like you’re reading a small Victorian novel between spring changes.

3) Stream Version: This lets you view the plan online as a flowing sequence. Handy for previewing the class journey before downloading, printing, editing, or teaching it.

Free Downloads

• Stott Reformer Repertoire: Essential & Intermediate — long teacher version PDF
• Stott Reformer Repertoire: Essential & Intermediate — short class version PDF
• Stott Reformer Repertoire: Essential & Intermediate — stream version

Pssst, if you like having reformer sequences ready to go, you might also love my Pilates Reformer Card Deck. It’s like having a pocket-sized reformer teaching assistant, without the awkwardness of asking it to make tea.

What Is This Reformer Plan Designed To Do?

This reformer workout plan is designed to help Pilates teachers guide students from essential reformer patterns into more demanding intermediate exercises. The emphasis is on control, precision, alignment, core strength, and intelligent progression.

The class begins with footwork to warm the lower body and establish connection through the feet, legs, pelvis, and centre. From there, the plan gradually adds more complexity: single-leg work, feet-in-straps, short spine, rowing, stomach massage, short box, long stretch-style exercises, kneeling arm work, leg circles, knee stretches, hip work, thigh stretches, splits, and stronger finishing challenges.

This makes it especially useful for teachers who want a class that feels organised, progressive, and satisfyingly full-body — rather than a random collection of reformer exercises thrown together like Pilates confetti.

Who Is This Reformer Plan Best For?

This plan is best suited to students with previous reformer experience. Students should already be comfortable with spring changes, footbar changes, straps, short box work, kneeling work, and more coordinated reformer transitions.

It is probably not the best plan for a complete beginner who has only just learned which bit of the reformer is the carriage and which bit is quietly plotting against them. For newer students, you could shorten the plan, choose fewer sections, reduce the range of movement, simplify the transitions, and keep the pace slower.

For experienced students, you can expand the plan into a longer workshop-style class by adding more teaching detail, refining technique, and exploring the difference between essential and intermediate versions of the repertoire.

Class Journey: How The Plan Is Sequenced

The plan has a lovely “build and broaden” structure.

It begins with stable supine work, gradually adds straps and spinal articulation, moves into seated and prone box work, then progresses towards stronger kneeling, standing, and split-based repertoire.

1) Footwork, Second Position & Single-Leg Foundations
The class begins with footwork, second position, and single-leg work. These sections warm the lower body, challenge hip control, improve foot placement, and help students organise the feet, knees, hips, pelvis, and centre. It’s the reformer equivalent of saying, “Right, everyone, let’s get ourselves organised before we do anything dramatic.”

2) Feet-In-Straps, Lower & Lift, Short Spine & Coordination
Bend & Stretch, Lower & Lift, Short Spine, and Coordination bring the legs into the straps and increase the demand on the abdominals, hips, thighs, pelvis, and spine. These exercises are brilliant for teaching control because the straps tell the truth. Politely, but firmly.

3) Midback, Rowing & Side Arm Work
The plan then moves into midback work, back rowing, side arm, and front rowing. These sections strengthen the arms, shoulders, rotator cuff, upper back, lats, triceps, and abdominals while encouraging postural endurance and scapular control. It’s upper-body work with manners.

4) Stomach Massage, Long Box & Short Box
Stomach Massage brings the plan back to the footbar for strong seated reformer work, while Arms Pulling Straps, Backstroke, Feet Pulling Straps, and Short Box add more challenge for the back body, abdominals, hips, legs, arms, and spine. This is where the class starts to feel satisfyingly meaty.

5) Mermaid, Elephant & Kneeling Arm Work
Mermaid adds side bending and rotation, while the Elephant section brings in Long Stretch, Down Stretch, Up Stretch, and Elephant variations. The plan then moves into kneeling side arm and kneeling reverse expansion work, challenging shoulder stability, trunk control, posture, and balance. Calm face. Busy body.

6) Leg Circles, Long Spine & Knee Stretches
Leg Circles and Long Spine return to strap-based control, strengthening the hips, core, thighs, and abdominals. Knee Stretches then bring the focus into strong carriage control, shoulder stability, core strength, and the classic “how is this small movement so demanding?” Pilates moment.

7) Running, Hips, Thighs, Splits & Star
Running helps reset the legs before the plan moves into hip lifts, hip rolls, thigh stretches, front splits, back splits, side splits, and Star. This final section develops pelvic control, leg strength, hip mobility, balance, side-body strength, and the quiet confidence required to stay on the reformer without turning the class into performance art.

Why This Plan Works Well For Teachers

The biggest strength of this plan is that it gives you a clear teaching pathway. You’re not just looking at a list of exercises. You’re looking at a full class journey that moves from warm-up and alignment into progressively more demanding reformer repertoire.

• It has a logical build. The plan starts with stable supine work before moving into straps, box work, kneeling work, standing work, and stronger finishing challenges.
• It gives you options. You can teach the whole thing as a longer workshop-style class, or choose one or two exercises from each section for a shorter session.
• It supports teacher preparation. The long version includes exercise information, while the short version gives you a cleaner teaching sheet.
• It’s easy to adapt. You can adjust springs, repetitions, range of movement, pace, and exercise choices to suit the students in front of you.

Teaching Tips For This Reformer Plan

• Adjust spring settings carefully. Use the plan as a guide, but adapt the resistance to the student, machine, exercise goal, and safety needs.
• Shorten the plan when needed. You don’t have to teach every exercise. Choose one or two from each section if you want a cleaner 45–60 minute class.
• Slow the transitions down. Intermediate reformer work is not just about harder exercises. It’s also about smoother transitions and better equipment confidence.
• Teach the principles, not just the shapes. Keep returning to breath, pelvic placement, rib cage placement, shoulder organisation, and head and neck alignment.
• Watch for reformer over-enthusiasm. If the carriage is flying around like it has somewhere urgent to be, reduce the range, springs, tempo, or exercise complexity.

What Makes A Stott-Style Reformer Class Different?

STOTT PILATES is a contemporary approach to the original Pilates method created by Joseph Pilates. Merrithew describes the method as using modern principles of exercise science, fascial fitness, and spinal rehabilitation, which makes it especially useful for teachers who like clear structure, thoughtful progressions, and movement that respects anatomy rather than arguing with it.

The STOTT PILATES approach is also known for five basic principles: breathing, pelvic placement, rib cage placement, scapular movement and stabilisation, and head and cervical placement. These principles give teachers useful checkpoints throughout the class.

In a Stott-style reformer plan, you’re not simply asking, “What exercise comes next?” You’re also asking, “How is the student breathing? Where is the pelvis? What are the ribs doing? Are the shoulders organised? Is the head and neck position helping or quietly causing mischief?”

You can learn more about the official STOTT PILATES method on the Merrithew website here: STOTT PILATES by Merrithew.

Stott Reformer FAQs

Is this an official STOTT PILATES class plan?
No. This is a reformer lesson plan inspired by Stott-style Essential and Intermediate reformer repertoire. It is not an official Merrithew or STOTT PILATES training document.

What level is this reformer plan?
It is best for students with previous reformer experience. It includes essential work, but also moves into intermediate exercises, kneeling work, stronger strap work, splits, side splits, and Star.

Can I teach the whole plan in one class?
Possibly, but it depends on class length, student level, equipment setup, and how much teaching detail you want to add. For a shorter class, choose one or two exercises from each section.

Can I use this plan with beginners?
You could use selected parts of it with beginners, especially the simpler footwork and foundational sections, but the full plan is better for students who already know the reformer. For beginners, simplify the repertoire, reduce transitions, slow the pace, and avoid the more complex split and Star sections.

Why are there three versions of the plan?
The long version is best for teacher preparation. The short version is best for taking into class. The stream version is useful for viewing the plan online as a flowing sequence.

How should I adapt the plan?
Adjust spring settings, repetitions, range of movement, tempo, and exercise choices to suit your student’s level, equipment, injuries, and confidence. As always with the reformer, control is more important than speed — no one wins a prize for launching the carriage across the room like a tiny Pilates bobsleigh.

How This Plan Was Created

This plan was created using the Online Pilates Lesson Planner, which gives Pilates teachers access to pre-filled, editable, downloadable Pilates lesson plans.

The Planner allows you to search exercises by category, type, level, prop, body focus, and more. So, if you want to build a reformer class, you can filter for reformer exercises, choose the exercises you want, edit the plan, and download it as a PDF.

It’s designed for teachers who want to save time planning without losing their creativity. Think of it as a lesson planning assistant that never gets bored, never asks for a biscuit, and quietly provides you with planning inspiration. 

George’s Conclusion

So there you have it — a free Stott-style Essential and Intermediate reformer workout plan, available in long PDF, short PDF, and stream versions.

I hope it gives you a useful structure for your next reformer class, whether you teach it as written, shorten it, expand it, or use it as inspiration for your own version.

If you’re a reformer fan, you may also enjoy my Pilates Reformer Card Deck, which gives you quick visual exercise ideas for planning classes without staring into space wondering what comes after footwork.

And if you’d like more free Pilates class plans, take a look at my free Joseph Pilates matwork class plan with all 34 Joseph Pilates exercises.

Create Your Own Reformer Plans

Start creating your own Pilates lesson plans with the Online Pilates Lesson Planner + access pre-filled, editable and downloadable Pilates lesson plans.