Category Archives: Press

Now Streaming On Demand! Body 101 Transformation

Body 101 Transformation is your personal program of On Demand Pilates-based workshop videos by Aliyah Hatcher, Pilates Teacher, Movement Specialist and owner of Pilates Center of Rockville. We don’t come with an owner’s manual, but we should. Body 101 is a series of twelve 40-minute workshops, combining movement and education for the most essential aspects of your body. You can stream them anytime, anywhere! These workshops are designed to change the way you think about your body and your movement, and they will dramatically improve the way you move and feel.
 
6 REASONS YOU NEED BODY 101 TRANSFORMATION RIGHT NOW!
  • It can help you relieve pain. During this pandemic, maybe you find yourself working from home, spending more time sitting on your couch or bed, spending hours on your laptop or tablet. You’re not the only one, and the result is that a lot of people are experiencing more physical pain than usual. This series is designed to help you relieve pain and dramatically improve the way you move and feel.
  • You’ll get more out of your workouts. Aliyah knows that simple, fundamental knowledge about your body is the key to getting the best results from your workouts. Are you engaging the right muscles? What’s the proper form? Aliyah shares insights, tips, illustrations and advice that will change the way you think about your body and your movement.
  • You can target your problem areas. Each workshop focuses on specific areas of the body, such as the back, arms, lower body, and abs. Want to focus on your upper body? Get moving with “Strong, Sculpted Arms and Shoulders”. Feeling a little sore in your back? Get relief in 40 minutes with “The Essential Back Workshop”.
  • It can reduce your stress. These are very stressful times. Stress weakens the immune system, affects your emotional state, and wreaks havoc on nearly every part of your body. In this series, you will experience how healthy, mindful and holistic movement helps you cope with stress and is essential to your self-care.
  • You can exercise on your schedule. Last minute meeting? Not sure if you can make it to class? Stream the series anytime, anywhere, 24/7.
  • No equipment is needed. Just grab your mat. If you’re at home, then you probably don’t have a lot of exercise equipment. No worries. All you need for this series is a mat and an open heart and mind.
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Vote For Us! Best of Bethesda

For a small business like ours, there’s nothing more powerful than recommendations from our clients and friends. Right now, you can vote for us as the best “Yoga/Pilates Studio”, “Fitness Studio” and “Gym with the Best Virtual Workouts During the Pandemic” in the Bethesda Magazine Readers’ Poll. We would love your vote! 💕 Please be sure to follow the rules to ensure your vote counts. Voting ends on September 18th. Read More...

Winner! 2020 Neighborhood Favorite

Hooray!! Our neighbors voted us a 2020 Neighborhood Favorite in the fitness studio category on Nextdoor.com. 👏👏We’re so honored, because this is the only local business awards voted on by neighbors who really know us and recognize us as one of the best. 😁 Thank you for the love and support! 💕 Read More...

We’re Reopening on Monday, 6/22!

Dear PCOR Community, We’re excited to announce that we are reopening our studio on Monday, June 22. We are ready for you! The health of our clients and staff is our top priority, and our practices are based on the current guidelines and recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) and the Montgomery County Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS). If there are any changes in guidance, we will update our procedures accordingly. We have always maintained an extremely high standard of cleanliness in our studio. We have enhanced all of our cleaning processes and safety protocols for our staff, clients and cleaners. Please review the information below and WATCH THIS VIDEO before your first visit. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at info@pilatescenterofrockville.com. We miss you dearly, and we can’t wait to share that special energy we’ve created together in our studio. On behalf of the entire team at Pilates Center of Rockville, we thank you for your loyalty and support. Sincerely, Aliyah Hatcher, Owner

Pilates Center of Rockville Practices & Procedures

Personal Protection Staff members are required to wear a face covering, which we provide. Customers are required to wear a face covering at all times the studio. We understand that breathing and exerting yourself while exercising can cause difficulties. If you have difficulty breathing, feel light-headed or otherwise distressed, please notify your teacher. It’s okay to temporarily lower your mask to catch your breath before putting it back in place. There are additional protective products that you can purchase if desired, such as the Non-slip Reformer Towel at https://saltandhoneyus.com. You can also bring your own mat. Staff Health Screenings Staff members who are sick and/or have possible virus symptoms are required to stay home. We will be conducting staff health screenings at the start of each person’s shift. Health & Hand Washing Please stay home when you are sick. Wash your hands upon first entering the studio and after cleaning your equipment at the end of the session. Follow the CDC hand-washing guidelines as shown in this short video. We also have hand sanitizer located throughout the studio. Washing your hands and avoiding touching your face are the most important things you can do to minimize the spread of germs. Please arrive with plenty of time to wash your hands. Our staff will wash their hands hourly. Cleaning Equipment Outlined below are specific procedures for clients to follow to ensure effective equipment cleaning. Disinfectant solutions cannot be used on Pilates equipment, because they will damage the material. The equipment is covered with an antimicrobial upholstery. Our equipment cleaning solution is a specifically portioned soap and water mixture approved by the manufacturer, Balanced Body®. Proper use of this solution is effective for removing germs from the surface, similar to washing your hands. Please review and follow these steps, which will be posted throughout the studio. Cleaning should be done at the beginning and the end of your session. Your instructor will demonstrate the cleaning technique at your first session. 5 Steps to Cleaning Equipment
  • Wash your hands.
  • Spray cleaning solution directly onto the washcloth.
  • Gently scrub the vinyl and all hard surfaces that you touched, including the wood, bars, poles, etc. (Do not spray the leather straps, fuzzies or cloth footstraps.)
  • Discard the washcloth in hamper.
  • Wash your hands.
Enhanced Studio Cleaning We have enhanced our daily cleaning processes in the studio by disinfecting high-contact, hard surfaces at least every 2 hours, including door handles, countertops, faucets, etc. We are disinfecting and laundering the props and tools, including exercise mats, foam rollers, magic circles, balls, resistance bands, fuzzies, rice bags, and footstraps. Physical Distancing Be mindful of others when entering and exiting the studio. Please try to maintain a 6-foot distance between yourself and anyone else in the studio, including the instructor. Our benches are marked with specific areas for you to sit and place your belongings. Equipment and mats are positioned or marked “out of service” to ensure physical distance (at least 6 feet). Your teacher will direct you to your reserved piece of equipment or mat. We will avoid hands-on cueing at this time. If you need to get up to move around the studio (i.e. go to the restroom, water fountain or grab a prop), be sure to physically distance yourself from others. Reduced Class Sizes Our capacity is limited to 1 client per 200 square feet. We have reduced our group class sizes to allow for adequate physical distancing. Maximum class sizes have been limited as follows: Reformer (4 students), Tower (4 students), Chair (4 students), Mat (6 students). Reservations, Signing In & Purchases Reservations are now required for all classes, including Mat classes. This enables us to control the number of people in the studio and maintain adequate physical distancing. You can make reservations online up to 5 minutes prior to a class. You can also email or call us, and we will happily schedule you if space is available. At this time, we are eliminating client sign-in sheets. Teachers will mark attendance on their schedules. For classes, teachers will do a roll call. We are limiting in-person sales transactions. All services can be purchased through our Online Store or by replying to the “Time to Renew” email notification sent by the Front Desk. PCOR Live Virtual Lessons & Classes Will Continue! Many of you have shared how much you love the virtual lessons and classes, and you want us to keep them going when we reopen the studio. That’s exactly what we’re going to do! Get details and signup for one of our 11 PCOR Live Virtual Classes, Virtual Private or Semi-Private Lessons. Confirm Your Schedule We know that some of you are ready to return to the studio when we open, while others may choose to return a little later. We sent emails to everyone who has an appointment or class reservation on the schedule. Please reply to confirm your schedule if you have not already done so. Card Expirations Our online system automatically sends email notifications when Cards or packages are about to expire. We want you to know that no one will be penalized for the time period that our studio was closed. All Cards and packages are essentially “frozen” from the date we closed the studio, Monday, March 16, until the date we reopen on Monday, June 22. So, if you need additional time to use the remainder of your classes or account balance, we can extend the expiration date by up to 98 days. Just let us know. Read More...

Dance for Equality & Racial Justice

Pilates Center of Rockville is proud to be a part of this event hosted by Maryland School of Dance to support equality and racial justice. Join PCOR owner, Aliyah Hatcher, for this purposeful and engaging Dance-a-thon/Zoom-a-thon fundraiser, as she kicks off the day’s events with a Pilates class on Sunday, June 7th at 10 am. Pilates Mat w/ Aliyah: Unified in Mind, Body, Spirit & Mission Get details at marylandschoolofdance.org/justice. Read More...

PCOR Live Virtual is Here to Stay!

Many of you have shared how much you love the virtual lessons and classes, and you want us to keep them going we reopen our studio. That’s exactly what we’re going to do! Whether you need more flexibility to fit your workouts into your schedule or you’re not ready to return to the studio just yet, PCOR Live Virtual is the perfect option. Your existing Combo Cards and Mat Class Cards can be used to purchase in-studio and virtual sessions. If you haven’t tried virtual, learn more about PCOR Live Virtual Lessons & Classes.

What’s Happening w/ Virtual Classes?

We’re awaiting guidance from Montgomery County on when we can reopen. I’m excited to announce that the following Live Virtual classes will remain on the schedule. They will be taught in the studio and simultaneously streamed live. You can choose to sign-up for the in-studio class or the live virtual option. Whether you’re participating in the studio or online, you’ll be a part of the same class! You can sign up for virtual classes through the end of the year using our online system. Tuesdays             6 pm             *LIVE VIRTUAL* Level 2 Mat Wednesdays       12 pm           *LIVE VIRTUAL* Mat Strength & Conditioning Thursdays           6 pm             *LIVE VIRTUAL* Flexibility & Flow Saturdays            9 am             *LIVE VIRTUAL* Level 2 Mat 10 am           *LIVE VIRTUAL* Level 1 Mat Sundays 11 am           *LIVE VIRTUAL* Mat Strength & Conditioning Green button graduated tone v2

What’s Happening w/ Virtual Lessons?

You can now book virtual Privates, Duets and Trios through the Front Desk. We will check teacher and equipment availability before we confirm your booking. If you have existing in-studio appointments and would like to change them to virtual lessons, email us at info@pilatescenterofrockville.com. We’re happy to help! Read More...

We’re Featured in Washingtonian Mag!

We’re thrilled to be featured in Washingtonian Magazine, where Aliyah shares important tips for working at home to help keep your body healthy and pain-free. A must-read for everyone! Thank you Washingtonian and Mimi Montgomery.  #washingtonian #washmagphoto #pilatescenterofrockville #pcor #freelivevirtualworkshop #workplacewellness #workingfromhome #thesunkenplace #painfree #washmag Read More...