The Pilates Mat: Just You and the Work

By Kerry De Vivo

In Return to Life Through Contrology, Joseph Pilates outlines his philosophy of body conditioning and places sole emphasis on the Pilates Mat exercises. The Pilates Mat exercises are the true foundation of the Pilates Method. Classical apparatus was created to deepen and support the work first established on the Mat, helping build stronger connections, greater control, and more refined form.

The Foundation of the Pilates Method

It has been said that the entire Pilates Method—consisting of more than 500 exercises, stems from the original seven Pilates Mat exercises. Consider the most advanced exercises in the system and you’ll find their roots in those first seven. The Pilates Mat humbles. It clarifies. It reveals the purpose of the work. Without Springs, Straps, Reformer Box, or the Footbar, the Mat demands control and precision. It’s just YOU and THE WORK.

Here’s the deal with the Mat, once you know the Mat work, it is yours for life. You can return to life day after day. When I first began practicing Traditional Pilates, my sessions incorporated the full method, both Pilates Mat and apparatus.

A year or so later, I left for college where there were no Pilates studios available. With only my exercise sheets and the book my first teacher, Steve Giordano, had given me, I continued practicing on my own. For several years, the Mat was my entire practice. I fully credit Mat work for sustaining an injury-free dance career in college.

The Purpose-Built Pilates Mat

As Joseph Pilates wrote: “If you faithfully perform your Contrology exercises regularly only four times a week for just three months as outlined in RETURN TO LIFE you will find your body development approaching the ideal, accompanied by renewed mental vigor and spiritual enhancement.”

Gratz Pilates High Raised Mat

In a Traditional Pilates studio, Mat exercises typically happen on a well-supported Mat. The Gratz Pilates High Rigid Mat is specifically engineered for Pilates exercises. Raised to an optimal height and constructed with the proper density, it includes Moon Boxes, an Ankle Strap, and Insert Handles, each serving a distinct purpose.

Features of the Pilates High Rigid Mat

Dimensions of Gratz High Rigid Mat

The raised platform offers important benefits:

• Easier transitions lowering to and rising off the Mat, especially helpful for those with hip, knee, or ankle limitations
• A practical modification for tight hamstrings or low back by pivoting to sit on the side (functioning like a built-in booster) for exercises like Spine Twist

How Density Affects Matwork

The density of the High Rigid Mat is one of its most sophisticated features:

• Firm enough to provide support, cushion, and feedback, especially in rolling exercises such as Open Leg Rocker and Seal
• Not so plush that it absorbs energy allowing for momentum vs. control, nor dulls feedback in exercises such as Rolling Like a Ball
• Challenging enough to require active lift from the Pilates powerhouse, encouraging organization in exercises like Leg Pull Front and Side Bend

The High Rigid Mat does not hold you up. It teaches you to anchor and lift.

Why the Foot Strap Matters in Classical Pilates

Used properly, the strap is not a cheat—it is a tool that:

• Encourages reach and length of legs in exercises such as Single Leg Circles
• Offers feedback to articulate the spine in Roll Up and Neck Pull
• Allows for integration of additional apparatus, such as placing a Spine Corrector on the Mat for Sideways Sit-Ups

Utilizing Pilates Moon Boxes

The Moon Boxes provide:

• Proper leg alignment and width in Spine Stretch Forward and Saw
• Clear placement and organization in the Side Kick Series

Pilates Insert Handles: Assistance, Support, and Opposition

The Insert Handles offer both assistance and challenge.

• In exercises like Roll Over, Single Leg Circles, Corkscrew and Jackknife, pushing away from the dowels through the arms activates the upper body and creates dynamic opposition
• They also provide a wider arm/shoulder position option for exercises like Swan and Hip Circles

A Pilates Mat That Moves With You

The beauty of Pilates Mat work is that once learned, it is yours for life, and it travels with you. Enter…the Gratz Pilates Low Folding Mat. A brilliant Pilates Mat that offers the same sophisticated design and features (except the raise) in a portable format. Ideal for home practice or as a versatile addition to a studio, it delivers proper support and feedback while allowing for convenient storage.

The Mat matters in our Pilates practice.

The Mat exercises are yours for life. 

And the Mat itself matters providing - support, feedback, integrity, intention.

That is the work.

About Kerry

Kerry De Vivo is a second-generation Pilates teacher and owner of Excel Pilates Annapolis. She is certified through The Pilates Center in Boulder, CO (1995) and by Romana Kryzanowska at The Pilates Studio in New York, NY (1996). She has an MFA degree in Dance and a BS degree in Arts Management. Kerry celebrated her 30th year of teaching Pilates in 2025. Kerry is co-director of the Excel Pilates Teacher Training Program established in 2001. She is the co-author of the research study, The Benefits of The Pilates Method for Shoulder Stabilization in Dancers, the Excel Pilates Teacher Training Program Manual and Kerry also created the EPA Mobile Library to support home practice. Kerry is a featured contributing writer in Peter Fiasca’s book, Voices of Classical Pilates and has a contributing interview in Fiasca’s book, Voices of Classical Pilates II, The Men’s Work. Kerry's teaching is inspired by the life's work of the Joseph Pilates. She is dedicated to offering clients an empowering Pilates experience.