Pilates Teacher Training
Led by Jeanni Chrisman, a Pilates instructor since 2000 and certified Teacher Trainer since 2006, the Pearl Pilates Teacher Certification offers a mentorship-based, small cohort training experience rooted in precision and individualized instruction.
Your Trainer: Jeanni Chrisman
Jeanni has been teaching Pilates since 2000 and GYROTONIC® since 2008. Her work is rooted in a lifelong exploration of movement, shaped by a deep curiosity and a commitment to both learning and teaching.
In 2007, she opened her first studio to create a supportive, high-quality environment for clients of all ages, backgrounds, and experience levels. She became a certified Pilates Teacher Trainer in 2006 and has since dedicated herself to mentoring the next generation of instructors.
Jeanni developed the Pearl Pilates Teacher Certification to reflect her years of study, experience, and devotion to the Pilates method. Her approach emphasizes thoughtful instruction, individualized guidance, and the development of confident, capable teachers prepared to carry the work forward.
Pearl Pilates Teacher Certification
Course Overview
Course Objective:
The Pearl Pilates Teacher Certification program prepares you to design, lead, and adapt sessions for a range of bodies and experience levels. Training includes a combination of coursework, apprenticeship, and assessment.
Program Structure:
The full certification is completed over four weekends, following the Pre-Training component.
Pre-Training may be taken as part of the full certification, as a standalone course for prospective instructors, as continuing education for certified teachers, or by clients interested in deepening their personal practice.
Weekend Intensive 1: Fundamentals +Mat
Weekend intensive 2: Reformer
Weekend Intensive 3: Cadillac
Weekend Intensive 4: Chair
Apprenticeship Hours:
The program includes 486 total apprenticeship hours. Trainees have up to two years to complete certification, though many finish sooner.
Following the initial 78 weekend intensive hours, an additional 408 apprenticeship hours are completed through a combination of observation, self-practice, practice teaching, assistant teaching, and class participation.
Certification
Completion of the program is marked by two assessments: an in-studio practical “test out” and a written certification exam.
Once all coursework, apprenticeship hours, and assessments are complete, certification is awarded!
“As an educator and professional development specialist, I understand the art and craft at skilled teaching when I see it. Not only is Jeanni an accomplished Pilates practitioner, she is a master teacher with a gift for making her teaching process visible to her apprentice teachers. When it came to choosing a Pilates teacher training program, I wanted a program that not only focused on proper Pilates technique, but that also coached its participants on best pedagogical practices. I found it with Jeanni and Pearl Pilates.”
— Ellie Gilbert, Pearl Pilates Teacher Certification GraduatePilates Teacher Training Locations
Portland, Bend, and Lake Oswego, Oregon
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Full studio certification course: 78 hours (13 days; 6 hours each day)
Personal workout/review: 55 hours
Classes or Privates with a certified instructor*: 100 hours
Observation: 75 hours
Practice Teaching: 150 hours
Assistant Teaching: 28 hours
*Cost of classes/privates are in addition to course fees (15 total classes and/or privates are included in course fee). -
Mandatory Pre-training: $600*
Full Studio Certification: $5,000
Test-Out: $450**
Full Studio Certification Includes:
● All blocks: Mat, Reformer, Cadillac, Chair● Two years full access to studio to earn hours
*Pre-training fee ($600) is separate from the full studio certification cost for those committing to full studio.
**Test out fee not included in total certification price
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A Pilates Primer: The Millennium Edition (Return to Life & Your Health)
Anatomy of Movement (Blandine Calais-Germain)
Anatomy of Movement: Exercises (Blandine Calais-Germain)
A Busy Person’s Guide to Easier Movement (Frank Wildman)
Pearl Pilates Studio manual will be provided the first day of full studio certification training (intensive weekend two)
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All instructors (for assistant teaching, observation, & classes/privates) must have been certified for at least one year and approved by the educational director.
CEU’s for current apprentices, teachers, PT’s/OT’s as well as other disciplines may be available
For CECs, attendance is required and a certificate of attendance provided.
Apprenticeship period begins following the completion of Weekend Intensive Two. No previous Pilates sessions can be applied toward apprenticeship requirements.
