It only takes a few seconds inside Studio Pilates International Long Branch, a reformer Pilates studio located in the city’s emblematic Pier Village, to realize it’s different from your typical fitness space. You won’t find the concrete walls, splashed in black paint and tinted red by LED light strips, of a HIIT bootcamp gym. Or the booming techno music that washes out a spin studio.
Instead, hardwood floors and shimmering chandeliers make the 14 reformers between them feel approachable and elegant, ready to be draped upon. There are no mirrors in the studio. There isn’t even a clock to count the seconds until a change in movement. In fact, the 40-minute workout might wind away before it even occurs to you to check the time at all.
“I was in really bad shape physically and mentally, and that’s when I found Pilates, and it really changed my life,” says Seiko Sato-Martini, the Long Branch studio owner.
During COVID-19, Sato-Martini and her husband became empty nesters. On top of it, the 55-year-old began experiencing menopause. She felt she was carrying too much weight and developed knee pain so agonizing that she’d have to brace herself when climbing stairs.
She tried gym memberships, various exercise apps but they never stuck. There was a Peloton at home, but she couldn’t bring herself to ride it. Sato-Martini is far from lazy—she gave up a career on Wall Street to raise her daughter—but she never was really into fitness. Until she stepped into a Studio Pilates studio.
“Just trying one class made me feel like this is different and it did change my life. I realized then if it could for someone like me, it could work for anyone,” she says.
Pilates didn’t just transform Sato-Martini’s fitness: her knee pain totally disappeared. Everyone should have access to this miracle workout, she thought, so she began looking for a company with which she could open a studio. That’s when she discovered Studio Pilates International.
The Brisbane, Australia-based company boasts over 100 studios worldwide. Co-founders Jade Winter, a former Olympic swimmer for Australia, and Tanya Winter, a physical therapist and former competitive swimmer, opened the company’s first studio in 2002. It was well before Pilates became popular among celebrities for their red carpet-worthy abs and NFL players went viral for struggling on reformers during the offseason.
The company established itself as a Pilates pioneer with programs designed by physical therapists and audio-visual technology demonstrating movements in the studio. And the company’s motto, “Changing the Way the World Works Out,” reflects its innovative approach. You can expect the same challenging workout at a studio in Long Branch as you can in London or Brisbane. All Studio Pilates clients participate in the same rigorous program, coming together as one global community.
So, when Sato-Martini reached out to the company, they agreed Pier Village was the perfect spot for a Studio Pilates studio. She became a franchise owner and opened Studio Pilates Long Branch in July 2024. Long Branch residents no longer need to travel to Shrewsbury or Oakhurst for a 40-minute reformer session.
Despite being part of a franchise, Studio Pilates International Long Branch maintains a personal and meaningful atmosphere. Shortly after the birth of her daughter, Sato-Martini unexpectedly developed Single-Sided Deafness, losing hearing in her left ear permanently, making it a challenge to participate in group Pilates classes. If an instructor moved to the opposite side of the room, she’d often lose their voice among the noise. This left her with the choice of either taking a chance by mimicking the movements of someone nearby—hoping they were doing the exercise correctly—or falling behind in the class.
But Studio Pilates International’s pioneering technology includes TV screens and speakers in the studio that lead clients through the workout and provide clear instructions both audibly and visually. Instructors are free to circulate through the studio and give clients their total attention. It minimizes potential for clients to get injured, hold incorrect form, or become lost during the workout. All things to which Sato-Martini once felt vulnerable.
“The workout instructions were clear to follow, and I never felt frustrated or unable to perform the exercises correctly,” Sato-Martini shares. “The new method of delivering instructions, with visual aids and a clear voice-over, along with personal attention from the instructor, was one of the key factors that inspired me to open a Studio Pilates in New Jersey."
"This format truly is for everyone," she adds.
Sato-Martini genuinely welcomes everyone, having seen collegiate athletes, busy stay-at-home moms, and wellness-conscious clients in their 60s and even 70s all working out together in the same class using the same program. This inclusive approach is made possible by the personalized attention provided by the highly trained instructors, who can tailor the workout to fit each client’s fitness level.
The responsibility of whom she entrusts with clients is a serious matter for Sato-Martini. She seeks instructors who embody qualities such as caring, kindness, and compassion, as these traits are vital in the Studio Pilates International program, which focuses on client-centric services. Everything is designed to maximize the client's experience, including visual aids from SPTV’s, clear voiceovers, and personalized corrections and modifications by the instructors. Instructors are as professional as ever in black Studio Pilates uniforms, completely immersing themselves into their role, another integral part of the program.
Some clients come specifically for the community-driven environment that the Studio Pilates International crew cultivates. Some come to see how friends and family members became so quickly addicted. Others are drawn by the studio’s location, in the company of Playa Bowls and Cowabunga Coffee Roasters, its floor-to-ceiling entryway windows facing the glistening Atlantic.
Regardless of why they come, there’s no question of why they stay.
Beginners can purchase their 6 Pilates classes for $60. But we doubt you’ll need all 6 to make up your mind.
“Just trying one class made me feel like this is different, and if it could work for me, it could work for anyone.” - Seiko Sato-Martini