When I returned GAIAM’s® CorePlus Reformer, I had words for the sales person.
“This is a giant piece of crap.”
He just smiled and returned my $29.99.
Of course, I should know better. As a Pilates instructor, I know that most people dislike the softness of their tummies. Most people--including me--will buy anything entitled “core.”
Unfortunately, “core” is one of the industry’s buzz words, sometimes one of its biggest lies.
This core product comes in a boxed kit that includes a 45-minute video and the CorePlus Reformer, two connected stretch bands meant to mimic leg straps on a Pilates reformer.
It sounded so promising, but GAIAM® made a lazy mistake: the one-size-fits-all straps cannot accommodate anyone taller than Mari Windsor, the video’s petite and engaging host.
While my cat watched, I arranged my 5’ 10’’ body into the four-looped CorePlus Reformer. Once my arms and legs were inside, I tried to follow Mari and her assistants in moves like double leg stretch. The girls sailed through the exercise, but I remained in traction, much like Han Solo in Return of the Jedi.
Although the product has potential, the straps are not long enough, nor do they stretch enough to allow shoulder or leg movement. I had the most success with rollbacks, which felt wonderful and kept me scooping my abdominals instead of slumping. The back strengthening exercises made sufficient use of the bands, but I could have gotten the same results from regular stretch bands.
After humiliating myself in my own home, on my own rug, I promised my cat that I wouldn't buy useless crap.
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