Participation agreement
Health acknowledgment and assumption of the inherent risks of reformer pilates. Read this in full. You complete it before your first class.
1. About this document
This is an informed-participant acknowledgment. Its purpose is to make sure you understand what reformer pilates involves, to record your health information so we can teach you safely, and to record what you and Pilates Social Club each agree to do to keep classes safe.
2. What reformer pilates involves
Reformer pilates is a form of resistance-based physical exercise performed on a machine with a sliding carriage under spring tension, straps, ropes and a footbar. Class movements include lying, sitting, kneeling, standing and inverted positions on and around the reformer, with dynamic changes in speed and load, sometimes with additional props such as rings, weights and bands. Classes are group-taught in a studio with several reformers in operation at the same time.
3. Inherent risks you accept
As with any physical exercise programme, reformer pilates involves risks that cannot be eliminated even with the best supervision and equipment. These include, without limitation:
- muscle soreness, strain, tears, sprains and cramps;
- joint pain and dislocation, ligament and tendon injury;
- bone bruising and fracture;
- head, neck, back and spinal injury from falls, from equipment recoil, or from movements that are unfamiliar or performed with poor form;
- pinched fingers, hands or clothing in springs, straps, carriage, footbar or attachments;
- exacerbation of pre-existing conditions, including cardiovascular events during exertion;
- exposure to shared equipment, surfaces and airborne particles, with a corresponding risk of communicable illness;
- risks associated with music volume, lighting effects, temperature and humidity of the studio, and the presence of other participants.
You acknowledge that these risks are inherent to the activity, that you have chosen to participate with knowledge of them, and that you assume them.
4. What this document does not do
This document does not release Pilates Social Club, its owners, employees, contractors, instructors or agents from liability for their own negligence, gross negligence, recklessness or intentional wrongdoing. It does not limit any right you have under New York or federal law that cannot be waived by agreement. It does not affect our obligations under the New York Health Club Services Law, the Consumer Protection Law, the New York State or New York City Human Rights Laws, the Americans with Disabilities Act, or any workplace or safety statute.
5. Health acknowledgment
You represent that you are physically able to participate in reformer pilates, or, if you have any condition that could affect participation, that you have consulted a qualified healthcare professional and been cleared to participate. You will disclose to your instructor before each class any condition, injury, pregnancy, surgery, medication or symptom that is reasonably likely to affect safe participation. You will stop immediately and tell the instructor if you feel pain, dizziness, breathlessness or any other warning sign.
6. Consent to first aid and emergency care
If you are injured or become unwell in the studio and are unable to consent, you authorise our staff to provide basic first aid consistent with their training and to call emergency medical services. You are responsible for the cost of any emergency medical services provided by third parties.
7. Safety commitments from you
You will follow instructor directions, use the equipment as instructed, not adjust another participant's equipment, wear grip socks and appropriate clothing, tie back long hair, remove jewellery that can catch in springs, arrive on time for the safety briefing at your first class, and help move props back to their place after class if asked.
8. Safety commitments from us
Pilates Social Club will maintain the equipment in good working order under the manufacturer's guidance, employ instructors with recognised reformer pilates qualifications, keep group class sizes within the studio's stated capacity, keep the studio floor free of trip hazards, keep first aid supplies on site, keep an AED on site at each studio with staff trained in its use, respond promptly to reports of injury or unsafe conditions, and comply with all applicable safety and health rules.
9. Reporting an incident
Report any injury, near miss or unsafe condition to the instructor at once, and in writing to info@pilatesocialclub.com within seventy-two hours where practicable. Prompt reporting helps us investigate and helps you preserve your rights.
10. Photography, recording and media in the studio
Covered in full by the Photography, recording and media policy. In summary: we do not use audio or video recording in changing areas, bathrooms or any area with a reasonable expectation of privacy; security cameras cover reception, entrances and the studio floor and are signposted; you may not photograph or record other members without their express consent; and we will not use your image in marketing without your express written opt-in.
11. Community conduct
Your participation is subject to the Community conduct and anti-harassment policy.
12. Minors aged 16 and 17
A minor's participation agreement must be signed in person by a parent or legal guardian at the studio, on paper. The guardian is jointly and severally responsible with the minor for the truthful completion of the health acknowledgment and for the minor's compliance with the safety commitments.
13. Governing law
This agreement is governed by the laws of the State of New York.
14. What you sign
The signature block, completed electronically before your first class or on paper at the studio, records your full legal name, date of birth, emergency contact name and phone, any conditions, injuries, surgeries, medications or pregnancy status relevant to safe participation, and your confirmation that you have read and understood this agreement including the assumption of inherent risks in section 3. For minors it also records the guardian's name, that identification was checked, the guardian's signature and any conditions the guardian sets on the minor's participation.
We do not collect health information we do not need in order to teach you safely. The Privacy notice explains how it is stored and how long we keep it.
Pilates Social Club LLC, 91 Washington Street, New York NY 10006