Like many Aussies, I am time poor. In fact, I usually time my day down to the very minute – a schedule so tight I even have a daily calendar reminder to call my parents. 

I am also addicted to exercise – for me it is the ultimate form of therapy.

I run, swim and do ballet, but my favourite form of exercise always has, and always will be, Pilates.

I have been a tall gal all my life and my dreams of becoming a gymnast were squashed when I shot up quickly in my early teens at school.

Despite being too tall to go on to compete, I always had a fascination with posture and flexibility. I think it must be my mother constantly telling me to stand up straight!

I realised pretty early on that posture is down to the core and for tall people if you have a weak core, you slouch. Hello back problems.

As I approached my mid-thirties and after sitting at a computer every day for 10 years, I had well and truly cooked my back. A friend suggested I try Pilates and assured me it would change my life. She was right.

After a trying a few mat classes I graduated to the reformer and fast forward a couple of years it became an integral part of my workout regime.

Showbiz Editor Jade Watkins tried Your Reformer for four months and she was immediately sold (Stock image) 

But as I grew busier and busier in my role as an editor and leading a large team, my days became longer. I found it difficult to find classes that would fit around my work schedule, and quite often I would book sessions only to have to cancel them at the last minute when a work meeting or event popped up.

With endless class cancellations and exorbitant late fees, I was literally flushing money down the toilet. We’re talking hundreds of dollars a year. 

When you add on the pricey cost of the classes, it became a seriously expensive hobby. Especially, with the ever-growing cost of living crisis.

I have always wanted my own reformer at home, but was worried it would be too expensive or take up too much room. So when I was offered the chance to try Your Reformer I jumped at the chance. 

I had seen several celebrities including Jesinta Franklin and Phoebe Burgess rave about it online and judging by their incredible bodies there was no doubt they were doing something right. 

After doing a little research on Your Reformer’s website, I discovered that ‘The Original’ reformer was a modest size bed which could be folded into two and tucked away perfectly in the corner of my living room. 

Maybe, just maybe, I could finally commit to five classes in a week, no less in my own home. No more rushing or missing classes and hundreds of dollars literally going down the drain each month.

The day the bed was delivered was like Christmas. My housemate and I were both so excited. A sleek white fancy bed arrived on a Friday afternoon while I was working from home by two (very buff and very handsome) men.

While that was a perk in itself, the fact they set up the entire reformer for me in the space of five minutes was the ultimate bonus.

I tried ‘The Original’ reformer, which retails for $2995 or you can rent the bed for $39-a-month (MUCH cheaper than paying for regular classes)

I had seen several celebrities including Jesinta Franklin (pictured) and Phoebe Burgess rave about it online and judging by their incredible bodies there was no doubt they were doing something right 

Jesinta has her own Your Reformer in her Gold Coast home 

Phoebe Burgess also gets in shape with Your Reformer and its incredible online classes

With the sleek machine staring at me all day while I was working through my shift I couldn’t wait to jump on and I did as soon as I pressed the off button on my computer.

Your Reformer comes with an app which contains hundreds of classes led by incredibly experienced instructors, as well as all the accessories you need for a full, dynamic, and at times, very challenging classes.

Those include a ball, box, dumbbells and the infamous ‘magic ring’, which is not so magical, but probably the most challenging of the lot. I like to call it the ‘ring of fire’.

As I have been doing reformer classes for almost a decade, I skipped to an intermediate class and while I was expecting to breeze through it I was surprised to find it quite challenging.

Not only did I have my very own reformer, but also the luxury of doing a private session in my own home – a one-on-one 50-minute class with an instructor.

I have always thought home workouts were around 50 per cent of what you get out of a class in a studio or gym, but 15 minutes in I was sweating up a storm and reaching for the towel and water.

The class tackled all areas of the body – arms, legs, glutes, back and most of all abs – and mimicked my usual cardio reformer classes I do at a very well-known and popular studio found Australia wide.

After an intense 50-minute class I felt fit, fabulous and energetic and couldn’t wait for the next one, which I did the following morning.

It only takes some quick maths to see how much having a reformer at home pays off. I was doing at least three classes a week at my local studio, which costs $40 a pop, around $6000 a year. The reformer I had on loan was $2995, so that is a saving of $3000 a year. In fact, if you are doing more than three classes a week that is a bigger saving

Two weeks into having the reformer at home – I was hooked. So was my housemate, who often found herself doing 15 minutes of ab exercises after dinner as she streamed her favourite shows or used the machine merely to stretch out the day.

When it was time to send the reformer back, we were both devastated. It had become part of our daily routine and our home.

It only takes some quick maths to see the benefits to your bank account.

I was doing at least three classes a week at my local studio, which cost $40 a pop – around $6,000 a year.

The reformer I had on loan retails for $2,995, so that is a saving of $3,000 a year. If you are doing more than three classes a week that is an even bigger saving.

Similarly, if you don’t have the big bucks to pay upfront you can rent ‘The Original’ for $39-a-week, which is a substantial saving and around the same price as paying one off in a year. It is also a good way to trial the reformer before you buy. 

I once thought having a reformer at home was an impossible (and expensive) idea, but after finally taking the p(lunge) I have never looked back. And neither will you.