Solidcore Launches Heated Mat Strength Format, Making Good On ‘more Than Pilates’ Vision

Intent on becoming a lifestyle brand and not being boxed into a Pilates corner, Solidcore is taking its class the floor — and adding weight

Solidcore is raising the temperature in the boutique fitness space — to 90 degrees of infrared heat — and hitting the floor with Ascend, a new format that kicks off with Strong50, a 50-minute, full-body class featuring heavier loads and a custom weight and resistance station.

The heat isn’t just for the atmosphere. Solidcore credits the infrared with easing inflammation, speeding muscle recovery and, over time, nudging the cardiovascular system to adapt.

The concept launches this December at Solidcore’s first dual-modality studio at Manhattan West in New York City, where 16 classes per week will be offered. From there, Solidcore plans to expand Strong50 into additional studios across the country in 2027.

Face and mat towels will be provided during class, as well as hydration and recovery options from Solidcore’s Core Collective partners.

“At our Manhattan West studio, Strong50 will accommodate 15 clients per class, allowing us to deliver the personalized coaching and attention to form that help maximize the effectiveness of every workout,” chief commercial officer Anne Smith said. “We recommend taking Strong50 two to four times per week, alternating with Solid classes.”

Solidcore has been experimenting in the open. Last spring, it ran a two-week trial at its Navy Yard studio in Washington, D.C., testing a heated, mat-based format — a move that made some loyalists nervous and caught the attention of founder Anne Mahlum, who had sold her stake in 2023 but took to social media to voice her opinion.

It’s perhaps the most revealing move yet from Solidcore, which has spent the last few years trading its Pilates-forward language for “high intensity, low impact” and “strength training.”

President and CEO Bryan Myers has confirmed it as a deliberate strategy, born from member feedback. The clients who came once to Solidcore and never returned, he has said, were largely “Pilates purists” — those who might have found the mood lighting familiar but not the intensity that followed.

“We’ve heard from our clients and members that they are interested in more offerings from Solidcore,” Smith said. “We received incredible feedback during our development and testing so that we could build Solidcore Ascend in a way that is distinctly Solidcore.”

It’s a move that may catch on. Strong Pilates co-founder Michael Ramsey indicated that he’s seen a similar shift from members of his own fitness brand and noted that its strength-focused class, Load, has become its most popular, even overtaking its traditional reformer classes.

As for Solidcore, there’s more in the works from the L Catterton-backed brand.

Myers has signaled that Solidcore wants to be known as a “lifestyle brand” rather than a fitness studio, pointing to how far its fan-favorite gear (the viral mock neck included) has traveled well beyond coastal cities. It’s not hard to see it happening. Some limited-edition apparel from Solidcore, such as those awarded to members for completing a class challenge, list for as much as $400 on popular resale sites.

The brand’s footprint is also growing. There are more than 175 studios today and Solidcore aims to top 250 by 2028.

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