'You never get the same class twice'

Evolution Studios sits at #101-20457 Fraser Highway in downtown Langley City, and it shows up again and again in Google reviews by one name: Janet.

“Have done pilates 'reformer' with Janet (studio owner) for years & she's AWESOME!” one student wrote in a review the studio posts on its website. “She works hard at class prep/planning so that you never get the same class twice.” Another reviewer called her “so passionate about teaching,” someone who is “constantly coming up with new and challenging ideas for classes and educating herself on how to better help her clients.”

The Better Business Bureau lists Janet Leslie Keon as the owner of Evolution Pilates & Yoga Studio Ltd. Beyond that, her own story is one the internet hasn't told. She doesn't have a bio on the studio's site, and we haven't found her in local news coverage. How she came to Pilates, and why she built a studio in Langley, are the first things we'll ask her.

A studio named for growth

The studio's website says it has been teaching Pilates and yoga in Langley since 2001. Elsewhere it calls itself “Langley's #1 Studio since 2008,” a discrepancy we'll also clear up with Janet. Either way, it's been here a long time. One reviewer wrote that she's been a member “since day one.”

The name is the philosophy. “Our name isn't just about physical change. Evolution represents growth,” the studio says. “Every class is an opportunity to become a little stronger, move a little easier, and feel a little more confident than we did yesterday.” It aims its classes at real life: staying active as you age, recovering from injury, building strength and balance, and easing stress.

Janet has built a team around that idea. Instructor Mila, for one, trained at Prana Yoga College in 2012 and, according to her studio bio, “ultimately found her home at Evolution in 2013.” Other instructors bring backgrounds in ballet, Yin, meditation and kinesiology.

Pilates, from the mat to the reformer

Mat Pilates classes are capped at six people and use small props such as exercise balls and resistance bands, so book a spot up to seven days ahead. The reformer, where several reviewers say they've trained with Janet for years, runs as a progressive 16-week pre-registered series, and you start with Reformer Prep or a personal training session.

One-on-one Pilates training is by appointment, aimed both at people rehabilitating injuries or chronic conditions and at athletes. One older client thanked Janet online for tailoring training to his chronic pain: “She knows my limits, but stretches me to do it right.”

Drop-in yoga, heated or not

Yoga runs on a drop-in basis. The headline class is Infrared Hot Yoga, which Evolution says no other Langley studio offers, with the room heated to 35 to 40 degrees Celsius. A Mild Heat version eases newcomers in, and Flow, Hatha and Restorative classes stay unheated. Ballet barre and fitness classes round out the timetable.

Reviewers keep returning to how welcoming it is. One student wrote that the instructors “really took the time and care to make sure I felt comfortable” with modifications, until she no longer needed help. The main complaint is a good problem: reformer spots are popular and can be hard to get.

Before your first class

The studio's website lists hours of 7:30 a.m. to noon and 5 to 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to noon Friday and Saturday, and 9 a.m. to noon Sunday. Google shows shorter hours, so check the class schedule first. For yoga, arrive about 15 minutes early with a towel and water, and you can borrow or buy a mat at the front.

New to Pilates? The studio suggests a free consultation or its Introduction to Pilates program. Call (604) 532-4822 or email info@evolution-studios.ca. If the reviews are right, whatever you do in that first class, you won't do it the same way twice.

Photos: Evolution Studios.