This House in Brickell Is Actually a Holistic Fitness Studio

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

Inhale the future, exhale the past are mantras we can all get behind. At The House of Movement in Brickell, the inspirational quotes stand for more than just décor printed on mirrored walls; they reflect the philosophy of this wellness center which is actually a house in Brickell.

"If you hold your breath you die, so you have to just let it go," says co-owner Alejandro Felix. He and his wife Delia, who's been practicing Pilates since the age of 15 and is a former Spanish rowing champion, moved from New York earlier this year in order to 
escape the cold and bring a greater sense of holistic practice to the Magic City.

"Her idea was always to have a house and teach out of it," says Felix. It's idea that has come to fruition with their humble abode (they live there), which it also doubles as place of business.

Like their schedule of classes, the two story 1950's home perched on Brickell Avenue is all about flow. Four rooms downstairs, each with its own purpose, are designed for mostly group fitness classes. There's a Pilates reformer and Cadillac room, a Wunda Chair room (a.k.a. the famous Pilates chair), a Gyrotonic room (which is basically the cousin of Pilates, all about spiral movement and bone elongation), and a bare room for a Pilates mat.

But even though The House of Movement's class schedule is heavy with the control-induced workouts, offering at least 10 classes daily, don't think this is just a Pilates studio. The bare room is used for yoga, ballet, belly dancing, sexy dance (think pole dancing without the pole), Zumba, bar conditioning, and Disq. The backyard boast a Crossfit cage that accommodates up to six people who want intense weightlifting, as well as a pool where swimming classes for kids are currently offered. Eventually, they plan to offer aquatic classes for adults.

If class isn't in session, the pool is fair game, as are the hammocks and plethora of tables outside."We want this to be a place for the community where people hang out," they say. Indeed, there's free Wi-Fi and a juice bar where they'll whip you up some protein or non-protein bevvies upon request.

And don't get their Pilates methods twisted. "We don't do classical Pilates cause that would just mean the same thing over and over again. It's more contemporary."

Contemporary and ever-changing depending on what particular instructor you happen to have. Whereas Alejandro might focus a lot on the breath and anatomy of the body (making his classes more educational), Delia pays close attention to perfecting each individual movement and posture, and Sabrina has one goal: to make you sweat. Which if you're going to work directly after, steam/sauna/showers upstairs are fair game for anyone taking a class (private or not).

Oh, and The House of Movement also offers massages in its massage room, and acupuncture and colonics out of a separate extension (we'll call it a guest house) in the back. If you're unfamiliar, colonics is basically colon and intestinal cleansing to remove toxins from the body.

Is there anything you can't do for your mind, body, and soul at this wellness center that's more of a modern day hippie commune? Not really. "Our main focus is to connect all three of those because nowadays we're asleep," they say. "We want to bring it back to the present moment."

In other words, inhale the future; exhale the past.

Pro tip: The House of Movement is on Classpass and should you exhaust your three monthly passes (which you will) they've lowered the price from the regular $30 per Pilate's class to $20.