LSD°R Summerhill Review: A Seasoned Pilates Girl Underestimates a No-Sweat Reformer Class
I've Been Doing Reformer Pilates for Years. This Class Still Surprised Me.
Allow me to set the scene.
I've been doing reformer Pilates for a few years now. I also do HIIT, mat Pilates, strength training, and barre. I am not someone who walks into a fitness class without a sense of what my body is about to do.
So when I came across LSD°R -- Low, Slow, Deep Re°form -- and saw the words "no sweat" attached to the class description, I made an assumption. Recovery day. Gentle stretch. Something to complement the harder sessions I had done earlier in the week.
I. Was. Wrong 🤭.
It was the hardest class I have done all year. I say that as the highest possible compliment.
What Is LSD°R and Where Did It Come From
LSD°R Studios opened its first location in King West in March 2025, and less than a year later announced a second Toronto studio in Summerhill. The new 3,000-square-foot space at 1073 Yonge Street opened in early 2026 and brings with it everything the King West location established -- plus a few things it didn't have.
The name stands for Low, Slow, Deep Re°form. Every word is doing exactly the work it sounds like it is doing, which I came to understand in a very physical way approximately eight minutes into my first class...
The studio was co-founded by Tessa Bernier and Jacqueline DiRenzo, two women with over 20 years of combined experience in movement and mindfulness between them. They have opened yoga studios, Pilates studios, retreat centres, and run international wellness retreats together. LSD°R is not their first venture. It just might be their most considered one.
As Bernier and DiRenzo have described it, the studio was born out of a feeling that something was genuinely missing from the boutique fitness realm- not just a harder workout or a prettier space, but a place that cared about how you felt during the class and when you walked out.
That's their philosophy - and it's built into every class.
The Summerhill Studio: What It Looks and Feels Like
I want to talk about the space before I talk about the method, because walking into LSD°R Summerhill is itself part of the experience.
The studio is 3,000 square feet, designed by Articulate Design Co. with architect Jason Fung. The entry is bright, clean, and airy. As you move deeper into the studio the atmosphere shifts, becoming warmer, moodier, more focused. The founders have described this as designing the space like a nervous system: energize you when you arrive, quiet the noise once you step into the work. You feel that transition physically as you move through it.
The reformer room is wrapped in warm terracotta tones with ribbed curtain walls and globe pendant lighting that gives the space a warmth you don't typically associate with a gym. There are 15 custom LSD°R Re°formers, a private room available for one-on-one and small-group sessions, and professional-grade red light therapy that was not yet operational when I visited but is now being introduced as a standalone or add-on treatment.
The red light therapy uses targeted red and near-infrared light technology designed to support muscle recovery, reduce inflammation, improve circulation, and support collagen production. It's available before or after your session or as a standalone appointment. It's already on my list for the return visit.
The whole studio feels elevated without feeling intimidating. There is a warmth to it that makes you want to stay - which, given that the method is about slowing down, feels completely intentional.
The Method: Why Slow Is Actually the Hardest Thing
Here is the thing about LSD°R that I didn't understand until I was on the reformer eight minutes into my first class, shaking in a way I had not expected:
Slow movement doesn't mean easier movement. It's the opposite.
When you move through a reformer exercise at a standard pace, momentum helps you. At either end of each movement, your muscles get a fraction of a second of rest. LSD°R removes that option entirely. You move slowly and deliberately, which means your muscles remain under tension for longer stretches of time.
The shake that results -- and there will be a shake -- is not a sign that you are out of shape. It's a sign that the method is working exactly as it was designed to!
As someone who is quite active - and has been doing both mat and reformer pilates for years... I COULD BARELY move / do a lot of these LSDR movements. My bestie, Janviere who does F45 and boxing also thought this was even harder than other reformer pilates whe has ever tried.
My boyfriend, Derek, went to 1 class with me and also thought the moves weren't easy - but he loved it . He said he could see himself incorporating LSDR between his usual F45 classes as well.
The classes specifically target slow-twitch muscle fibres, which are responsible for sustained strength and endurance rather than explosive power. Moving slowly also means your mind can't check out. There is no momentum carrying you through the hard parts. You have to be completely present for every inch of every movement, which creates a mind-body connection that faster classes simply cannot replicate.
I went in expecting to coast. I could barely move at first. By the time the class ended I was genuinely surprised by what my body had just done -- and I say that as someone who trains regularly and thought she knew her own fitness fairly well.
The Breathwork That Changes Everything
This is the piece of the LSD°R method that sets it completely apart from every other reformer class I have taken, and I want to spend some time on it because it deserves more than a passing mention.
Every single LSD°R session is bookended by dedicated breathwork blocks. Re°form Up opens the class, priming the nervous system and preparing the body for the work ahead. Re°form Down closes the class, bringing the nervous system back down and allowing the body to regulate after the physical effort.
This is not a few deep breaths at the start and end. This is structured, guided breathwork that functions as part of the method itself -- not an add-on, not a trend, not a nod to wellness culture. Bernier and DiRenzo are the first to pioneer this specific structure in a reformer Pilates context, and the effect is noticeable from the first session.
By the time the reformer work begins, your body is already in a different state than it was when you walked in. And by the time Re°form Down closes the class, you feel a specific kind of settled that is difficult to manufacture any other way. I walked out with shaking muscles and a quiet mind simultaneously. That combination is rarer than it sounds.
The founders have also designed the multi-sensory environment -- lighting, music, scent -- to support this process throughout the session. Every element is chosen to help guests stay present and connected to what they are doing, which makes the physical work more effective and the overall experience genuinely restorative.
The Detail I Keep Telling Everyone About
Here is the thing about LSD°R that I have mentioned to nearly EVERY person I have spoken to since my visit, because it is so practical and so good:
This is the workout you can do before a dinner date or an event, a concert, girls night out.
No showers in the studio, but also no sweat. No sweat means no makeup touch-up. No hair refresh - you might have to brush it out from having headphones on during class. No rushing home to change. You will still be sore - delightfully, productively sore - but you will look exactly as you did when you walked in. For anyone who has ever tried to squeeze a workout into a day that ends with an event, dinner reservation, or anything that requires you to look like a human being afterward, this is useful information ;).
I left my session and went directly to dinner. I'm not sure I have ever been able to say that after a class that challenged me this much.
The Bottom Line
I walked into LSD°R Summerhill expecting an easy class. I walked out with shaking muscles, a reset nervous system, and the immediate certainty that I was coming back.
For anyone who trains regularly and wants something that challenges the body in a completely different way -- this is it. For anyone newer to reformer work who wants to start with a method that is genuinely thoughtful about the full experience, not just the physical output -- this is also it. The no-sweat format makes it uniquely versatile. The breathwork makes it uniquely effective. The space makes it somewhere you actually want to be.
LSD°R Summerhill. 1073 Yonge Street, Toronto. Open now. Red light therapy coming soon. Book through lsdrstudios.com or the LSD°R app.
Go in confident. Come out humbled. Come back the following week. In that order.
Visited as a guest of @lsdrstudios and @lets_beraw. All opinions are entirely my own -- including the part about barely being able to move.
Sources
Style Canada, April 2026: The Story Behind LSD°R Studios
Retail Insider, March 2026: LSD°R expands with new Toronto location
6ix Retail, April 2026: LSD°R Opens Second Toronto Studio in Summerhill
Athletech News, April 2025: LSD°R Studios blends modern Pilates with guided breathwork
Designlines Magazine, December 2025: Light and Colour Lead the Way at LSD°R Studios
VITA Daily, March 2025: Revolutionizing Wellness -- How LSD°R Is Redefining Fitness in Toronto
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