Gym Rat: No-nonsense body sculpting at the Studio (MDR)
Participants in the Total Body class at the Studio (MDR) in Marina del Rey, which offers Pilates-inspired workouts called the Lagree Method that use a machine called a Megaformer. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
Ky Evans talks the participants through the workout It’s a welcoming place that makes sure no one is stumbling to figure out what to do. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
Experienced students, such as Shelley Taniguchi, can move from one exercise to the next quickly, which makes the workout that much more demanding. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
Bacchus Freedman works out in the Lagree Method Megaformer class at the Studio (MDR) in Marina del Rey. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
Yoram Heller, left, does squats as trainer Ky Evans corrects his form. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
The Megaformer has more gizmos and options for body placement than the traditional Pilates reformer equipment from which it descends. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
The Studio (MDR)’s founder and chief executive, Lisa Hirsch, holds a plank position while working on her abs. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
Shelley Taniguchi, left, and Lisa Hirsch in the Lagree Method class. It is a full-body workout and a strenuous one, but it’s low- to no-impact motion is good for those with knee or IT band injuries or other reasons not to jump and run around. (Cheryl A. Guerrero / Los Angeles Times)
