From Avenue C apartment to LES studio: 5 years of Good Time Pilates

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Back when we first visited Good Time Pilates in January 2021, it was a pandemic workaround — a small setup inside an Avenue C apartment. 

Five years later, the studio has evolved and expanded into a Lower East Side storefront as well as with locations in Boerum Hill and Gowanus. 

We checked in with co-founders Sam Miles (right) and Meg Broome about what it has taken to get this far.

Congratulations on the fifth anniversary. What has changed since we first met at the original apartment space on Avenue C? 

Sam: Thank you! So much has changed; we've been through a lot of ups and downs in the last five years with Covid and the uncertainty of the economy, but it has truly been such a blast to also watch the neighborhood and the Pilates industry itself change as well. 

Meg: It went from something that felt like we were just trying to make work day by day to something that has real weight to it. In the beginning, it was scrappy and immediate; we were just figuring it out as we went. Now we've grown into multiple spaces, a full team, and a much more defined voice in how we teach. The scale has changed, but the intention hasn't. 

We first met during a very challenging time early on in the Covid pandemic. How has it been navigating a health and wellness business during that time? How has that experience informed your current practice of owning and operating a fitness studio? 

Sam: It felt really important to be promoting a movement style that was not only good for your body but also for your mental state. There was so much anxiety and confusion at that time, and — to be honest, still today — that carving out time just for self has become a superpower and our most powerful offering to New Yorkers. 

Meg: It was honestly brutal at times. However, it made us a lot more human in how we run things. We understand that people are overwhelmed, stretched thin, and dealing with a lot. So the experience we try to create is one that meets people where they are, not one that demands more from them.

What does it mean to you folks to keep a footprint in the East Village/Lower East Side? 

Sam: We were born in the LES. Our first studio was in Meg's apartment, and we raised money from our local community to open our Allen Street studio here just down the street from that apartment. Watching the LES change and grow around us while we do our best to remain a pillar in the neighborhood is our dream come true. 

Meg: This has been my home for 11 years, so it is not just where the business lives; it is where my life has happened. This is not a neighborhood you can fake your way through; people here feel everything. Being here keeps us honest. It forces us to stay real, to keep evolving, and to actually earn our place instead of assuming it.

If you are a Lower East Side or East Village resident interested in trying a class, feel free to reach out to info@goodtimepilates.com to receive a discount code to book. 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• A visit to Good Time Pilates • A new era for Good Time Pilates