How I Made a DIY Pilates Balance Pole for Less Than $20

DIY Pilates balance poles made from poplar dowels and chair leg tips — a budget-friendly alternative (the longer one in the photo) to the Balanced Body gondola pole (the shorter one) for reformer workouts.

(Hint: It works just as well as the expensive one.)

At Speakeasy Pilates, we do a lot of standing Pilates work on the reformer — which means balance, coordination, and a bit of shakiness are always part of the mix.

I was looking for a Pilates balance pole to help clients feel more supported during tricky standing exercises. The gold standard seemed to be the Balanced Body Gondola Pole — a 5-foot hard maple pole with rubber tips to keep it from slipping. It’s nice… but at $70 a piece? I figured there had to be a cheaper way.

💡 The DIY Fix

I went to Lowe’s and picked up two poplar dowels (1.25” diameter × 72” length) for $10 each.

Then I ordered a set of 1.25” rubber chair leg tips online for $12. They popped on perfectly and gave the dowels just enough grip.

Total cost? About $16 per pole.

That’s less than a quarter of the price of the Balanced Body version — and they work great.

Bonus: the DIY pole is slightly longer, which my taller clients actually prefer.

The Balance Body Gondola Pole is at left and costs $70. The DIY one at right cost $16. The only big difference between the two is that the Gondola Pole is slightly heavier than the DIY version....but not enough to make a huge difference. Clients use both interchangeably.

🧘‍♀️ Verdict:

Clients really like them.

They love the Balanced Body version too… but they don’t know how much moolah I saved.

So if you’re a studio owner, instructor, or just someone building a home Pilates setup and want a solid, stylish reformer balance pole — this DIY solution is totally worth it.