From rounding up cattle on her family farm to capturing over 100 million monthly views online, Catherine Farrell’s journey is anything but conventional. The NSW-born founder of the Motus Institute and trainer to the stars is redefining pilates by promoting strength, mobility, and nervous system health. In this interview, she shares the routines, philosophy, and grounded mindset behind her global Pilates movement
STATUS UPDATE:
FULL NAME: Catherine Farrell
HOME: NSW, Australia
INSTAGRAM: @pilates.by.cat
TikTok: @pilates.by.cat
Youtube: @pilates.by.cat1
Facebook: @pilates.by.cat1
Tell us a bit about your shoot
We shot the feature in a beautiful studio in Brisbane. The idea was to create something that felt strong, feminine and elevated, while still staying true to my background in Pilates and movement. We wanted the images to feel clean and contemporary, capturing both the athletic and softer sides of wellness and fitness. It was such a fun, collaborative day, and I loved seeing the concept come to life.
Are there any other funny anecdotes you can share about this shoot?
It was such a nice change being told what to do for once. I’m normally the one directing everyone else, so having someone say, “put one arm here, move your leg there, now place your hand over your head,” was actually really relaxing.
I’m also still mastering my demure smile, so there are plenty of funny outtakes of me trying to get that just right. We had such a great group of people on set, which made the whole day feel really fun and easy.
What surprised me most was how physically demanding a photo shoot can be. I’m used to filming Pilates for five or six hours at a time, and the shoot was about the same length. Holding poses, changing positions and staying switched on all day was definitely a workout in itself.
Whats the one exercise thats always in your celebrity programs?
Deep core work is what I’m known for, so there’s one sequence that always makes its way into my celebrity programs: my Deep Core Ball Series. You place a small Pilates ball under the tailbone, keep the pelvis neutral, add ankle weights, and extend the arms long by your sides, pressing them firmly into the floor. The head stays heavy and the rib cage stays knitted together throughout.
Complete 12 reps of each exercise for four rounds:
● Single-leg toe taps
● Bicycles
● Frog presses
● Scissors
It looks simple, but when the alignment, breathing and control are right, it creates the deep core engagement that helps flatten the stomach, tighten the waist and build real strength from the inside out.
Do you have a morning routine that you swear by?
● Always wake up at the same time
● 2 glasses of water when i wake up
● I’ll put active wear on straight away and head down to the beach to get my 10k steps and my vitamin D
● Always walk in no shoes and 90 percent of the time ill jump in for a swim when i finish
Was health and fitness important to you growing up, and how has your fitness philosophy changed over the years?
Health and fitness wasn’t something I consciously thought about growing up, it was just part of life. I grew up about 15 minutes from the beach, and we also had an Angus cattle farm about an hour away, so one day I could be riding horses rounding up cattle, and the next I’d be at surf club or riding waves. I also played netball and touch football, and did swimming training after school. Being active, outdoors and busy was simply how we lived, so it never felt like a chore or something I had to tack onto my day. I really have my family to thank for that, and for such a great childhood between the farm and the beach.
I’ve always believed movement should be enjoyable, make you feel good and be something you do because you genuinely love it, not because you’re punishing yourself or trying to fit into a certain mould. What has changed is the broader conversation around women’s health and fitness. When I was growing up, it felt much more focused on being skinny, eating less and doing endless cardio. Now, thankfully, the emphasis is shifting towards strength, muscle, good nutrition, healthy joints, a regulated nervous system and looking after the whole body. I’m really happy to see women being encouraged to move in a way that supports how they feel, not just how they look, because that’s always been at the heart of how I approach Pilates and exercise.
Talk us through your weekly training split.
● 10k steps daily
● Pilates 4 times week
● I film a lot! So that 4 days may turn in to 7 days a week.
How do you stay motivated on days when you don’t feel like working out?
I’ve never really relied on motivation because exercise has always been something I enjoy, not something I’ve had to force into my routine. Every morning, I know I’ll go for a beach walk and then do Pilates. That’s simply how my day starts, and because it’s part of my routine, there’s no real debate around whether I’ll do it. They’re both things that make me happy and help me feel like myself.
On days when I feel flat or have less energy, I just adjust. Sometimes the beach walk is enough, or Pilates might be ten minutes of stretching and mobility rather than a full class. I know nothing is going to fall apart because I’ve done less that day. For me, consistency is far more important than perfection. Ten minutes regularly is better than pushing through an hour once a week, and often those ten minutes naturally turn into twenty anyway.
If you’re not in active wear at the gym, where can we find you and what are you most likely to be doing?
In the water. I’m such a water baby you’ll find me in the ocean, that’s my happy place. If I’m organised there will also be lots of snacks with me at the beach ha ha.
We live in an age of social media where people have more access than ever to our lives and are quick to judge. How do you handle negative comments or criticism online and in real life?
I grew up in the country in a very grounded family, and I think that gave me a good sense of perspective from an early age. They’ve always kept me connected to who I am, so I don’t tend to get too caught up in what other people think or let things affect me too deeply. I’m very grateful for that, especially now that social media gives people so much access to your life.
If I ever do see a negative comment, I try to lead with compassion. Usually, it says far more about what that person may be going through than it does about me. Touch wood, though, I’ve actually been incredibly lucky and don’t really receive mean comments. There are definitely healthy discussions around things like classical versus contemporary Pilates, but that’s very different from personal criticism, and I’m grateful that my community is generally so positive and supportive.
What self-care strategies do you use to maintain positive mental health?
● Wake up and go to sleep at the same time everyday even weekends
● Sunlight everyday
● 8 hours sleep every night
● Beach walk and swim every morning keeps me sane
● Pilates with mobility and breath work to reset my nervous system
● Eat whole foods that nourish my body
● Say no to things when I need to
What’s a fitness myth that you wish would go away, and why?
The fitness myth I wish would disappear is that Pilates doesn’t build strength. I see it repeated on social media, often by personal trainers with large platforms, and it simply isn’t true. Strength is built by progressively asking your muscles to do more over time. That can mean increasing resistance, repetitions or sets, working through a greater range of motion, changing the leverage, reducing assistance or progressing to a more challenging variation. Every one of those principles can be applied in both mat and reformer Pilates.
The key is correct programming. If you’re dropping into random classes with no structure or progression, then you may not be following a strength-building program, but the same could be said for any form of exercise. Give me four weeks to properly structure and progress the exercises, resistance, volume and difficulty, and I can absolutely create a strength-based mat or reformer program. Pilates isn’t the limitation; unstructured programming is.
What is your approach to nutrition? How do you maintain balance and still enjoy your favourite foods?
My approach to nutrition is pretty simple. I eat a high-protein, whole-food diet, and I think that comes from growing up in the country on an Angus cattle farm. Dinner was usually meat and three veg, and a lot of what we ate came from the farm, so this way of eating has never felt like a diet to me. It’s just what I’ve always known. At home, I also tend to eat quite repetitively, protein with salad or vegetables, and maybe some berries for dessert. It makes shopping, cooking and serving meals really easy, and I don’t have to overthink it.
I don’t restrict myself, though. If I see Tim Tams, I’ll have one or two, I just probably won’t eat the whole packet. I don’t count calories now, but having done it in the past means I have a good understanding of what’s in my food, especially how much protein I’m getting. Most of the time I eat in a way that makes me feel good and keeps me satisfied, but when I’m out with friends or my fiancé, I’ll order what I feel like and enjoy the meal. For me, it’s really just about balance, moderation and not making food more complicated than it needs to be.
What’s your go-to treat?
Medjool date with butter inside and sea salt sprinkled on top. I like my treats to be easy and this takes about 30 seconds to make!
Who inspires you?
My fiancé inspires me more than anyone. He’s incredibly intelligent, level-headed and always seems to know how to approach a situation and move forward. He’s played a huge role in helping me get to where I am today, and I’m very grateful for that. I’m also lucky to have a great group of girlfriends around me who are all doing amazing things in their own fields. Seeing them succeed and being surrounded by that kind of drive naturally makes me want to keep growing and doing better too.
I’m also inspired by women like Kayla Itsines and what she has built with Sweat. She has empowered women all over the world to feel stronger and more confident, and the scale of what she has created is incredible. I really admire women who take an idea, build something meaningful from it and create a genuine impact, and that’s definitely something I aspire to do in my own way.
You’re working out in the gym – what are you listening to?
It’s a real mixed bag. This might sound strange, but exercise is actually my relaxation time for the day. It’s 45 minutes where I can focus on myself, give my body some attention and properly switch off, so I don’t usually want loud music blaring in my ears.
Sometimes I’ll listen to nothing at all, put on an Andrew Huberman podcast, or just have some gentle background music playing. I love music, but during a workout I’m usually trying to decompress my nervous system, so I prefer things to feel calm rather than overstimulating.
Reflecting on your whole journey to date, what are you most proud of – personally or professionally?
Personally, I’m most proud of finding someone I get to share my life with. I know that isn’t something everyone is guaranteed, so I feel incredibly grateful to have found a person who makes me feel loved, supported and safe. The fact that we also get to build a business together as a team feels very special. In a lot of ways, I already feel like I’ve made it, because I get to wake up every day with someone I love and build a life we’re both excited about.
Professionally, I’m most proud of the impact I’ve been able to have through Pilates. When I started teaching 20 years ago, social media didn’t exist in the way it does now, so my impact was with the clients I saw each week. I loved watching people become stronger, stand taller, move better and gain confidence in themselves. Pilates has always been about more than just the physical for me. It’s also about mobility, posture, nervous system regulation and helping people feel better in their own bodies.
Now, through social media, I have over 100 million views a month, which still feels incredible to me. Someone might find a new form of exercise they genuinely love, learn better technique from one of my reels, improve their posture or simply feel a little more confident. What means the most is helping women discover something sustainable that supports them for life, rather than another six-week fad they’ll eventually give up on. That’s what I’m most proud of creating.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
It’s not so much one piece of advice, but more the way my mum and dad raised me. They instilled in me from a young age that you have to work hard for the things you want, and that nothing is simply handed to you. I’ve carried that with me throughout my life, and it’s given me the belief that if I’m prepared to put in the work, stay consistent and keep going, I can create the life and career I want.
What’s next for you?
I want to build the Motus Institute into a global leader in Pilates Training, both for people to learn Pilates, but also to train the next generation of teachers. I want to build something that will endure long after I’m gone. Not for my ego, but so that health, wellness, and positivity will continue to grow and flourish.
I also look forward to growing my book of celebrity clients. I’ve trained so many incredible women over the years and have met so many new ones since the launch of my online platform. I love being a part of their journey and helping spread good Pilates across the world. Keep an eye out this awards season for some amazing Pilates bodies gracing the red carpet!
PHOTOGRAPHER: Elizabeth Maleevsky
HAIR & MAKE-UP: Peta-lea Bond
