The colours are a house code
This is the thing most misunderstood about reformers. There’s no industry-wide colour standard at all. A red spring on one make of bed isn’t necessarily the same resistance as a red spring on another.
So a video telling you to "use two reds" means very little unless you happen to be on the same equipment. In class, listen to us rather than to the internet.
Lighteris oftenharder
Why lighter can be harder
It depends entirely on which way the spring is helping. When you press the carriage away from the bar, more spring means more to push against, so heavier is harder. That’s the one that makes sense.
But when the spring is holding the carriage steady underneath you, less spring means less help, so your own stability has to make up the difference. A lot of advanced work happens on very light springs for exactly that reason.
What decides your setting
- The exercise
- Footwork and leg presses want more spring than most arm work. It’ll change several times in a class.
- Your proportions
- Limb length and body weight both change how a spring feels. Two women of similar strength can want quite different settings.
- The day you’re having
- Tired, stiff, or back after a break, you might want a different setting than last week. That’s normal, and it isn’t going backwards.