This Gemini wields a dual superpower of movement and stillness which, I guess, matches my extroverted-introvert personality. When those powers coalesce I’m imbued with an invaluable sense of connection to myself and others. Stillness is my sacred alone time where copal and candles burn. In this space, gravity bears no weight on my mind. Instead, it flies free as I wander through fleeting thoughts, wade through memories, daydream about my future and pour into my journals. Stillness is where I conjure ideas, visualize life as I want to live it, and contemplate the person I want to become; personally & professionally.

Before becoming a Pilates teacher, you were a student of the Method. Not a casual student, but an obsessed one. After all, you discovered how Pilates makes you feel more connected to your body, the way it moves and its potential for movement. It was exciting to realize that you could feel like an athlete at any age, weight, shape or size; even if you had no prior exercise experience. And if you had previous pain or injuries, Pilates may have accelerated your healing and helped you to recover. Whatever unique transformation you experienced from having a consistent Pilates practice, that’s what inspired you to become a Pilates Teacher!

Something that inspires me is Joseph Pilates’ philosophy about fitness. He believed that “physical fitness is the first requisite to happiness”. Yes, happiness! And he designed his exercise system of Contrology, aka The Pilates Method, for the “complete coordination of body, mind and spirit”. What a contrast to the fitness industry that wants you to believe that the goal of exercise is limited to weight loss or trying to look like the “hottest” celebrities and fitness influencers. I prefer Joseph Pilates’ holistic approach to fitness because it’s far easier to make exercise a lifestyle habit when your primary goal is to feel good so that you can live your life to the fullest! 

The greatest gift I gave myself in 2022 was freedom from the hustle without labeling myself as “lazy”. The incessant need to churn out ideas & “pivot” my business while surrendering to a 2-year Covid lockdown and isolation left me feeling depleted. So in 2022, as the world opened up with possibility, I wasn’t in the mood to create new opportunities for myself. I needed to re-fill my cup and start reevaluating what I need in my life to truly feel fulfilled. 

My priorities included nurturing my Pilates practice, developing my teaching skills, and to, somehow, return to my first love – the arts.

In my career I’m saying “no” to working six days/week ever again. Or schlepping around the city between private homes, Pilates studios and Massage therapy offices to be as accommodating as possible to as many people as possible. Nope. Been there, done that. That’s a business model based in fear that left me so depleted and completely envious of clients as they snored comfortably on my massage table.

Before the end of ‘22 I’d like to start learning Aerial Hoop aka Lyra. This new, artistic journey has been in my heart for years and on the calendar for weeks. It was supposed to begin today. I woke up at an ungodly hour for a Sunday and braved the NYC subway system which defied me with delays and re-routed trains. Typical weekend shit. I ended up arriving too late for them to admit me into class. Understood. So I spent the next hour commuting back to Brooklyn feeling defeated; to which I drowned my disappointment in gluten free banana pancakes smothered in strawberries and Vermont maple syrup.