Meet the Instructor – Shannon

What do you love about teaching Pilates and Barre? 
I love those moments when a client finds an exercise in their body, feels the intention of the movement, and a new connection with themselves. I really appreciate that Pilates and Barre both are not just about one thing or one muscle group at a time. Both exercise methods require that our entire selves are active, alive and participating. I like to tell clients: nothing is ever dead in Pilates or Barre. Feel energy everywhere.

How would you describe Barre to someone who has never done it?  I do not have a dance background, so I like to tell people that.  Dance experience is not required at all. Barre is similar to Pilates in that our focus is on the whole body working together; something is always stretching while something else is strengthening, all the while being supported by form and posture. Barre, like Pilates, is good at finding and working the smaller, supporting muscles that can bring greater stability, balance, and tone.

You have been teaching Pilates for a long time, besides being a mom and having a full time job. What benefits has this had for you in your life? 
I started taking Pilates mat classes about 18 years ago and really fell in love with the focus required by this movement practice. I began to learn my body and to become very in touch with it. That, more than anything, has served me over the years, through pregnancies and crazy schedules and periods of higher stress. When we practice Pilates with intention and remember to keep our mind engaged, then we really have an opportunity to come into ourselves. Pilates has consistently offered me a practice that helps me manage stress, spend time with like-minded and amazing people, a way to connect with myself, and a way to remain healthy, strong and flexible well into my 40’s.