Karen Goldstein

Karen Goldstein was first introduced to Pilates when only 18 years old after developing knee problems while studying ballet in NYC. She was sent to the original Pilates studio run by Romana Kryzanowska, a direct disciple of Joseph Pilates. After returning home to the Bay Area, she continued her ballet training with, as her teacher noticed, “much better alignment”.

There was no Pilates on the west coast for about 10 years, but when Karen continued to have alignment and pain issues from dancing, she resumed her pilates training under the guidance of Jennifer Stacey in San Francisco. She completed her Teacher Training Certification under Ellie Herman and has also studied extensively with Lizz Roman learning rehabilitation techniques based on the principals of Janda.

Karen likes to teach Pilates with an emphasis on form and how it applies to functional life movement. She likes to educate her students to have more freedom in movement, strength, and to learn ways to help themselves when their body/pain issues arise so that they can get along with more ease in their everyday lives.

Janine Fondiller

Janine Fondiller is a Pilates teacher and educator who has been teaching in San Francisco since 2000. A Senior Trainer at EHS and one of the head educators in the Teacher Training Program, she has led teacher trainings in the U.S and Korea. She specializes in teaching challenging and dynamic classes, training instructors, and also in giving specialized sessions in rehabilitation and conditioning.

Janine’s teaching is inspiring, informed and clear, drawing upon her longtime movement experience as a professional dancer, athlete, aerialist, and yoga practitioner. Having just completed a foundation-level yoga teacher training, she is continually seeking to expand her knowledge and understanding of the body and its inter-workings. She was the assistant teacher to Lizz Roman in the Fall Rehabilitation course and continues to further her education with many of the gifted master level teachers in the field, including; Ellie Herman, Jennifer Stacey, Nora St. John, and Erik Franklin. She is grateful for all of her students and teachers alike.

Balanced Body University Pilates Instructor bbu.pilates.com

Brigitte Brunner

Brigitte Brunner is a Balanced Body master instructor and educator as well as a graduate of Ellie Herman Studios. After completing her Pilates teacher training in 2005, Brigitte began teaching in San Francisco. In 2012 she completed the Master Instructor training program with Balanced Body.

Since then she has been one of the educators leading Pilates instructor training programs at EHS Pilates in San Francisco. Relevant Continuing education and training includes: CoreAlign 1 and 2, Lizz Roman rehabilitation intensive, Mary Bowen Pilates and Psyche, Eric Franklin Pelvic Power, Thomas Meyers Anatomy Trains, Marie Jose Blom, Amy Alpers and most recently the Buff Bones Instructor training. Buff Bones is a medically endorsed system for bone and joint health.

In her private and group sessions, Brigitte brings energy, passion and attention to detail. Brigitte has also taught extensively in Italy and is fluent in Italian.

Blane Ashby

Blane has been practicing and studying Pilates since 1998 and was certified through the Ellie Herman Institute in 2002.

While the majority of his time is spent teaching at Parkside Pilates he also teaches at EHS Pilates Studio. From 2003 to present has been a Faculty Instructor of the Teacher Training Instructor Program (TTIP) at the Ellie Herman Institute acting as co-head of the program.

In 2007, he became a certified Balanced Body Faculty Instructor. Along with one-to-one fitness training he specializes in injury prevention and recovery. Blane has had much success in assisting and creating programs for clients in their post recovery and injury prevention goals. Through out the week Blane teaches quite a few Pilates based group classes.

His popular classes promote a non-competitive atmosphere while challenging the student to reach their fullest potential. Focus of the classes include precision, control, stability, core strength, increasing flexibility all the while promoting enjoyment and a sense of accomplishment.

Pilates can be quite challenging but should be fun too! Blane has been a dancer for the past 20 years and has performed with Company Chaddick, Huckabay/McAllister Dance, EmSpace Dance, Dance Continuum SF, and 13th Floor Dance Theater.

Balanced Body University bbu.pilates.com

Ruthie Wahlborg Scott

Sharing words and tools for experiencing muscle systems with focused movement, Ruthie confidently coaxes out each person’s ability to swim tranquilly inside their own shapes. The supple, strong muscle is where a person learns to float, truly and metaphorically.

Changing someone’s relationship to gravity in a beneficial way is one of the most electrifying aspects of Pilates, as well as it being a sure recipe for grace. Further effects of this sound method include the long, pleasing journey which can deliver a lifetime of a-has, along with lots o’ fun.

Ruthie’s Experience:

• Teaching Mat and Equipment Pilates steadily since 2003
• Certified Training with Ellie Herman in 2002
• 2006 worked for Tom McCook at Center of Balance, absorbing an unparalleled amount of true movement wisdom through staff workouts and working on the floor.

Her Other Loves:

• bicycles
• microphones
• swimming pools
• dance floors are real stand-outs for this gal!

Chris Black

Chris has over 13 years of experience teaching Pilates in the Bay Area. Chris Black was certified by Ellie Herman, and has done extensive rehabilitation training with Lizz Roman. She also has studied with Jennifer Stacey and Carol LeMaitre.

Chris is also skilled in working with women through all stages of pregnancy, including post-natal.

“Chris Black has made it to my short list of things that make San Francisco a great city. Three years ago I discovered that I had AS, a debilitating back condition, and began trying various treatments with mixed results. Chris has been the first person to give me a feeling of control over how my body feels each day. From the very first lesson, she inspired trust and confidence in her approach. She has a deep understanding of body mechanics, but never gets ahead of what my body is able to do. There’s no such thing as a panacea for back problems, but if you’re willing to put in the work, Chris is the closest thing to it.”
– Unsu Lee, Bay Area filmmaker

Carrie Ferguson

Carrie Ferguson was introduced to the Pilates method after dealing with acute low back pain and tight shoulders, weak stiff neck – a result from long, grueling hours in front of a computer day in and day out as a graphic designer.

After a year of strengthening deep core muscles, fine-tuning alignment and posture, staying centered, Carrie knew it was time to follow a new path of self-care and teach others from her experience.

Within a year Carrie left the corporate world to pursue and her passion for Pilates. She started her Apprentice training in 2011 and, a couple of years later became a fully certified instructor! This was the best choice she has ever made! She’s so much happier and healthier now in her 40s than she was in her 20s.

Carrie’s students often reach that “ah-ha” moment, where they understand and feel the correct muscle group engaging and it’s that moment that they take from their sessions and apply to their daily living patterns, so they may move through life pain-free.

Cadillac

Pilates lore has it that Joseph Pilates created the prototype Cadillac to enable bed-ridden patients to exercise. His design was simple – a hospital bed with mattress springs attached to the wall. The design has definitely evolved over the years and so have the exercises and stretches one can do on the Cadillac.

There are many elements to the machine: leg springs, arm springs, fuzzy loops to hang from, a push-through bar to stretch you out, and even a trapeze. The trapeze was the original add on accessory to the machine, which is why it is also known as a “trap” table.

You can isolate almost every muscle group on the machine – it is an excellent tool for breaking down motion into small pieces to restore correct motion patterns. Using the leg springs is one of the best ways to get runners to fully use their hamstrings.

Because the Cadillac is such a large piece of equipment it is rarely used in group classes, so the best way to experience this machine is in a private Pilates session.
 

Cadillac Class Pricing

For information on private sessions click here.

Wunda Chair

Challenge your stability, strength, and flexibility.

Though the basic design is simple, there are a myriad of exercises that can be performed on the Pilates Wunda chair. It is excellent for strengthening the core muscles, arms, and legs. Exercises are performed lying down, sitting, and standing on the chair, as well as from positions at the sides of the chair.

What is the Wunda Chair?

Like the Reformer, the Pilates Chair is another of Joseph Pilates’ resistance exercise machines. The Wunda chair is a box with one side that can be pressed down against the resistance of springs, like a large pedal. The pedal portion can also be divided into two parts that can be worked independently for more of a challenge.

Wunda Chair Class Pricing

For information on private sessions click here.