12/11/2023
Teacher Spotlight ✨ JoAnn has been teaching at Bliss for almost TWO years now, but we want to share a little bit more about her story and how she found Pilates...
JoAnn grew up in New Jersey, where she participated in gymnastics from an early age. She graduated from Clemson and promptly began a career at a Department of Energy facility in South Carolina. During that time, she became a fitness instructor and personal trainer and she has taught many forms of fitness. Her vast array of exercise knowledge includes step, hip-hop, spin, TRX, and barre. She has competed in running and cycling events, triathlons, and mud-runs. Despite sustaining multiple injuries and surgeries along the way, JoAnn has always found that movement helps her find balance in her body and mind.
Here's JoAnn's story on how she found Pilates:
I learned about Pilates from my original fitness mentor, but I doubted its efficacy. A bike wreck in 2017 led me to revisit this movement system. This time I approached Pilates with a different mindset. After beginning in a regular practice, I was happy to discover new challenges and connections that led to immense growth. I couldn’t rely on my stronger “global” muscles to do the work, and had to develop a new kind of stability. I became physically and mentally stronger, and my quality of life improved. I love to share the joy of movement with my clients, regardless of their current fitness level, injuries, or age, or injuries. My goal is to help people find a love for movement while helping them learn to move safely and enhancing their everyday lives.