I started Pilates classes in 2006 in Minneapolis, MN. I got sober and put on 60 pounds. A woman named Emily offered me a work-for-trade position at her studio and introduced me to Adrienne, who owned a training facility called Align Pilates.
I enrolled in the Align Pilates Teacher Training program in 2008 and graduated with a 650-hour fully comprehensive Classical Pilates Certification in 2009. I was immediately hired at Align Pilates and became involved in the teacher training. I love teaching, and teaching teachers is an honor and a privilege.
I had been teaching full-time since 2009 until I had a child in 2017. I’ve enjoyed working with all types of injuries and conditions. I enjoy teaching pre and post-natal. I focus my teaching on precision, alignment, and fun. I am extremely enthusiastic about sharing my experience and love for the practice of Pilates because of what it has done for me and what I’ve witnessed it do for others.
I have spent hours continuing education, including time at the Pilates Centre in Boulder, CO, participating in Balanced Body training, and a Pranassage Practitioners Certification from The Nosara Yoga Institute in 2011. There were many workshops, and there will be many more.
When people ask me, why do you teach Pilates? Why do you love it? The honest answer is: because it feels absolutely delicious and I want to share that with others.
I started casually taking Pilates in Chicago, trying to make a little healthier lifestyle for myself. After a decade of being on the urban eat, drink repeat carousel, I was sluggish, had back pain and wasn’t living in a way that felt in tune with what I wanted. Training to teach Pilates was a bit of a Hail Mary to bring myself back into personal alignment, but I never expected the journey to be so fulfilling or to have such a lasting impact on my life.
It was incredible luck that I met and trained with Page Sieffert whose enthusiasm and boundless energy and knowledge were contagious. After feeling big changes in my own body, I knew I wanted to share that experience with others.
I completed a comprehensive training through Balanced Body with Page in 2015. In 2019 I graduated from an 800+ hour classical Bridge Program at the Pilates Center in Boulder, Colorado. I learned Joseph Pilates’ classical work with 2nd generation protegees and industry leaders.
Ali is a dancer, student of movement, and body engineer. Formerly an electrical computer engineer, Ali found pilates as the perfect blend of her love of movement and an analytical approach to the body. She believes that our bodies are beautifully infinite and offers guidance to students at any stage of their movement journey.
Ali is a Level 1 Franklin Method Instructor. She studied anatomy with Tom Meyers via full body live dissection. She has studied and practiced a wide range of Dance, Somatic and Functional movement methodologies and brings her love of movement to all of her classes.
Ali trained in Pilates through Balanced Body, a modern, functional training program. She is also certified in the Gyrotonic Expansion System and offers private sessions in Gyro as well as mixed Pilates / Gyro privates. These two methods complement each other well—Gyrotonic provides fascial stretching, while Pilates focuses on resistance strength training. Both practices enhance full-body coordination, connection, and functionality, and benefit everything from sports performance to everyday movement.
Diane McFerran’s journey with Pilates began 25 years ago at a Seattle studio, the year she graduated from college. In 2006, she embarked on her teaching career to work with and learn from some of the most respected people in the field. She is a second-generation Pilates teacher, having completed the 400-hour Master Mentor Program with Pilates elder Lolita San Miguel. This is a particularly special distinction, as Lolita San Miguel is one of only two individuals ever certified by Joseph Pilates himself.
Diane’s comprehensive training also includes Rael Isacowitz’s 600-hour BASI (Body Arts and Science International) Pilates instructor program. This dual training has given her a diverse and in-depth understanding, allowing her to adapt and apply Pilates to a wide range of needs. Beyond her foundational training, Diane has dedicated herself to ongoing education in areas such as rehabilitation, working with clients with illness and injuries, and athletic training. Her commitment to understanding the human body has led her to twice complete cadaver anatomy training.
Diane also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Pitzer College and a Masters Certification in Ski Resort Management from Colorado State University. As an active individual, she enjoys working with athletes, including surfers and skiers, helping them enhance their performance and prevent injuries. She is passionate about supporting individuals recovering from injury or surgery. Drawing from her own experiences using Pilates to avoid both shoulder and knee surgery, she understands firsthand the transformative power of the method.
Through her extensive training, personal experience, and genuine care for her clients, Diane McFerran embodies the spirit of Pilates, helping others discover the strength, flexibility, and well-being it can bring. Diane has owned multiple Pilates studios in the US and taught at schools and athletic clubs. When she’s not teaching sessions or managing the studio, you can find her surfing with her husband or playing with her three-legged dog, Skeeter.
I fell in love with movement and the mind body connection at an early age. As a former Division 1 collegiate athlete Kelly learned the value of self practice, work ethic, mental fortitude, and teamwork. She has embarked upon athletic pursuits from marathons to bodybuilding and career opportunities in the fitness industry from working as a fitness expert consultant and speaker in Los Angeles to being a personal coach in San Diego to owning and operating her own personal training and Pilates studio in the mountains of Colorado.
Kelly has been a certified personal trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine for over 20 years. She holds a Masters Degree in Exercise Science and Health Promotion. Throughout her movement exploration, Kelly found Pilates to be the perfect balance of mobility, strength, and flexibility and an ideal longevity practice. Kelly is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher and comprehensively certified through Balanced Body.
Kelly is deeply grateful to have landed in beautiful Nosara, Costa Rica with her husband and son. When she’s not teaching or training, Kelly enjoys surfing, hiking, and writing.
En el 2006 se gradúa como licenciada en terapia física en la Universidad Santa Paula.
Posteriormente fue Docente de la misma facultad para estudiantes de bachillerato y licenciatura.
En el año 2009 ingreso como estudiante en “Pilates en Polestar Pilates International Miami” para el área de Rehabilitación, estudios que concluyó y aprobó en el 2011.
En el 2012 obtuvo su maestría en Rehabilitación Funcional de la Persona Adulta Mayor en la USP con la que empieza a laborar como instructora de Pilates en Balance Center, (Centro de acondicionamiento físico) y tres años después asciende a Directora de Pilates.
Actualmente continúa con su cargo y es además copropietaria y Directora de Pilates Lab Fitness y Wellness en Santa Ana, Costa Rica.
