Creating Diverse Content
It was important that the Size Diverse Teacher Training Program had a variations library with A LOT of visuals for the trainees.
For example: Some exercises have 6 variations and others have almost 40 variations!
We started with a handful visual Content Creators who we have followed and watched grow over the last two + years.
Gwen, Mindi, Rachel R, Donny, Kellee, and DK are our first set of Content Creators we brought on to help us get pictures into the manual & to kick the program off with video libraries!
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I'm excited to share that we have more visual Content Creators lined up and will CONTINUE to add to our training libraries.
Anyone is welcome to submit their variations to our program, so we can increase the MOST diverse content in the industry!
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PLEASE do not feel like you cannot submit something because it isn't "classical" or isn't the "full expression of the exercise" or because of any other reason. We HAVE to start showing representation!
We would love to add you to our library - if you want to submit - click on the SEND US A VARIATION button and let us know what you'd like to submit!
Content Creators
Rachel Piper
She/Her
It's me! Size Diverse Pilates!
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I'm a classically trained Comprehensive Pilates teacher and an NCPT. I have over 20 years of training experience in the BioTech industry, which includes qualifying trainers to teach others. I love bringing VARK learning into training programs to help everyone be successful in what they do.
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I teach at Rivercity Pilates (with Donny) and OnlinePilatesClasses.com (with Mindi) in addition to my full time gig in biotech.
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I like to add flair to the classical work and create variations to make Pilates as accessible as possible. It's important to me that everyone feels they have a place to practice the work. I want everyone to feel that they can practice in their TODAY BODY and feel the freedom to explore.
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I like to say that I shape the exercise to meet the person where they are; meaning I teach the person in front of me.
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You can read all about my personal journey on my About Page!
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Photo by Monica Linda of Girl Squad
Gwen Head
She/Her
A self-proclaimed Pilates nerd, Gwen has been teaching comprehensive Pilates since 2018 and practicing for over 20 years.
Gwen is located in Minneapolis/St. Paul and currently teaches both group classes and private sessions.
“Pilates helps me appreciate my body and how strong I can be when I participate in structured workouts. I love that Pilates can be tailored to be inclusive for everyone. I enjoy that there is always more to learn as a student and a teacher. No matter what level you are, there is always a new challenge that awaits”.
So many areas of Gwen’s life benefit from her Pilates practice and she enjoys having conversations with others who feel the same.
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You can find Gwen on Instagram as @gwenheadpilates
Mindi Westfall
She/Her
Mindi is a graduate of the University of Georgia with Masters in Education with an emphasis in Sports Management. Mindi played volleyball growing up and throughout college causing her body to take a beating. Pilates has been her saving grace and she is now moving pain free. Mindi began practicing Pilates in 2007 in St. Louis when she started having lower back issues due to a bulging disc caused by her many years of playing volleyball. With an understanding of the body through her experience with injuries throughout her career/life, switching from a passionate Pilates student to a teacher was a natural progression. She loves helping people feel better about their body. Mindi brings fun and hard work to each of her sessions through sharing her passion for Pilates! Mindi is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher since 2019.
You can find Mindi on Instagram @bendymindipilates
Head shot by Leo Peterson Photography
Donny Lindell
She/Her
Donny’s Pilates Journey started back in the spring of 2018 after she had been diagnosed with EDS type 3 HyperMobility. She was searching for something to help with the chronic pain she had been struggling with and to find some inner peace with it all. After her first session she felt empowered in a way, pilates was something she could do that didn’t flare up her symptoms and made her feel so much better overall.
After a few months she decided it was something she had to share with others in hopes it would help people the same way it had helped her. With that thought she dove into the teaching program head first and by August 2019 she officially began teaching.
Recently Donny has added BARRE to her practice as well and within the last year has been certified in levels 1 & 2.
Kellee Forkenbrock
Kellee Forkenbrock is a graduate student who works full time as the Public Services Librarian for the North Liberty Library (North Liberty, Iowa).
A yogi since the late 80s, Kellee maintains a daily yoga practice along with other activity including Pilates, running, and dance aerobics. Upon graduation from the University of Iowa in May 2023, Kellee plans to pursue her yoga teacher training (YTT) certification.
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*Note from Rachel Piper: Kellee also writes romance novels and has self-published 12 novels under her pen name "Eliza David" - you can find her on Amazon and on Instagram as @writegirlproblems
Shari Barta
MS, OTR/L, CPT, NCPT
Shari is a 20-year Occupational Therapist who has always been passionate to help people to live better lives. Since she was a kid she knew it was all she ever wanted to do. This desire to help people led her to become certified in personal training, postpartum corrective exercise, and Pilates outside her therapy degree. Then she became a mom and this passion deepened for postpartum women. Shari has first-hand experience of the toll pregnancy can take on a woman’s body. Fusing traditional corrective exercises, pelvic floor therapy, and Pilates she overcame a Diastasis Recti and chronic pelvic floor weakness. Her program Core Rehab was born from the combining of all her professional and personal experiences and passion to help other women rehabilitate from childbirth.
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Shari a guest presenter for the Size Diverse Teacher Training Program.
DK Ciccone
DK Ciccone is a comprehensively certified Pilates instructor (Balanced Body, NPCP) based in Boston, Massachusetts. Growing up a dancer to musician parents, DK cannot recall a time when she wasn’t obsessed with the rhythm and flow of the body in space. She first discovered Pilates in 2007 as a means of movement rehabilitation following a disc herniation and it became central to her own chronic pain management over the years. Almost 10 years later she was introduced to the Pilates apparatus and began training as a Pilates instructor with a focus on post-rehab clients and chronic conditions. DK’s professional life outside of Pilates concerns social change theory and communications within health and life sciences, which laid the foundation for a love of movement education and facilitating transformation in others. The combination of these passions led to the birth of Movement Remedies, her Pilates and wellness business focused on chronic pain management.
Shelley Mockler
Bio coming soon!!
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Tami-Adrian George
My 31 years as a Sport-Specifc Pilates Instructor, Rehab Specialist, & Nutrition Coach, designing hundreds of custom programs that get results, have taught me how to help everyone from athletes to couch potatoes hit their fitness goals.
I’m the founder of Tami’s Take On…Pilates. Rehab. Nutrition.
It’s my passion to help people do the things they love…better and without pain!
My many years as a dancer and busy working actor & model (Starship Troopers, In The House, General Hospital, 50+ National Commercials) meant I needed to be in peak physical condition. Since my initial Pilates certification more than 30 years ago, I had the opportunities to learn from Master Level Pilates Instructors, trained under top Physical Therapists, and incorporated my many fields of study to help my clients achieve their fitness goals. I’ve worked with everyone from CEOs to nationally-competing athletes, from weekend warriors to fitness fraidy-cats, from little kids to grandparents.
I’m also an instructor for Lesley Logan’s
Online Pilates Classes.com (with Rachel Piper & Mindi Westfall) where I get to teach other Pilates instructors, aficionados, and newbies. It’s about so much more than the exercises…It’s about laughing, learning and celebrating!
Heather Ingram
Heather first discovered pilates when a friend gifted a “Groupon” for a free private session at a Boston pilates studio. She quickly fell in love with pilates; fast forward 16 years and she became an instructor at the same studio! She holds her national certification and is comprehensively trained through Balanced Body.
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Heather is passionate about creating a safe space for all to experience the benefits of Pilates movement, regardless of experience or ability. After a debilitating breast cancer diagnosis where Pilates was central to her rehab she decided to pursue instructor training. Inspired by her renewed confidence, and the way Pilates had strengthened her body, mind, and spirit Heather had a strong desire to pay it forward - “do for others what others did for me.”
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Her clinical trainer was instrumental in creating a safe haven for her to explore movement in a body that was significantly changed from aggressive treatments and multiple surgeries. Heather currently works in Seattle with clients of all ages and abilities; and her goal for each session is to have them walk away a little taller, feeling something new, and imagine what is possible.
Rachel Reis
They/She
Rachel Reis is a Comprehensively Certified Pilates Instructor through Balanced Body (BB) Instructor Training program. In 2014, Rachel started her personal Pilates movement practice, and in 2016, Rachel enrolled in the BB instructor program at EHS Pilates in San Francisco. Rachel studied and worked as an Apprentice teacher from 2016-2020, and officially tested out in February 2020. Rachel has completed extensive workshops, continuing education, and mentorship programs since completing teacher training, and they are committed to learning from their students and from fellow practitioners daily.
Rachel now teaches Pilates remotely through a body autonomy and body awareness lens. Rachel sees Pilates as an essential way to establish and maintain a relationship with one's body, build proprioception and body awareness, and as a way to relieve stress while strengthening and mobilizing. Rachel supports students in finding what works best for their bodies through movement exploration and play. Rachel enjoys sharing the benefits of Pilates with people who are looking to connect with themselves and/or find relief in their body.
Rachel’s pathway into movement and teaching Pilates is different from the “norm.” Rachel found Pilates after working as a field organizer for a political campaign, and in some ways Pilates was calling Rachel through proximity. Rachel ended up living on the same block as Pilates studio in San Francisco while they were working on a masters degree in public affairs. Pilates has been a way for Rachel to process and deal with stress and grief, and they know how a regular Pilates movement practice can improve your life and how you feel.
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Find Rachel at RadPilates.com, or Instagram @RadPilates, or email Rachel@RadPilates.com
Kersten Veronesi
Kersten is finishing her Comprehensive Pilates Instructor Certification through the Club Pilates Instructor Training program (expected certification date May 2023). Originally from Silicon Valley, California, Kersten moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma to complete her BS in Marketing (2009) as well as her MBA at Oral Roberts University (2010). Soon after graduating she worked with various small business owners, local advertising, and agencies across the nation, eventually leading her to launch her own digital marketing company in 2012, Speakeasy Market Strategies.
After 10 years in business Kersten discovered pilates as a way to relieve stress of being a business owner and developed a passion. In March of 2022 she began her Teacher Training certification. It was during this certification that she used her experience in social media to document her journey through teacher training growing a community learning alongside her to show how pilates is for all bodies. While growing this community she sought additional training, purchasing Lesley Logan's flashcards, making a reel using the cards, and connecting with the OPC community. What started out as a teacher training journey online transformed Kersten now to being the head social media coach for Profitable Pilates Agency.
Today Kersten continues to share her journey and once certified will launch her own virtual pilates practice Peach Pear Pilates -- where all shapes do pilates. She is passionate about making the world of pilates size inclusive and celebrating the joy of pilates movements for all. Kersten would love to educate and train instructors across the world how the Pilates world can embrace its catphrase and welcome all bodies to do pilates. She would like to pursue classical training in the near future to build upon her training. You can connect with Kersten through any and all of her social media platforms.
Facebook: http://facebook.com/kerstyann/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kersten_veronesi/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Kersten_Veronesi
TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@kersten_veronesi
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kersten_veronesi/
Ivy Baron
She/Her/They
Ivy Baron, MSW has been teaching movement since 2005 and is the owner of Requisite Pilates in Austin, TX. Her ‘Judgement Free’ approach to Pilates is informed by her background in Social Work. Ivy is dedicated to creating an inclusive movement experience where all folks, can explore movement that works for their unique bodies—without shame or hierarchy—especially those who have not felt safe and included in traditional settings. Ivy offers 1:1 sessions online or in person, and has an on-demand library of at-home Pilates Mat classes.
Insta: @requisitepilates
YouTube: @pilateswithivy
TikTok: @requisitepilates
Sabrina Castro
She/Her
Sabrina is a body positive Pilates instructor who has been teaching in NYC since 2014. She found Pilates during 2010 in her sophomore year of college, while studying Recreational Therapy and Exercise Science. Throughout her educational and wellness journey, Sabrina was drawn to the playful & mindfulness of Pilates. She feels Pilates is therapeutic for her physical and mental health. "Pilates is healing, it's true magic". It's helped her recover from many sports injuries, surgery, and offers a safe space for movement exploration.
She is committed to enlightening those around her about the benefits of Pilates, and to show Pilates can be fun, incorporated into all lifestyles and is for everybody. Sabrina owns a studio, Pilates Coven, in
Manhattan, NYC, where she is dedicated to building a welcoming, encouraging and inclusive community for all Pilates lovers.
Instagram: @Sabrinathefitnesswitch
Studio insta:@pilatescoven
Website: www.pilatescoven.com
James Piper
He/Him
James Piper is the partner and best friend of Rachel Piper (owner). They met back in 1998 and have been mostly inseparable ever since.
James works in quality at a biotech company and is a 20 year football coach (a mix of college/high school/junior high over the years). He loves to focus on fundamentals and safety and would do anything for 'his kids'.
James became the practice client for fellow content creator Donny Lindell when she was going through the Mat Pilates Teacher Training Program in 2019. James particularly loves Tower classes, but can sometimes be persuaded to do mat with props. Rachel is still trying to convince him that Reformer is the best ;)
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Shown to the left with former football player D.