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INSTRUCTORS

"We invite you to increase your body awareness and learn exercises that will last a lifetime in an encouraging and non-competitive environment with our excellent instructors. My goal is to create a space where people can enjoy learning about their bodies in a safe and inspiring environment; one in which they feel comfortable to explore movement possibilities in a curious, expressive and creative way, while still honouring Joseph Pilates' grand vision of a revolutionary movement practice and recognizing it's expansive and evolutionary potential."

- Karen Weggler, Studio Director


Click on an instructor's name below to learn more about them

Karen Weggler, BAA Dance, MA, Physio Rehab assistant

Karen has owned The Movement Studio Pilates and Gyrotonic in Vancouver, BC for the past 12 years. She began her career in movement with training in classical and modern dance, and a semi-professional equestrian career.  She began practicing Pilates at the age of 13 and has been teaching for more than 18 years. Her background leant itself to teaching conditioning for dance programs for various ballet companies in Canada and Europe, and training elite level athletes.
She learned to instruct the Pilates method from Pilates elders Romana Kryzanowska, Marie Jose Blom-Lawrence, Ron Fletcher, Kathy Grant, Alan Herdman, and The Pilates Center at Boulder. Karen holds an Honours BAA (Ryerson) in fine arts/dance, and an interdisciplinary MA in Movement Education, and Fine Arts/Dance (Simon Fraser University).  She has taught at both facilities and at the University of Arizona, Tucson. She currently heads up The Movement Studio's Instructor Training program which began in 2008. 
Her interest in biomechanics led to further study in understanding human movement, what it expresses, and how to find authentic expression through body-based knowledge. Workshops with Tom Myers on anatomy, Diane Lee (Physio) on lumbo-pelvic stability, and Linda Joy Lee (Physio) on the role of the thorax in movement, have greatly influenced her approach to rehabilitative and functional movement training. She remains dedicated to ongoing, continuing education, as do all the Studio's instructors.
Having sustained injuries in numerous motor vehicle accidents, she became very interested in the relationships between pain, rehabilitation, and movement re-patterning. She is grateful for the work she is doing in concert with Dr. Larry Chan (D.C., N.D. R.Ac), a foundering member of Integrative Healing Arts here in Vancouver, centering on the role of movement re-education in the recovery process as folks address chronic pain, cancer, and injury.
Karen is excited to be part of the Envision Physiotherapy team and the integrative approach the clinic offers. Her love for Pilates, and deep respect for the wisdom of the body, encourages her to continually evolve her teaching practice, and to discover ways to best assist clients in realizing their full movement potential.

Karen is available Mon-Fri, by appointment at the Studio & Envision Physio locations

Danielle McCullouch, BA dance, CST, Physio Rehab Assistant

Danielle McCulloch holds a BA dance with distinction from the University of Calgary. She is a registered Dynamic Embodiment – Somatic Movement Therapist, a certified CranioSacral Therapist, and a PMA certified Pilates Teacher. She started teaching as a personal trainer in 1999, and her first group class was taught to children learning to figure skate over 20 years ago. Teaching Pilates has always been a part of this history. She has a background in competitive figure skating, professional dance, and choreography. Her strengths come from very supportive mentorships earlier on from a number of individuals in the fitness and healing industry to whom she is very grateful. In turn, she has mentored for the DE-SMTT program. She has been guest instructor on a number of occasions for the University of Calgary Dance Program, a guest instructor for the 2009/2010 Laban and Bartenieff Studies with Janet Kalo, and is on current faculty for the Movement Studio Pilates Teacher Training Program.

Danielle is available Monday thru Friday

Cinzia Toniolo

Cinzia discovered the joy of movement in her adult life. Through Pilates she discovered how concentration and imagination could help her connect with deeper structures in her body to find fluidity, balance, and release. Becoming passionate about Pilates, she trained and started teaching in 2002. In 2005 she transitioned into Pilates full-time and began to experience the many rewards of teaching.

Teaching keeps her imagination fueled as it travels through the many avenues connecting mind and body. Through her practice she developed a keen interest in helping clients dealing with pain, managing and progressing through their rehabilitation. She pursued further training in rehabilitation of the hips, knees, shoulders, spinal conditions. She also explored the Feldendkrais and Franklin method. Recent training includes: "Rehab through Pilates" with Collen Jorgensen, Stretch Therapy with Kit Laughlin, Pilates for Osteoporosis with Sara Meeks, and Core stability with Marie-Jose Bloom Lawrence.

Cinzia brings focused, constant, keen attention to her sessions with clients affected by spinal conditions, (arthritis, scoliosis, slipped and herniated disks, osteoporosis), and hip, knee, or shoulder injury. She has also enjoys working with pre and post-partum women, helping them find center and balance . She strives to lead each client into smoother and more efficient movement patterns through their Pilates session so that they may transfer them into their every day life.

Cinzia is an avid runner and loves hiking. Her passion for these things has translated into leading classes specifically geared towards runners and athletes seeking to improve their performance.

Cinzia works full time from Monday through Saturday.

Stephanie Butler

Stephanie's love of movement began early in life with dance. It was in her contemporary dance training at Les Ateliers de Danse Moderne de Montreal that she was first exposed to the Pilates' method. Through her personal Pilates practice she realized the profound benefits of the work as her own body transitioned out of chronic pain. From there, Pilates became an integral part of her personal well being. As a teacher, Stephanie seeks to be a guide in helping her clients find a new awareness of the body through alignment, and a deepened understanding of their own physicality both in and out of the studio. Stephanie is continually looking for new inspiration as an instructor. She enjoys a rich practice of her own in Pilates, dance, yoga, and workshops in various movement modalities to further her along in her journey as an instructor.

Stephanie is fully trained in all apparatus, including mat, reformer, cadillac, chair, and barrel work.

Stephanie is available Monday thru Friday

 

Tara Wilson, BA Human Kinetics (UBC), CSEP-CEP, FMS, STR

Tara began Pilates as part of her rehabilitation after an injury, and
it has remained a constant in her life ever since. In addition to her
certification in Pilates, Tara’s movement and fitness background
includes professional dance, Kinesiology (BHK, CSEP-CEP, FMS, STR),
and an enthusiasm for exploring creative, mindful movement and
fostering active lifestyles.  Tara aims to empower each client through
education, realignment, and re-patterning, as they work towards
achieving their personal health and fitness goals.  She is passionate
about helping others find joy and creativity in their movement.

Please call for Tara's availability

Alison Lynne Ward

BFA Honours Theatre, Musical Theatre Diploma, Certified Pilates Instructor

Alison has been practicing Pilates since 2000 and teaching as a certified instructor since 2006. She originally trained with Stott's comprehensive program in Toronto and later through The Pilates Process at Riverdale Pilates in Toronto (a method specializing in post-rehabilitative work) where she worked beside Instructor Trainers for over two years. There she expanded her knowledge of Pilates, taking therapeutic courses and working with varied clients whose practices ranged from post-rehab through to advanced.

Alison has 27 years of various dance experience and is a fully qualified Highland Dance Instructor. Her background in dance and movement compliments her teaching style and gives her a deeper understanding of the body. She loves teaching Pilates because of the variety it offers and because there is always more to learn about the body, how it moves and heals.

Alison has recently moved to Vancouver and is excited to be living and working on the beautiful west coast of British Columbia in such a health conscious and artistic community!

Tiffany Bilodeau

Tiffany has been in constant motion since the day she was born.
She danced throughout her childhood, going on to dance professionally with Ballet Kelowna and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. Through her years of dance training, she discovered Pilates and found that it was an excellent way to cross train and also an extremely important foundation for injury prevention. Weeks spent on tour sitting in a vehicle or endless hours in the studio and on stage on varying surfaces, pounding away in pointe shoes can easily make a body go from balanced to a chain reaction of breakdown. Pilates was the one thing she could bring wherever she went to maintain her strength and alignment. It also was integral to her recovery from older injuries that would start resurface with fatigue and overwork.
Comparing one season without Pilates to the next season, being consistent with a Pilates' practice, was like comparing night and day. She also realized that she could let her body take a rest from dancing during a break period, just do Pilates, and come back stronger than before. Through this personal journey, she decided to train to become a Pilates Instructor so she could pass on to the next generation of young dancers and athletes the importance of balance in the body to prevent injury and to better rehabilitate injuries. Her passion for movement is continually fueled as she teaches ballet and maintains her own personal dance and Pilates practice. She is also currently beginning her journey to become a physiotherapist. Tiffany did her Pilates training in Kelowna and is the newest member of the Movement Studio Team!

Call us for Tiffany's schedule
Brent Stevenson, BHKin, MScPT, RCAMT, CGIMS

Brent is the founder and co-owner of Envision Physiotherapy. Currently he splits his clinical time between the two Envision offices. He has university degrees in both Human Kinetics and Physiotherapy as well as extensive post graduate training. Brent’s primary methods of treatment are IMS, movement training and manual therapy.  He spends time teaching people about their bodies so they understand the root cause of their problem and what they need to do to prevent a recurrence.  Clients are able to review Brent’s advice and exercises at home on his interactive video based website WhyThingsHurt.com.Brent treats people of all ages and abilities at Envision Physiotherapy, but has extensive experience working with golfers and tennis players.  He spent two years working almost exclusively with golfers including specialized training with Body Balance for Performance in the States.  He then moved on to work with world respected physiotherapist Diane Lee for two years where he gained invaluable experience treating resistant pain problems, and pelvic/low back issues.  Brent has had the chance to be the physio for the Cirque De Soleil, top tennis and golf pros, as well as teach workshops for Pilates instructors and UBC medical students.

He has been a lifelong athlete in soccer, rugby, water skiing, wakeboarding and any other sport that was available to him at the time.  His current sport of choice is being a dad to three young kids.

Visit Brent at our Envision Physio Clinic Location

Administrator - Jacqueline ferland
Jacqueline hails from the greater Seattle, WA area where she was born and raised. Currently attending UBC, she is working towards her BA in BioPsychology. In addition to her work here at The Movement Studio, she is also involved in a great research lab where she investigates individual differences in impulsive action, choice and interaction. Her future plans include deeping her Pilates practice, while attending grad school. She wants to earn a PhD in Behavioural Neuroscience and is dedicated to further exploring the mysteries about the brain. Jacquie is deeply fascinated with mind-body interactions, how they interface with their environments, and how those interactions can work to create a stronger, more enduring person. Her favourite parts of Vancouver are the nice folks, gorg views, and amazing food!