Practitioners
mandytigre
Founder, Owner, Spiritual Technologist
Mandy is constantly engaged in her own evolutionary process and encourages others to step boldly into their own. She is a lifelong physical learner, starting her pursuits at the age of four with ballet and tap classes at the local YMCA in Jessup, MD. She feels most at home when her body is in motion.
Mandy is a channel, a medium and a Spiritual Technologist. She was certified in Pilates by Madeline Black in 2001, and that began her journey into discovering her own innate Energetic abilities. Her mission on the planet is to support lightworkers of all shapes and sizes. She is passionate about helping humans connect to and become masters of their own energetic systems.
Mandy is also passionate about helping people connect to the energy of their spaces, whether those spaces are contained or vast. She offers space clearings for land, homes and businesses, which include connecting to and communicating with the spirits of spaces to create a harmonious energetic alignment among all inhabitants.
She opened Body Mechanics which she considers her third child, shorty after relocating to Portland from San Francisco in 2007. Her desire was to create a space where people could feel safe landing in their own bodies. As the studio has grown and her own work has evolved, she has been blessed with a group of incredible healers and movement practitioners to inhabit the space. Body Mechanics is a place that fosters each practitioners’ unique gifts, while honoring the journey each person takes on their own healing path.
Mandy stepped away from teaching movement regularly after more than twenty years in practice, though she still loves to sub an occasional Pilates class. She does virtual private and group energy attunements, and space clearings for homes, businesses and land. She also facilitates monthly group Breathwork classes online and in the studio. Beyond that she continues to focus on her personal evolution. If you’re interested in connecting with Mandy about her work, you can find more on her personal website.
morganskiles
Studio Manager, Certified Pilates Instructor, LMT
Morgan is an anatomy nerd, artist, and has been sharing the joy of Pilates with clients for over 10 years. She first started her Pilates journey as cross training during summer dance intensives. While studying dance and Kinesiology at Indiana University, Morgan endured a foot fracture that restricted her from most styles of dance. Later suffering from an ACL injury and surgery, her curiosity about accessible movement continued to blossom into becoming a full time Pilates and movement professional.
She was able to learn from various educators and perspectives of the Pilates method. Her certifications are through STOTT Pilates, PHI Pilates, and Balanced Body. She carries various certifications in Pre/Post natal and diastasis, YUR Back for low spine conditions, and OOV Level 1. Currently, Morgan is studying Structural Integration under Donna Bajelis at the Institute of Structural Medicine, and will be incorporating her understanding of bodywork into her Pilates teaching..
For several years after college Morgan taught dance at a couple of dance academies in the Indianapolis area, danced with Phoenix Rising Dance Company, and performed in free lance projects such as “The Red Couch,” which was performed in Akko, Israel. She was also a co-founder of Crossroads Dance Indy, a dance collective providing opportunities for all movers and choreographers in the Indianapolis community.
Life brought Morgan to the Pacific Northwest 5 years ago and recently to Portland. She is beyond excited to share her love of functional movement and believes that everyone can do Pilates. When she’s not teaching, you can find her out in nature, making DIY projects, or begging to hang out with your dog.
shellystephenson
PMA ® - Certified Pilates Instructor, BCSI & LMT
Shelly began her study of Pilates in 1989 with Marie José Blom-Lawrence and became a Certified Pilates Instructor through the PhysicalMind Institute in 1997.
Before opening Bodies in Balance (1998-2010), Shelly spent two years teaching Pilates-based rehabilitative exercises to patients at a physical therapy clinic. Her experience includes athletic conditioning and rehabilitation with post-operative and fibromyalgia patients, people with obesity, and osteo and rheumatoid arthritis. She has also worked with ballet and modern dancers, and was the Pilates teacher for the artists of Cirque du Soleil’s Corteo in Portland.
A Pilates teacher trainer since 2001, she offers Pilates teacher certification, continuing education, and Anatomy in 3 Dimensions as a faculty member of Balanced Body University.
After much inquiry and research into a modality that would best complement her therapeutic Pilates work, in 2006 Shelly began her training in Anatomy Trains and KMI with Thomas Myers and KMI faculty. Offering Structural Integration along with her Pilates practice provides an effective blend of structural and kinesthetic support to her clients.
Shelly’s ongoing dedication is to helping her clients restore alignment and range of motion, increase the body’s adaptability and joint function, and to assist other movement educators in their ongoing discovery of the human body’s form and function.
kerrimaskol
Certified Pilates Instructor
Kerri is a mother of two, a body nerd, a Pilates instructor and movement educator. Her love of Pilates began over14 years ago when she was introduced to the method as a supplement to her dance training. Years later, a life of professional dancing and waiting tables led to chronic knee pain, and Kerri turned to Pilates for rehabilitation. She found not only a mindful and sustainable method of conditioning the physique, but a passion for empowering others with this body wisdom and understanding. While a stickler for proper alignment, Kerri believes that taking care of yourself should be fun! She delights in helping her clients achieve their health and wellness goals, so they can move through life pain-free, with greater ease and grace. Kerri enjoys working with every kind of body, from complete newbie to Pilates rock star.
She is especially passionate about working with Pre and Post-natal women, empowering expectant mothers to face the challenge of childbirth with confidence, and to recover quickly so they have more time and energy to devote to their little ones!
Kerri is Pilates certified through Balanced Body University and the Ellie Herman Method. As passionate about learning as she is about teaching, Kerri is always seeking out continuing education in new movement modalities. She trained in rehabilitation work with Lizz Roman, pre- and post-natal Pilates through "Preggo Pilates", and foot and gait therapy under the mentorship of Master Trainer Nancy Myers. Kerri also follows the work of bio-mechanist, author, and creator of "Nutritious Movement" Katy Bowman, and has had the opportunity to work with her on several occasions.
Though two little ones have put her dance career on hold for a while, Kerri holds a BFA in Dance Choreography from the University of Colorado, Boulder. She was co-founder and director of the interdisciplinary arts group SoShe's Performance collective in San Francisco, as well as a core member of the award winning Samba/cabaret dance troupe Hot Pink Feathers for nine years.
When not in the Pilates studio Kerri spends most of her time these days mothering, but she also enjoys hiking, camping, reading, and sleeping.
sarahlaks
Certified Pilates Instructor
Sarah Laks first became certified in the Pilates method in 2000 from the Ellie Herman Studio in San Francisco. Her background in modern dance, her understanding of the importance of movement for a healthy life, and the influence of her mother, a physical therapist, led her to pursue a career in teaching movement.
Sarah took her skills north to Portland, and for five years, she taught Pilates at studios and gyms throughout town, including her own studio, located in her husband’s art and music production facility, AudioCinema.
She became certified in the GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM ® before heading back down the coast to Los Angeles. There she lived and taught for 9 years, with the majority of it as manager of the Pilates department of Equinox Beverly Hills. While in LA, she also continued her education in the GYROTONIC ® method and got a second comprehensive Pilates certification through Balanced Body.
In the summer of 2019, Sarah and her family moved back to Portland where she has continued to hone her teaching skills, furthering her movement education, teaching at multiple and varied locations throughout Portland, and growing her own virtual teaching business.
In 2021, Sarah began teaching the GYROKINESIS ® method, which is the equipment-free version of GYROTONIC ®. Just as the linear nature of Pilates and the circular qualities of GYROTONIC ® complement each other and create a balanced body, Sarah’s experience teaching in boutique studios and in corporate fitness clubs has helped make her a well-rounded teacher.
She loves the challenge of working with people with physical limitations as well as those that are highly conditioned, and everyone in between. Whether in-person or virtually, Sarah loves to teach and loves finding new ways to keep her clients engaged and feeling their best!
jomcdonald
Certified Pilates Instructor
Jo hails from the Bluegrass State, where small towns with no sidewalks offer few opportunities for a healthy, active lifestyle. Growing up from a sedentary child into a morbidly obese adult, Jo decided this was not the life she wanted to live. She made one small, sustainable change at a time, and in the process, she discovered Pilates. Pilates was instrumental in correcting the dysfunctional movement patterns in her joints from years of carrying so much weight around.
Jo eventually decided to transition from her office job to a full time pilates teacher, becoming one of the students in the inaugural class of trainees for Integrated Balance, under the guidance of Montse Cosin and Kristen Veltkamp, where she went on to mentor new instructors, facilitate teacher training and organize workshops at her studio in Louisville until she and her husband picked up and moved to Portland in 2014.
Jo was also a faculty member with the Louisville Ballet School, teaching conditioning classes for dancers as young as 7 and as advanced as company members. Helping dancers learn to balance their bodies and enjoy dancing with less pain was particularly rewarding. She loves working with people from all sorts of backgrounds to develop functional movement patterns to continue an active lifestyle, increase athletic achievement or to recover from childbirth.
Since arriving in Portland, Jo has been teaching pilates full-time, working with a diverse population of students. Jo finds joy in the problem-solving aspect of pilates teaching, figuring out how best to get each individual body to understand the everyday application of the principles of pilates, as well as instilling the joy of movement with ease in each body. In 2017, Jo co-founded the 500-hour teacher training program for Cascadia Pilates. She continues to mentor new teachers, and looks forward to bringing her enthusiasm for moving well to Body Mechanics.
savannawonderwheel
Certified Pilates Instructor
Savanna received her license in massage therapy in 2013. Her very first anatomy class sparked a curiosity and awe of the human body and its multitudes that has only continued to grow since then. Her belief in preventative health led her to become a certified Pilates instructor through Integrated Balance’s comprehensive training in 2015. Continued curiosity led her to complete a yoga teacher training in 2018. Considering herself a lifelong student she also take lessons from every client that she gets to work with.
These trainings as well as countless hours of continued education delving into fascia and anatomy, biomechanics, biodynamic work, and somatic movement all inform her approach to teaching. Your time with her can be tailored to your specific needs through the teachings of Pilates and strengthening work, manual release work, facilitated stretching, and somatic movement.
Savanna believes our bodies are quite literally miracles and that we all have the potential to move and live within them with autonomy and ease. She is honored to be trusted to help people feel better in theirs. She loves teaching a fun, flowy class that will get you moving just as much as getting nerdy and nuanced working with specific injuries or considerations. She has worked extensively with folks with low back pain, spinal & rib injuries, scoliosis, balance & vertigo issues, ehlers-danlose syndrome, and general post-injury recovery (such as plantar fasciitis, knee surgery, hip replacement, rotator cuff tear).
When she's not bending bodies, massaging muscles or working wood (a fun new pandemic hobby) you can catch her running away from the city to get out on the water or into the mountains.
jeanineutani
Certified Pilates Instructor, LMT, Certified Scolio Pilates Instructor
Jeanine was first introduced to Pilates when a physical therapist used Pilates as part of her rehabilitation after a severe back injury, and Jeanine soon fell in love with the benefits of Pilates training. She began working for Pilates-based physical therapy practices in 2005 and completed Balanced Body's Instructor Training program in 2008. She owned Via Pilates in Henderson, NV from 2015 to 2024. Today, Jeanine is proud to be a Balanced Body Educator for Pilates, Movement Principles, Anatomy in 3-Dimensions and CoreAlign, is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher (NCPT®), an Authorized Scolio-Pilates® Practitioner, and a Franklin Method Educator.
Jeanine focuses on using Pilates and other mindful movement techniques for therapeutic, orthopedic, corrective and post-rehab exercise. She specializes in developing individualized Pilates programming, equipment and classes targeted for individuals living with different forms of arthritis and other orthopedic issues because of her own background living with rheumatoid arthritis. As a former competitive athlete, Jeanine has over 30 years experience teaching movement, from swimming to dance to martial arts and Pilates. She was inducted into the Martial Arts Masters Hall of Fame in 2004, and this athletic background fuels her joy working with elite and professional athletes...and informs her Pilates teaching style a bit!
Jeanine is a Certified Therapeutic Exercise Specialist, Certified Orthopedic Exercise Specialist, Certified Corrective Exercise Specialist, a Senior Exercise Specialist, and has pursued additional training, continuing education and certificates in Pilates for Scoliosis & Hypermobility, Pilates for Breast Cancer, Prenatal & Postpartum Pilates, Pilates for the Feet, Pilates for the Shoulder & Upper Quadrant, Pilates for the Pelvis & Lower Quadrant, Pilates for the Pelvic Floor, Pilates for Buff Bones, and more.
To further advance her skills and better serve her clients, Jeanine has pursued and continues to train in osteopathic manual techniques,craniosacral, myofascial release and structural integration therapy.
gretakoons
Certified Pilates Instructor
Greta is a certified STOTT Pilates instructor, trained through Pacific Northwest Pilates. Her background as a soccer athlete and coach has cultivated a deep appreciation for the importance of core strength, mobility, and injury prevention in physical wellness.
With a degree in Exercise Science from St. Ambrose University, Greta integrates her knowledge of human physiology and movement into her instruction. By blending a scientific approach with her Pilates expertise, she provides clients with a deep appreciation for the benefits of moving with efficiency and mindfulness. Greta is deeply passionate about sharing her love for fitness and Pilates with others to help them achieve their personal goals.
michelledaily
Certified Pilates Instructor
Michelle Daily discovered Pilates as a way to manage lifelong back pain and earned her 500-hour certification in 2018. She believes Pilates is for every body and creates an empowering environment where all clients feel successful. Her experience includes working with neurological conditions (MS, aphasia), SI joint dysfunction, post-cancer recovery, and larger bodies — while always welcoming clients of all levels. When not teaching, she plans elaborate international birthday trips (yes, there's a difference between a trip and a vacation) and advocates for social justice.