Why High-Performing Women Are Adding Pilates to Their Fitness Routine with Vanessa Kelly

building my entire website on my own.

My God, girl, you're crazy.

Like, well, I had nothing. I had like no money. Yeah, totally. I had only been open for 3 months at this point with my business.

Okay.

So here I am pregnant with my daughter Vivienne, and I'm like, this has to work because I'm not going back to bartending. So I went on Groupon. This is in 2015. It blew up.

I remember Groupon and it blew people up.

It totally set the stage and my business started to evolve.

Vanessa, welcome to the podcast.

Oh, thank you for having me, Lori Harder.

I'm excited for this conversation because I am a former fitness girly lover. And am completely aware about how much a fitness journey for people starting working out, working out in general, moving your body, is like the foundation for way more than people realize. And I'm sure so many people listening get it. It's like a spiritual journey. It's some of the first times you have breakthroughs is during a workout about who you are, what you want in life. You're downloading ideas, you're learning about yourself, you're pushing to your edges. It's like so much personal development, in my opinion, starts for people. It even opens that up when they start moving their body. So you have been teaching for 15 years. You've been in this industry for 15 years. Tell me about the beginning and what your journey was to becoming so passionate about Pilates, which, by the way, we all know Pilates is having a massive moment right now. But you started years ago. So you were on the very front end. You started this trend. So tell me about your journey and experience to why.

Yeah, I will. Like everyone, I started as a client. I was a dropout in college.

I love that for you. High school dropout here. Okay.

Yes.

So never graduated college. I could not decide on what my major was going to be. Changed it probably about 3 or 4 times. And said, I need a break. And I was bartending at the time. I'm from Vegas, so that is where I grew up. And I decided to try out Pilates because my cousin had tried it, a class. And there was one studio in my neighborhood in Henderson, Nevada. And I was like, okay, I'm going to go down, I'm going to try it out and see. Because I wasn't really like, you know, we're all— we go to the gym and that's all I really knew what to do at the time. And we're talking back in like 2007.

Yeah.

Yes.

So I, I don't think I even knew about Pilates back then, like, at all.

It, I mean, it wasn't a really big deal. Like, you know, you didn't find studios on every corner like Starbucks now. So, so at the time it was like, there's a studio right by my house and I wanted to go try it out and fell in love. I started with private sessions because I was intimidated and didn't want to jump into a class with something I didn't know how to do.

Yeah.

So I started with private sessions, fell in love with that, decided to go on their like unlimited membership and went probably like 5 times a week. And well, 9 months into it, I was like, you know what, you know, I'm a young 20-year-old at this time, like I think it was like 23, and I'm just like, I love this. Like I haven't felt so passionate about something. Like I didn't feel passionate about any of the majors I was doing in college.

So what were some of them?

Criminal justice. Okay, that's—

that—

yeah, yeah, criminal justice. Um, and then I, um, ended with HR and I was I was like, oh gosh, I could not see myself just sitting behind a desk like doing HR stuff.

So yeah, I can't see you doing that either.

Yeah, yeah. Well, so anyways, um, I decided to ask the instructor. I'm like, like, how do I become you? Like, how do I go? Where do I go to school? And things like that. And she's like, yeah, there's a certification. So I, I love researching at heart, so I went back home, started doing my research for several weeks, deciding what I wanted at the time, back in like 2008. Is what I would say. It was classical versus contemporary. And you don't hear a lot of that anymore. And I can get into that later on. But, but yeah. And I was like, okay, I don't resonate with the classical approach. I'm going to go contemporary approach. And that's when I decided to go through Body Arts and Science International. That's my original certification. And that's when my whole journey started with teacher training. And it was, yeah, I expedited. I definitely was very aggressive in my training, decided to do it about 6 months, which I was working part-time. I was married at the time, so luckily I had the opportunity to kind of dive in full-on, purchase an at-home reformer, um, even though I didn't use it much. I loved being in the studio, so just having that feel like being in the studio and just being around people.

Same.

Yes, there was like some sort of energy that like brought me to it, and I wanted to learn from other people, you know, what they were saying. And that's how I was getting like all of my requirements in at the time. So yes, I was bartending, I went through teacher training, expedited that whole process, and decided to start. I mean, luckily the owner liked me a lot and she mentored me quite a bit. And so that's when she took me under her wing and taught me a lot about her niche. She's a physical therapist, so that's a little bit why my niche has been rehab since the very beginning. But I ended up working at her studio and then she closed it down probably like 2 years into me working there. And I went into Lifetime, started working for Lifetime Fitness in Summerlin, which basically I rocked it there. I mean, I was one of the first full-time instructors to teach for Lifetime. Um, and to teach Pilates for Lifetime full-time.

Okay.

Because normally they just hired part-time instructors. But to get a little bit more on a personal level, this was already 2 years into me being an instructor, and, um, I had just started Lifetime in 2011, and I was going through a divorce. So that is when I took it upon myself to ask my manager, like, I need full-time, I need benefits, I need insurance, everything, whatever you need from me, I will show up for you and do it. And they agreed.

Wow, they agreed.

And so, um, when you're, you're, you know, you're on your own— I didn't have kids at the time.

Yeah.

But when you're on your own like that, I had nothing else to lose but just to dive myself into work. And that's what I did. And it really proved— for 2 years I was working for them in, um, Las Vegas, and that's when I got promoted and they relocated me to Phoenix. And that's where I'm at now.

Okay, I just want to— I want to dig into that story really quick just because I wanna know, was the entrepreneurial spirit in you at that moment, or do you think it was also born from that moment of like, okay, now I need to figure this out, I'm gonna go work for this person? Were you starting to think about entrepreneurship at that time?

Yeah, we kind of like backtrack a little bit. Me and my husband at the time, we did want to get into franchising. Uh, didn't necessarily have to be Pilates at the time, but we were looking at other industries. Um, but when I decided to create my passion in Pilates, that's when he was like, okay, let's maybe look at some franchising opportunities. And the owner I was working with at her studio, they were looking into franchising, which—

so they hadn't been franchised?

They had not yet, but it was like in development.

So, okay.

But I loved already that, like, at a young age in my mid-20s, like, oh, I would love to have my own business. Like, it already— I already—

what made you want your own business?

Did you see your parents do it, or— no one in my family's an entrepreneur. No one in my family is. Um, no, I'd not grow up with anybody around me.

Yeah.

Being an entrepreneur. It was really just— I don't know, I think it's like kind of in you. But because of every— like all the traveling I had done and all the different— the culture that I've been to with my ex-husband, like that was already something in me that I was like, I can just see this in me. I don't know, there was just some sort of motivation where I wanted to do things on my own terms.

Yeah.

Um, sky was the limit. I think that's the best thing about entrepreneurship— sky is the limit. And that was what I was already feeling. I didn't even know what that meant at the time. When you're in your mid-20s, you have no idea. Yeah. So yeah.

And tell me about why franchising. Was there something like, why was your husband like, we should look at franchising? Was there something that you guys knew about franchising or was it just like, this seems like a logical step?

It seemed at the time, like I said, this was probably about back in 2009, even like before that, 2006. You didn't know— we didn't know a lot of other entrepreneurs that were just like doing their own business.

No, franchising wasn't even on my radar, to be honest.

Oh really?

Didn't really understand it.

Yeah, well, franchising just meant that, okay, they already have the system down, they— we are just going to follow the rules, basically. It's like, okay, they're— we're buying into the brand name, right? I think that's franchising, that's right. You're just buying the brand name and totally, okay, what do I do with this? Um, so that was the logical way to go at the time, and I didn't know to create something on my own. Yeah, I was following, like, I was like the shadow there, just following his lead. He was 10 years older than me, so it was just like, okay, what are we doing and where are we going? And okay, sign me up. Yeah, that sort of thing.

So it started as passionate student, and it was like, I just love this. What made you— what made you love it? Was it the way your body felt? Was it what they were saying in class? Like, explain to me what you actually think the love story for you around Pilates was. Like, when someone loves Pilates and you guys sit down and speak the same language, what are we saying together?

It was the controlled movements. Mm-hmm. It was very intentional. Everything was intentional. It was fun. I looked forward to going to Pilates.

Yeah.

And you know, I was doing spin at the time, just doing different types of, um, you know, going to the treadmill, elliptical. I've had to force myself to go to the gym. Mm-hmm. Honestly. And with Pilates it was like, I couldn't wait to go. And it was like, yep, this is going to be great. And it was something I looked forward to because it was a very different and dynamic type of movement pattern that I had ever put my body through. And I just loved the way I felt it. Whatever that was for me, it's also signaling my brain that this resonates with me. Elliptical, treadmill, spin, not resonating with me. Yeah, that sort of thing. So I was like, okay, I love this and I want to keep going. And I feel that the value is totally there and it's exciting. And I loved the personal instruction. That was also— it's like you have a trainer the whole time, where if you go to like the gym, you have to buy that personal trainer, right? That one-on-one time. And that's great too, I've had that experience. But there was something about being a small group dynamic. At the time, there was no— like, you didn't get more than like 6 people back in the day.

Okay, so very small class, very small class.

That was the normal though, like that was very normal. Um, And so it was just having a personal trainer tell you exactly what to do every single time you went to class and you didn't have to like think about it. Mm-hmm. And everyone wanted to be there.

Yeah. So tell me about the— for somebody who does not know, cuz a lot of people still have not been in a Pilates class. Let's talk about what you said, traditional versus contemporary. Yeah.

Classical.

Yeah.

Classical. But then also tell me like, what is our body doing in there? Like what kind of movements? What's going on in a class? Paint a picture for me.

Okay, so let's go back to classical versus contemporary. Yep. Back in the day, classical, I always like to think, give the imagery of like, think of a ballet teacher. Like you go in with your pink tights, your black leotard, and everything needs to be like so strict. Yeah. Okay. Like you are showing up there and you are not going to goof around and you're going to follow everything. You know, you're not chatting with your friends.

Sounds scary.

You're following the teacher. Kind of. Kind of. Yeah. But that is very classical approach.

Okay.

And then contemporary was, okay, let's train the body in front of us. Let's make some modifications where classical is like, okay, we're going to have— we're going to follow Joseph Pilates repertoire and we're going to do every single exercise. Not everyone can do that. Your— our bodies are not all designed the same way.

Okay, so you're going through like exercise 1, 2, 3, 4, and they're always the same.

It's pretty much a very strict repertoire.

Wow. Okay.

Yes. And they pretty much expect you to Perfect it. It's all about precision. Classical. Okay. If you think classical, you think precision. That's like one of the words I think about. Contemporary was, okay, let's take modern day type of activity people and let's modify to the person that we have in front of us. Okay. Yes. Maybe they can't do the perfect roll up, so let's go ahead and bend their knees and give them some props to assist them so that they can do the roll up that way. Things like of that nature. And then we don't need to follow this very strict dose of Pilates repertoire. We're gonna go outside the box and get creative. And I see— I do that with like parentheses because it's like now everything's like super creative. Yeah. So it's like almost like contemporary background is like the new classical background.

Okay.

I'm fixated now really quick on the types of personalities. What would you say is the type of personality that's attracted to classical, right?

Like what the, like I guess I would say I'm like the ones that only ballerinas could do it. No, no, no, no, no. Like the ones that had been in this for a really long time, um, even like I would say like this, like if you're classical, like you're bound to classical, like you know those instructors and you're just like not moving away from actually the classical approach. Like you're just like, okay, you go to another studio and you're just not bending the rules in that, in that sense. Like you're just following everything, those guidelines, and because that's what you know and love. But I see, oh yeah, I remember you had said, asked, you had asked me about the different biomechanics that what are we expecting to be, to expect in the studio, right?

Yep.

And that's what I love about Pilates is like, okay, when we go in there, our bodies are expected to feel all planes of motion. And what I mean by that is like in a healthy spine, we're supposed to add flexion, extension, we're supposed to rotate, we're supposed to add lateral flexion in a healthy spine, right? Unless you have some, any sort of, um, injury or, um, any type of special population occurring with your body. But our body should fully feel that. If you think about a little kid at recess running around, like they're flapping their arms, they're just like laughing and their bodies just like move with them. Right?

Right.

We don't do that as adults.

Totally.

Yeah. So we get like super stiff and we're so regimented in our daily routines. And that's what I loved about Pilates when I first started is because we got to move I got to move my body in a way that I just don't typically do on a regular day basis, that sort of thing.

Yeah.

So I think I've only done more classical, like, oh my gosh, maybe— no, I've done two times.

Okay.

And that's not fully classical, but I know it was like more along, along those lines. And then I do legris, which I love.

Okay.

And I will say I have— I've loved all experiences because of what you said. Like, oh, my legs are doing these massive swooping circles. Oh, I'm getting to move in this way with my arms going all around and I haven't moved this way all day today. And oh my gosh, I'm noticing how tight I am. And oh wow, I haven't even turned my neck this way or my trunk this way. And it's such a reminder of— and I'm a very— I am a very fit person. Like, I'm constantly moving, but not that way. And I'm realizing at 45, which I never thought I'd say this out loud, but I'm like, oh, things tighten up. Like they actually tighten up if you're not consistently doing it.

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You know, one of the things that I love about the concept of Pilates is like it really is movement for life. Like, it is the thing that's going to keep you moving, rotating, like feeling really good in your body. And I think for people who love just like, um, you know, if you're drawn to like dance at all, or you feel good when you're at a stretch class or something like that, I think Pilates is something that all of a sudden you're moving and and it feels so fun and good and it can feel like a little dance and you're in this class with other people doing it. So then you're doing it all together. So then there's something magical about that that's so fun. And I'm not going to lie, I do love a workout where you can lay down for part of it.

I think that's what everyone likes. They're like, wait, you want me to stand up? I thought I was supposed to like lay down right now. Like, yeah, I totally get that. But it is a lifestyle. It's a lifestyle. And it's like you're not going to sign up for Pilates and be like, I want to do this for 3 3 months and okay, now I'm good. It's like, no, you kind of commit to it like men commit to golf, you know what I'm saying? And I don't want to stereotype that, but it is a lifestyle. Like, you go in and you're taking care of your body, your physical body, just like we want to take care and pour things into our brain. Like, it's mental, it's physical. The whole transformation is possible when you are adapting to the principles of Pilates. And that's what I mean, I just love that.

So talk to me as a person who was a former, um, HIIT training, Orange Theory— nothing wrong with it— but convince me why I should do Pilates.

Because it's, it's slowing you down. That's the biggest thing.

It's why I never did it before.

Yeah, no, it's making— it would make you think more about what's happening internally. Where there's a lot of external stuff happening in HIIT and CrossFit, Orange Theory, things like that. And that's another reason why I love Pilates is because it does require us to slow down and move with intention, move with purpose. What is the objective of this and how can I create more core engagement to get the, the benefits of the exercise? You know, you think a lot of people think Pilates and they think, oh yeah, You know, this is core strengthening, but we're not doing abs for— we're not doing abs every single exercise the entire hour of the class. Like, you are learning how to strengthen your core in every specific exercise without having to just continue to add flexion into, you know, your— into your spine and do very severe deep ab work and stuff like that too.

Yeah, it's, it's been crazy for me. Like, I will say, as, as someone who's lifted her whole life, I always dealt with like a little injury here and there, which sometimes I still have, but I know exactly why and when I'm getting them. As I'm like, I'm gonna go heavier, and I'm like, okay, little tweak. But like, I consistently always had something where now, because Pilates strengthens all those little muscles around everything, it's so much less. I mean, like, I've dealt with this my whole life, and when I've added it in, I'm like, oh, everything around my knees, everything around my shoulder joint, you know, your core, your back, and all of the consistent places I was getting injuries, which anybody listening who works out, it's like your knees, your low back, your neck, behind your scapula, like consistently that's up your scapula through your neck. And it's like you're just moving so different and stretching that it prevents so much of that, it makes your lifting so much better.

Yeah, and I agree with you, it's a huge complement to weight training. I would never tell someone to stop doing that because Pilates is working the smaller intrinsic muscle groups that surround those larger muscle groups you get from weight training. So I would honestly tell someone to do that together because you're going to experience something so different together, and that's, that's the beauty of it, honestly.

What do you think people are getting wrong about Pilates right now? What's a conversation that you're hearing from the inside?

From the inside?

Well, both.

Let's do both. Let's do both. I'm like, all you have to do is like get on Instagram and I'm just like, ugh, I get, I cringe. But you know, it's interesting because right now there's, it's really wild with a lot of the younger crowd. And I guess maybe that's what social media is blowing up with is you see a lot of the younger crowd, you see this whole perception of like, you have to look cute and it's like, oh my God, let me take a picture in the mirror, that sort of thing, just to say that I was at Pilates. Yep. It's not that. So back, like, let's just even say like 7 years ago, like, like pre-COVID, let's just back it up there. It was like young girls were saying that this was for older women and older women were saying they were for younger girls. The perception was so interesting. And, uh, again, my, my business model is not made for younger women at all anyways. It's not the right fit for them, just the way the teaching is. Because again, when you go to a Pilates studio, it's like, how is the teaching? How is the instruction? And what type of workout are you going to receive? So some things are a little bit more faster paced and, you know, they're on their headset, they're, they're counting down for 30 more seconds. You got this. But there's no explanation. Why are we doing this? How is this helping me in my everyday life? You're just telling me to do 30 more seconds of bicep curls or hold this plank, but there's no reason why, why am I doing this? And have you corrected my form? That is the misperception. So that is the types of things where I, I don't appreciate seeing on Instagram because people don't understand like what Pilates really is, is. And I mean, again, like just to kind of dive into the background of Pilates, Joseph Pilates was a man. He created this to rehabilitate injured soldiers. It's a form of physical therapy. Do girls or women even know that? Is that message coming across? Like, that whole message has, like, been forgotten, I feel like. And that's the type of messaging that I want to continue to put out there, continue to put into my, you know, my education and my messaging and things like that to women that don't know or to young girls that don't know that it's like we're not just going to the gym just to say we showed up. Like, yeah, do this for yourself.

So tell me about the— what you've based your business on.

Tell me about your business and kind of the theory behind what you have built.

Okay, yeah, so Function Pilates. Um, so after I got to Phoenix, I left Lifetime. Okay, about a year and a half here in Phoenix and decided I wanted to like go out and do it on my own.

What, like, what spurred that? Like, was it one day you're like, I think it's time, or was there a location that popped up? Like, what, what happened? Corporate. Okay, okay. You were like, I'm kind of done here.

Yeah, you know, something just like hit me wrong, and I was like, all right, I think this is my message.

You learned you were unemployable after that.

Yeah, and I was like, all right, I think we're done here. And so that's when I decided to, um, open up my studio. But yeah, it was a very different, um, very different time. I was, I was single, I had no kids, and it's just like, you know, you go in and all in with nothing to lose. I had a 100-square-foot space that I rented out of a wellness center at the time, and I had my old reformer that I had from teacher training back in like 2008, and I started with that.

So there's— it was a space with just one reformer in it, and you did like privates for people?

Okay.

So I busted my ass going to networking events, joining the Chamber of Commerce, doing all the things to, um, to meet different women who wanted to come in and try Pilates and open 7 days a week. I mean, at this point it was just like, whatever I can.

How'd you know to do that? How'd you know to network? Did you just guess, like, I got to go meet people, so I'm going to go to this local thing?

I mean, I do have to say one thing about Lifetime. Like, yeah, just because, um, I ended up leaving them, you worked your ass off. Like, yeah, you worked to build your own, like, schedule. So I was already conditioned, got 3 and a half years that I'd worked there, how to be my own boss and how to build around, like, my own schedule. And so that, I mean, that is just like— price—

kind of like, I'm kind of doing this.

Yes.

Yeah. And I was like, let me do it for myself.

Yeah.

So let me get— if I'm already bringing these creative ideas to the table, let me go do it on my own. So that's basically what got me into, like, the networking and so forth. Newsletters, I was already doing that because I was the manager at, um, the one in Tempe. And so I already knew like some of those marketing techniques and, um, just putting them into full action and then just showing up. And then, you know, word of mouth, building my entire website on my own. Like, when you were—

my God, girl, you're crazy.

Like, well, I had nothing. I had like no money. Yeah, totally.

So I did it for trade. So I remember I was like, well, I can't figure this shit out. I I hired a client. Yeah, it was in the fitness world.

Yeah, I, I did, uh, my photography session, I did a trade, so I get it. Yeah, but, um, all the other stuff kind of came a little easier to me. I enjoyed like doing the website, I enjoyed— I did pay someone to do my SEO, so yeah, good job. Yeah, all of that stuff. But yeah, it just kind of developed from there.

And, um, so you went 800 square feet with one—

100 square feet.

Oh, what?

100?

100?

100 square feet?

Just enough to clear their arms while they did like Yes, pretty much.

But I was so proud of like that little room.

For sure. I know.

I was like, I walked in, I was like, this is mine.

Uh-huh.

I started in a basement. I was so proud of that basement. I was like, hell yeah, down here by myself.

Yeah, yeah.

And then I ended up in the same little center I was renting. She had a little slightly larger space.

Okay.

So I ended up around like 8 months in going into that larger space, I had like $4,000 in my 401k, empty that shit out, and bought my second reformer. Oh my God.

So then, so now we have two.

I have two reformers at this point. And then, well, let me backtrack because it's— this is going to set the premise of like what I did.

Okay.

I had met, um, my second husband and got pregnant 6 weeks after I met him. So, okay, that was— I had only been open for 3 months at this point with my business.

Okay.

So here I am pregnant with my daughter Vivian, and I'm like, this has to work because I'm not going back to bartending and I'm not going back to Lifetime.

Yep.

So I went on Groupon. This is in 2015. It blew up. I still have Groupon.

I remember Groupon, and it blew people up.

Yes, it totally set the stage and my business started to evolve. And I still have clients from 2015 that came on a Groupon. Because the thing is with Groupon is like people want— they have the money, they just don't want to spend something that they don't know if they're going to like it or not.

Totally.

And so that's how I had built the longstanding relationship with a lot of my clients because of Groupon. And that's what set the stage. And so in 2015 I hired my first instructor, hired my second instructor, and then things kind of moved on from there. And then finally got out of that little center and got into my first storefront. Okay. In Tempe.

And so you were putting money away this whole time to kind of— with the vision of wanting to get bigger?

Yes.

Okay.

Yes, yes. And, um, yeah, I mean, it was in me. I was like, I want my own sign on that building, and I want people to see and recognize it. And, but I, I didn't go big like a lot of these, you know, you see all these studios popping up now and there's like, wow, it's gorgeous in here. It's, you know, the aesthetics are beautiful, everything. And you have like—

It wasn't a thing before. It wasn't like a big thing at all.

No, it was not. Um, but I, when I first went into my storefront in Tempe, I had, uh, 3 reformers. So I was able to purchase a few more things at that time. And it was great. And that's what basically set the stage for a very, um, you know, where I'm at now at this point.

And so what are you most excited about doing now? Like, where is your passion line?

Yes. Yeah, because that has definitely changed.

Yes, totally. It does. It evolves through the years.

Of course. Um, I really got into more of, of— yes, I was teaching a lot of clients at the time, but then I had an opportunity that came across, um, that was presented to me back in 2017, and that was to become a master trainer. And I had no idea I was ever going to become a master trainer. Like, that was just never on my radar. I never thought about teaching other people how to become Pilates instructors and learning a program. I was actually really scared of something like that, like being on stage and people listening to me. It's different than—

are you introverted or are you—

sometimes, but I mean, it just was different. Like, to teach a client is very different than teaching someone what their new job is going to be, right?

Right.

And, and, um, and the anatomy, and that kind of like, uh, made me a little nervous too, is to really teach people about the anatomy of the body, of what they need to know about Pilates. But very quickly got over that. And so again, that developed in 2017, but that is where my passion has led me, is into teacher training and the education and the why behind everything, and why are you becoming an instructor, giving those students the questions of like, you're on this journey, I want you to start to think about who you want to become and bring your personality into it because everyone is very different. And I don't want you guys to become the same instructor. I don't need you to become an instructor like me either. This is your, your journey and everyone's personalities are different. So bring your story to the table and let that shine. That is so important. And understand the body first and why we are actually like giving these exercises to the individual. So yeah, my passion has completely gone from just teaching a client to being a master trainer, teaching students how to become instructors, and now it's developed into a master trainer program. So I have, um, now taught instructors to become master trainers and That is another passion project of mine. So with entrepreneurship, I think that's like the most fun thing is like, again, sky's the limit. Things evolve, we evolve, and we're ready for new challenges. We're ready to like, what's our next step?

Mm-hmm.

Because you outgrow things.

Yeah.

You outgrow things. You shed, you know, different layers of yourself and you're like, I'm ready to move into something else, even if it's scary. Mm-hmm. Because it is every single step. I'm sure you know that too. Like, mm-hmm. Every single step that I've done through this journey of having my own business has been scary to do. And I don't know where it's ever going to land. And now, as the Master Trainer program is evolving, um, it's very exciting to, to see all these changes and have so many— have the support of team, my team. Like, it's just insane. It is so important. And I really value the, the people that have been with me along the way and that have just like shown love for function and just want to be there and show up and things like that too.

It's a really fun thing to be a part of because you, you really do get— it's like to have a job that also really nurtures a part of your soul. You get to move, you get to— I really, really loved being in like training. There's a part of me that really misses it because I'm like, oh, I really miss my 3 stretches a day. Like, that was pretty awesome, you know what I mean? I'm like, oh my God, this is awesome. You talk a lot about, um, you know, the types of trainers that you love to train and why it's different in creating— I believe that you had said like thinking instructors, like to learning how to like— I don't know if you're saying like think on their own or the way that they teach. Like, tell me what is, uh, you know, something very signature about what you teach people and why you feel passionately about that.

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Yeah, well, it's basically teaching the body in front of you. In real life, real life people have real life problems, and they're— it's not the picture perfect. Like, not everyone has a healthy spine. And it's like, okay, what are you gonna do when someone walks in that has osteoporosis, they have MS, they have scoliosis, you know, they have Parkinson's? What are you gonna do with that kind of information? Do you want to freeze up and then, you know, self-doubt yourself, or do you want to show confidence. Like, how do I pivot and how do I work with this body in front of me, understanding that this is— again, they want to be here, they're excited to be here. How can you modify for them? Because what your plan was for the other 10 people is not going to work for this individual. And you can still teach in a very large group dynamic, but how can you get really fast on your feet and think to the individuals in front of you.

Mm-hmm.

That is the difference.

Mm-hmm.

And so yes, if you wanna teach to a mass of like 10, 12 people, totally fine. But if someone walks in and was like, I have knee problems, okay, great. We're not gonna have you kneel on this one. Everyone else is gonna do that. I'm going to pivot and I'm gonna have you like sit in this exercise. Mm-hmm. And then make those adjustments.

Mm-hmm.

So that is what I mean by like having the instructor think on the spot and not be afraid afraid, because that's like the first thing that people will do as an instructor. Like, they'll just be so nervous, like, I don't know what to do. There is no blueprint on it. It's like, okay, here is what you're going to learn, and then you're going to make that decision in real time with the person there in front of you.

It's such a fun career for those reasons. It's scary for those reasons, and it's fun for those reasons, because all of a sudden— and I, I would love for you to kind speak to some of the transformations that you've seen in some of your teachers and people that this has been such a gift for. Because I remember having moments like after being so afraid of— like, I worked at an LA Fitness and I remember my biggest fear was like, what if I have to train a doctor? Like, that was an actual— I was like, they're gonna be like, she knows nothing and I'm so dumb. Like, that was an actual fear. I'm like, if I get a doctor, yeah, I'm like so afraid of that. And And, you know, I remember fast forwarding, you know, a couple years, 3 years, it's like you're just in so many different situations that you're working your way through that you've never been in, that all of a sudden a few years later you're like, oh my God, I can handle just about anything that comes my way. Yeah. And the amount of confidence that comes like in that is— you, you can't replace that. So tell me about some of the experiences that you've gotten to your about.

Yes, um, because that's very true, is honestly I like to tell people, you know what, it's okay if you get a little scared, a little nervous, and things like that, but that's what's helping you evolve and change. Like, you want to go through those experiences and you want to think of them as wins. Like, yes, I just got thrown this, like, doctor in front of me, and now I'm— you know, you're not going to make those same mistakes when you go back the next time around, because you're like, okay, I'm going to maybe study on some stuff that I didn't know how to answer in that session.

Yeah.

But, uh, some of the things is, you know, mostly it's, it's about personalities. You know, instructors are working with so many different personalities out there that they don't realize that when they go through training. And that, I think, is the most exciting part for me, what I have developed too. But you when you're working with people, especially like on a one-on-one or even like in a smaller type of dynamic, you get to understand people's like emotions that they bring to the table because there's a lot of hidden emotions. So to kind of go back to your question, a lot of instructors start to bring up questions in training, like they were teaching these clients as part of their student teaching hours and they couldn't move in a certain way, or they never felt like, you know, just let's take a standing roll down. Like you're standing up and you just like do a roll down. You bring your arms out really wide and you just go down to touch the floor. There was a woman that started getting emotional because she had never thrown her arms up in the air like that.

Yes. Wow.

And one of the students came back to me and was like, I didn't know how to respond. It's like, that's okay. Let them take that moment to themselves because It is— things are moving in their body, things are moving through their body. And again, if there is anything, it's just the emotional response that I think students are not prepared for. They're ready to like be there for like the physical things, right? But the emotional and the mental part that comes with Pilates is such on a different level. Um, and I don't know, maybe it's just because I've had a lot of um, of those stories myself with working. I worked with a lot of private clients in my, in my, in history of teaching. But, and I do have my students teach basically 85% of all private clients as they're going through their hours. And that's where we're hearing those stories. It's just like a lot of it comes from built-up trauma in their body, and then they start moving those muscles around, those joints around, and things are just releasing, toxins are releasing, and it's just something they've never felt. It's a very vulnerable feeling.

It's like, um, it's such a— I mean, special, crazy, scary, amazing experience. It's taught me, taught me so much being in rooms like that with one-on-one people. It's like a really— it's so rewarding.

Oh my God.

Um, so you take people to Greece on retreats. You recently went. Tell me about what happens on those retreats. I would love to know.

Yeah, that, um, so that just happened. I got back like a couple weeks ago, which is—

top is very Greek.

Thank you, it's great. Um, yeah, so I decided, you know what, I miss— I don't teach clients anymore. It's been about 6 years. And so I decided last year, you're like deep in the business stuff. Oh, very, very deep into the business. Um, and so I decided I wanted to get back to the community of like, why did I start Function first place. It was like to be around community, and, uh, I kind of missed the teaching dynamic. And so yes, decided to do Greece. I went big. I went big.

I love it.

Um, had some amazing women there, and yeah, I led morning mat classes, which was pretty incredible when you're just like, have an amazing background of the ocean. I mean, obviously here in Newport it's, it's really pretty cool too, but to, you know, have the blue domes around there. And when you think of Greece, like that whole vibe. Mm-hmm. But yeah, it was really cool to have, um, a group of women to lead. And we did some pretty adventurous things out there. The, the company I was working with, they led every— they got everything together.

Amazing.

So it was showing up, being a part of that group. I did not know over half the women that went.

Mm-hmm.

So that was another experience is like going there and introducing myself. They, I mean, they knew who I was obviously, cuz they wanted to join the retreat. Mm-hmm. But it was so great to connect with women on, understand like what they're doing there, what their Pilates journey is. Cuz everyone has a story of why they started. So, mm-hmm. To learn more about their story and why they were there, and that was just really special.

Okay. And you're going to Spain next?

Yes.

Paint the picture of what's gonna happen in Spain.

Spain is, yeah, we're going to Mallorca, uh, an island off of Spain.

And fun.

And that is going to again be full of adventure. Morning mat class is led by me. We are doing a guided kayak tour. We're gonna go to a cooking class.

Fun.

Like paella and Spanish wines. Um, we're doing a wine tasting. We have our own private catamaran cruise, which is so awesome. I mean, that's like a really great experience. And obviously shopping and just like connecting with—

obviously. Yeah. Obviously shopping.

And just like all like the connection with women and, um, you know, they're all there for the same reason. Pilates.

Do people go alone?

Yes.

Okay.

Yes. Lots of people went alone and that was the thing. It was like if you're kind of like nervous about a retreat, that was the wonderful thing is because everyone is already there for Pilates, everyone has that shared interest. And because the itinerary is already set with adventurous activities, mm-hmm, we're all experiencing that together. So yeah, there was actually, um, a couple of the women that went in there were very clear about they were being introverted, and they're like, I didn't know if I was gonna meet anyone. But you walk in as strangers and you left— like, a lot of those women left as friends. And so that was really cool. And, you know, to experience that and to see that and to hear— even when I got back into Phoenix, they're like, yeah, we went to happy hour the other night. I was like, that is so cool. You didn't even know each other before.

Yeah, yeah. You know, I think so many of us think that we are introverted and we go and do something like that and realize, number one, we're all the same. Number two, we're probably not actually that introverted. It's just like certain people bring certain things out. Or, or I fully believe like you're just, you haven't been in enough situations yet.

Yeah.

You're just new in certain situations. And don't get me wrong, there is things where it's like you get more energized around people or less energized sometimes, but for the most part, I mean, I really believe we are all communal and we're avoiding it because we're just— it's unfamiliar and they don't know how to get things started. And honestly, retreats like this, especially if it's something you already love, is one of the fastest ways to find other like-minded people and break down the barrier of the weirdness. Like, go on something that's organized so you don't have to organize it. It's, it's like I— one of the biggest things that grew myself me personally and my business was doing stuff like that.

Yeah, like it will quantum leap your life. Oh, 100%. I mean, I guess that was the other thing is that, uh, everything was done for you. Like you— we had a guided tour the entire time, which she was amazing. So, uh, it's so wonderful to have like an English-speaking, you know, guide to take you through things and to show you, uh, all about the culture of the country and things like that. That was so interesting to me. But yeah, to, to feel safe in an environment where we're all connecting together, that was also a really supportive, uh, group that we, that we had.

I love that.

So how do we go on one of these retreats, and also how do we become a part of your community, or if we want to be a teacher?

Yeah, yeah. Well, um, to come on the retreat, uh, we have our own booking page, so you can either, if If Spain is calling to you, there is a booking link already ready to go. If it's not, but you like are interested in becoming, uh, going on one of these retreats in the future, because I do want to continue these, there is a waitlist. So could just be part of that like newsletter, um, waitlist. But yeah, you guys, um, I wanted to offer obviously your audience a very exclusive like, like code. So I love it. Yes, already organized that. Um, it's Lori Harder and they, um, they get $100 off of the booking link if they wanna go to Mallorca, Spain. But as far as like teacher training, yeah, there's also obviously information on the website and that's like, can be done online. It could be in person if they wanna do Tempe, Arizona, or if they're in Bel Air, Maryland. I also have a master trainer out there, which is again, evolving that master trainer program. So in person can be done in two different cities at this point, but also online, uh, is also where they're gonna get that. Really one-on-one connection with me where I've already like prerecorded all of every single exercise possible to become certified, whether you want to do Mat only or Mat, Reformer, or full comprehensive. So yeah, very, very clear information on the website as well.

Okay, so the website is Function Pilates, functionpilates.com for that. And then what's the website for the trip?

The trip that is also on the website too. I would have to get the, the exact link.

We will put it down below in the show notes because we'll make sure that we get that for everybody. So thank you so much for coming on.

Thank you, Lori.

I'm so grateful. Yeah, I love talking anytime about moving my body, Pilates, and retreats. It's great. All right, you guys, until next time, earn your happy. Bye, everyone.