About Celebrate Life Pilates

Established in 1995 by Senior Instructor, JoEllyn Musser, Celebrate Life specializes in certified instruction of Conscious Movement techniques.

Conscious Movement is the practice of focusing conscious awareness on body alignment and muscular firing patterns as you move through space, then allowing the responsive signals from the body to guide your movement choices. If something hurts, something is wrong. We don’t believe in “no pain, no gain.” However, we endorse “no effort, no gain”. As compared to mindless repetition on the treadmill at the gym, in conscious movement, the intention is not about getting it done, but doing it well. Do the best you can in each moment, without attachment to the past or expectation for the future. While the common language is movement and exercise, through the body/mind/spirit connection, sometimes healing occurs at a much deeper level.

All of our teachers are certified in their disciplines and have excellent reputations. We can customize sessions to accommodate almost any level of function and ability. We work with a wide range of clientele from disabled and fragile, children to seniors, to challenging professional athletes and Olympic hopefuls.

Physiologically, a program of three sessions or classes per week is the most effective to see results quickly. Clients who chose to do two times per week will still make progress, just not quite as efficiently. With only one time per week, without supplementing with some other kind of toning or stretching, there may be too much time over the course of seven days to develop “muscle memory” and make the permanent kinds of changes a new client may be looking to in an exercise program. Although, we do have some clients who have been able to make slow progress with a program of once a week, once a week is typically considered more for maintenance.

While the instructors at Celebrate Life are not physical therapists, and we do not represent ourselves as medical practitioners, many physical therapists use Pilates, GYROTONIC®, GYROKINESIS®, and Yoga as parts of a total rehabilitation program. Several of our clients have been discharged from physical therapy, and continue aftercare and maintenance programs at our studio. We are happy to consult with any doctors or therapists regarding the indications or contraindications of any specific client needs.

Our intention is to create a welcoming, inclusive, supportive, environment, with each client working to achieve his/her own goals in the company of others doing the same. We will demonstrate modifications or added challenge so that the classes and sessions are safe and effective for almost any client.