Instructor Bio’s
Carey
Carey Taylor, Pilates instructor and Personal Trainer, has over 25 years of experience in the fitness industry. She is classically trained in the Pilates Method through the PhysicalMind Institute for all mat and Pilates Apparatus work. She is an active member of the Pilates Method Alliance (PMA).
Carey is also a Certified Personal Trainer through the American Sports and Fitness Association. Over the span of her career, she has completed several workshops and certifications in several wellness modalities including: HIIT, Spinning, Kickboxing, Water aerobics, Barre, Prenatal and Youth exercise, Functional Training and Sports Nutrition. She continues her education in order to keep current with the latest in wellness research and best practices.
Originally from southern Maryland, Carey has had a Pilates practice in various locations around the country, and has worked with private and corporate clients. She has worked as a Fitness Contractor with the U.S. Navy, designing and implementing fitness programs for active-duty service members as well as their dependents.
Carey and her family have recently relocated to the Raleigh, North Carolina area, where they are enjoying the many perks of southern living, including the warmer weather. Currently, Carey travels between Maryland and North Carolina to serve her Pilates and Personal Training clients.
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Cathy
Cathy is a Personal Trainer & Group Fitness Instructor with 35 years of experience in the Fitness Industry. Cathy’s view on fitness is simply stated – our body was made to move. “The more we move any part of our body, the more blood will freely pump through the body. If we become stagnant and allow our body to ‘clog up’ we will have health problems. I believe that stretching and strengthening exercise is an excellent tool to help us stay fit at any age and any fitness level.”
Cathy is certified from the International Sports Science Association. She is an experienced Group Fitness Instructor in Aqua Arthritis, Yoga, Pilates, Silver Sneakers, Water aerobics, Mom & Tot, Firm & Tone, Obese Fitness Instruction at Duke University NIA, Seniorcise, Women & Weights, and Barre.
She grew up in New Jersey and is married to Tim, who is the Assistant Head Coach of Football at UNC. Cathy has lived in 11 different states in the past 34 years and is the proud parent of three boys.
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Cathy
Emily
Emily is a Balanced Body trained Pilates instructor. Having found Pilates after a back injury, she experienced its benefits firsthand and the integral role it plays in any healthy lifestyle.
A former rower and lifelong athlete, Emily understands the important balance of increasing mobility and flexibility while strengthening and toning your body. She brings her years of strength and cross-training into her contemporary Pilates classes, focusing on proper form and injury prevention while improving your overall athletic performance. She is known for making you break a sweat during class, cultivating a safe and supportive environment where you are pushed to your limits to successfully overcome any obstacle.
She will continuously challenge you to go harder, push further, and reach your athletic potential.
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Emily
Julie
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Julie
Karson
Karson is a young, social, and vibrant graduate student that studies Public Administration and works in K-12 schools and education policy. Throughout her studies, Karson has used Pilates as a mental and physical self-care method. She was introduced to reformer Pilates 5 years ago to help heal her multiple injuries, and loved the method so much that she pursued teacher training to help others fall in love with the same type of movement. Since then, she has traveled the country visiting Pilates studios to learn from different instructors and has strived to make it to Pilates 5 days a week. She is a certified Balanced Body Instructor in reformer Pilates and is an active member of the Pilates Method Alliance (PMA).
Due to the many injuries Karson had and still manages today, she is understanding of the challenges that each individual body has when facing injuries or post-injury rehabilitation. She loves the Pilates Method because exercises can be high intensity, muscle-shaking, and extremely rewarding, all while being low impact on the joints, connecting the mind to the body, and having loads of fun! Kick start your week with an upbeat and lively Sunday evening class and amp up the second half with one of Karson’s Hump Day, Jump Day classes or wind down at her Wine Down Wednesday class. She can’t wait to meet you!
Due to the many injuries Karson had and still manages today, she is understanding of the challenges that each individual body has when facing injuries or post-injury rehabilitation. She loves the Pilates Method because exercises can be high intensity, muscle-shaking, and extremely rewarding, all while being low impact on the joints, connecting the mind to the body, and having loads of fun! Kick start your week with an upbeat and lively Sunday evening class and amp up the second half with one of Karson’s Hump Day, Jump Day classes or wind down at her Wine Down Wednesday class. She can’t wait to meet you!
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Karson
Lorraine
Lorraine has loved being in the health and wellness industry for over 20 years. She is certified in Camp Gladiator, which is an outdoor fitness boot camp program fun and challenging workouts. She is also certified in Les Mills BodyPump, BodyStep, BodyFlow, BodyJam, Sh’Bam, and RPM, which is a cycle class. She teaches Freestyle Yoga (mix between Hatha and Vinyasa) for business clients in the triangle. In addition, Lorraine’s background includes Group Fitness Management at O2 and Golds Gym, as well as being a certified Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor in Chapel Hill for the last 14 years.
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Lorraine
Pam
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Pam
Pat
Pat grew up in New York, but lived in Pennsylvania for 19 years. She relocated to North Carolina and absolutely loves it here. The weather and the people are beautiful.
Pat has been an athlete all her life and she discovered Pilates after an injury. Being astonished by the results, she pursued her education, completed her certification, and has been practicing and teaching Pilates since 2001.
Pat specializes in both classical and contemporary approaches to achieve certain goals – optimal musculosketal performance is one of them. Her philosophy is that if you have the patience to do difficult things perfectly, then you will acquire the skills to do difficult things easily. When she is not teaching Pilates, you can find her playing tennis, playing volleyball, bike riding, or paddleboarding.
A Pilates body is a healthy body! See you at Studio 8!
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Pat
Carissa
Growing up as a dancer, I have always been drawn to movement. My journey with yoga and Pilates started over ten years ago and has expanded into something that resonates so strongly with me, I feel grateful to be able to share my love of these practices with others. I feel everyone can benefit either mentally, physically, emotionally, or a combination of all three from these practices. The challenge comes in simply finding a way to integrate these movement philosophies and practices into your life.
I am a 200 hour Registered Yoga Teacher who received my certification from Yandara Yoga Institute in Todos Santos, Mexico. I am a Balanced Body Certified Comprehensive Pilates Instructor who trained at EHS Pilates in San Francisco and San Mateo College. I am a TRX certified instructor and Barre Above instructor. I am also a Reiki Master. In 2020 I became a certified Master Pilates Instructor through the National Pilates Certification Program and began to host teacher trainings through various host studios. I love being able to share my experiences with future instructors. I am constantly learning new modalities of movement and healing and integrating this knowledge into my work with clients to help them move the best they can. I have been teaching in the South Bay, Monterey, and Santa Cruz since 2013.
Beside my love of movement, I also have a deep love and respect for the ocean and a passion for animals.
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Carissa
Radhika
In 2005 I was introduced to yoga by a friend. Little did I know it was going to change my life for the better. The mat became my sacred place and took me on a 16 year journey. My journey led me to Republic of Yoga in Cary, NC in 2019 where I trained under my phenomenal teacher, Nicole Nichols.
In my almost year-long training, I was forced to sit in my silence and to really listen. Silence can be a scary place for many people because it forces you to do the necessary work. The work only brings you closer to your core or your center. Taking the time to really understand who you are at the end of the day not only changes you but changes your relationships. Yoga is not about the perfect pose or even how flexible you are–it is what you learn about yourself while your breath is guiding you into your pose. You learn resilience when you fall out of a pose and get back in. You learn strength while balancing in a pose. You learn calmness while sitting in a pose. When your feet touch the mat every practice is a new beginning. A chance to restart and learn something new about yourself.
After finishing my adult certification I decided to become certified as a kids yoga instructor and obtained my certification through Growga in Chapel Hill, NC. When I worked for a nonprofit years ago I was working with at risk youth in schools, alternative schools, juvenile detention centers, and afterschool programs. I continue to teach kids today and in my opinion yoga is an excellent tool for kids to have access to whenever they need it. Yoga can teach kids to take that important pause before they react. It can teach them kindness, compassion, empathy, courage, strength and love. All of these values will not only help them, but will also aid them in having good relationships with themselves and others.
I hope to see you all soon in my classes!
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Radhika
Sarah
Sarah grew up in Houston, TX, and has been in North Carolina since 2020 with her husband. She is currently obtaining her Doctorate of Physical Therapy at UNC. Sarah has a range of interests within the field of PT, including orthopedics, burns, and sports rehabilitation.
Sarah obtained her Bachelor’s of Science degree in Kinesiology with a focus in Dance Science at Texas A&M University in 2018. It was in this program, where she was introduced to Pilates as a method to address instability and weakness in herself and her peers. She incorporates her passion for the body and the way that it was created to add challenge and education into her classes. She loves the look on people’s faces when they’re able to engage a muscle they never knew they had. It is that moment, that people are able to gain control of their bodies and take control of their health.
“Pilates leads to strength, symmetry, stability, and alignment. There is always more to learn about your body and your body’s capacity.”
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Sarah
Elise
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