We are proud to introduce you to our Momentum Fest 2022 ambassador team!
The Momentum Fest ambassador program was developed in order to bring the vision and excitement of Momentum Fest to individuals, clients, communities and studios around the world. Our ambassadors are movement teachers, students, community members or studios who share our goal of community, encouragement, inclusivity, inner strength and joy in the Pilates and movement industries.
Momentum Fest 2022 Ambassadors
Tami Lysher
Tami has been involved in fitness and moment for more than 30 years. She teaches both Pilates and yoga and is the owner of Studio T Pilates, where she teaches privates in the studio and small group mat Pilates via zoom. She is also the creator of Trauma-Informed Movement.
Stacey Extence
Stacey began practicing Pilates in 2011 to become healthier. She soon realized how much more it offered. It became a form of therapy for her mind and soul. She enjoys traveling and visiting new studios to learn from. Stacey has recently completed her full comprehensive teacher training with Peak Pilates, and looks forward to sharing the practice with her future clients.
Lori Watson
Lori has a small home studio in San Jose, CA. She’s been practicing Pilates since 1997 and teaching since 2003. Lori did her original training when she was living on the east coast. Her goal is to give her clients the tools to move and use their bodies so they can feel better in their daily activities. She works primarily with clients that have experienced injuries and she is always trying to learn more to be the best instructor she can be!
Mindi Westfall
Mindi is a graduate of the University of Georgia with Masters in Education with an emphasis in Sports Management. Mindi played volleyball growing up and throughout college causing her body to take a beating. Pilates has been her saving grace and she is now moving pain free. Mindi began practicing Pilates in St. Louis when she started having lower back issues due to a bulging disc caused by her many years of playing volleyball. With an understanding of the body through her experience with injuries throughout her career/life, switching from a passionate Pilates student to a teacher was a natural progression. She loves helping people feel better about their body. Mindi brings fun and hard work to each of her sessions through sharing her passion for Pilates!
Rachel Piper
Rachel has a background in Biological Sciences and has been working at a local biotech company since 2001. She is a classically trained comprehensive Pilates teacher who originally went down the teacher training path to gain more knowledge and to help her autistic son with balance and flexibility. Now she strives to help others find joy in movement while feeling included within the community. Her own Pilates experience, from the beginning, was full of inclusion and acceptance even though I practice Pilates in a bigger body. Rachel believes that you should love your body for what it can do no matter your size, your age, or your current abilities. She teaches in an inclusive and accepting way, where she makes the exercises work for the body – not by cramming a body into an exercise. She works towards creating space for people who might not think they have a place in Pilates, whether because of gender identity, race, size or shape, physical state, or being neurodiverse.
Emily Sharpe
Emily is a certified Pilates Instructor and studio owner, comprehensively trained through Balanced Body and trained in Balanced Body MOTR and the BODHI Suspension System. She is an owner of The Pilates Studio Highlands in Denver, CO – a boutique Pilates studio offering group classes, private and semi-private sessions. When not in the studio, Emily is an avid hiker/adventurer. She has hiked 42 of Colorado’s 58 14ers – mountains over 14,000 feet in elevation. She enjoys traveling and hiking in adventurous places all over the world, including Machu Picchu, Mount Kilimanjaro, New Zealand and the Patagonia region of Chile.
Alyce Pilgrim
Being diagnosed with scoliosis and arthritis in her spine a few years ago lead Alyce to discover and fall in love with Pilates. A friend recommended Pilates and it was love at first sight. Originally from Australia, Alyce has taught Pilates in both the USA and Australia. She also teaches Boxilates and TRX. Alyce aims to create sessions that are balanced, well-rounded, and address all planes of movement and multiple muscle groups. One of her biggest joys is seeing the rehabilitation and conditioning affects that Pilates has on the body. Alyce is also a qualified life and health coach she loves helping people to have more energy, lose weight and live life on their terms. She runs her own coaching business and is passionate about providing her clients with a holistic approach to wellness and loving the skin they are in. When she is not in the studio she loves curing her travel bug by exploring new destinations, spending time with her husband, going to the gym, learning Dutch, cooking new recipes, learning the ukulele and spending time with friends.
Eshael M. Johnson, M.S.
Eshael M. Johnson, M.S., is a classically trained Pilates Instructor, GYROTONIC Apprentice and owner of Ischyra Soma Fitness, LLC. Eshael’s love of all things athletic began while watching Super Bowl III with her father. Eshael gravitated early to dance but dropped it to pursue basketball and later cheerleading, both pre-collegiate and semi-professional. A car accident that shattered her kneecap temporarily brought her athleticism to a halt. As she got older, her knee again began to give her trouble. It was then that her trainer recommended Pilates. Eshael found Pilates allowed her to move with the grace she had before her knee injury; it reunited her mind with her body as she regained ease of movement, developed muscle, and strengthened her core. Eshael is convinced that Pilates can lead to “better living through strength and grace”. Ms. Johnson is currently a communications and policy professional with the U.S. Government and has held several progressively responsible key management positions related to operations, communications and human capital with portfolios that encompass both domestic and international lines of business. Eshael has a Bachelor of Art in Psychology with an emphasis in Decision Making and a Master of Science in Management with an emphasis in Organizational Development. She has also successfully completed OPM’s Senior Leadership Development program.
Kelly Hendricks
Kelly is a lifelong athlete with a passion for movement! She fell in love with Pilates after experiencing how it improved the activities she loves including hiking, skiing, trail running, sprint triathlons, swimming, and – most importantly – keeping up with her three young kids. She followed her passion in 2015 by deciding to own and operate three Club Pilates studios – Boulder, Longmont and Waneka. Her passion is to improve the lives of everyone around her with better health by bringing communities together with a positive heart & mind. She is also the creator of FitGoal calendars and Your Glute Can Do It gear.
Nikki Peterson
Nikki’s Pilates journey began over 10 years ago when she attended her first Pilates workshop to fulfill a need for continuing education units for group fitness certifications. It was love at first sight! Nikki holds certifications in ACE, NASM, Tabata Bootcamp, and Strong by Zumba. She is also PMA certified, and is comprehensively trained through Pilates Sports Center, currently bridging with Polestar Pilates to expand her knowledge of rehab-based Pilates. Nikki is the owner of Nikkifit Pilates and Fitness LLC , a home based studio. This is her first year as an ambassador. Nikki desires to share her passion with a diverse population that would not ordinarily see themselves as Pilates practicers, demonstrating that Pilates truly is for everybody.
Sara Ellis Owen
Sara Ellis-Owen traded her law practice for a career teaching Pilates in her mid 30s. She’s a based in Bristol, U.K. where she runs a successful equipment based studio, House of Pilates. After witnessing the effects of lockdown on her teens, she created Next Generation Pilates, a bespoke Pilates service for teens. Next Generation Pilates offers in person sessions using equipment and an online course so teens around the world can take advantage of the benefits of Pilates. She holds a Level 3 Pilates certification through Alan Herdman Pilates along with a Body Control Pilates certification to teach Pilates to children through young adults.
Nannette Crystal
Nannette’s love of movement started at an early age in her native state of Louisiana motivating her to earn a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance in1999. Nannette began the Fletcher Pilates Comprehensive Program, formerly the Ron Fletcher Program of Study, in 2001 and completed it in 2004. She taught at Body Works Studio in Tucson, Arizona from2002-2009 and nationally and internationally as Fletcher Pilates Faculty from 2004-presnt. She is a licensed physical therapist assistant and has worked in orthopedic clinics where she marries Pilates and therapeutic disciplines. Nannette opened Esprit Pilates LLC in 2017 and has enjoyed inspiring her clientele to reach their movement potential. Nannette resides in south Louisiana along with her husband and four-legged kids. She enjoys running, cooking and, traveling. As a National Certified Pilates Teacher, she is passionate about engaging clients and students in a life of health and wellness. She is thrilled and honored to be a MF Ambassador!
Whitney Shea (Contrology Studio)
Whitney Shea is the owner of Contrology Studio in Louisville, Colorado. She has been teaching Pilates for 14 years, is a Faculty Teacher Trainer for Pure Body Teacher Training, and she holds a Physical Therapist Assistant license in Colorado. Whitney truly believes in the power of movement, and that Pilates is for Every Body. These are deeply rooted values in her studio in Louisville, and she is honored to share these passions as an ambassador for Momentum Fest!
Laura Pittman
Laura graduated from UNC Charlotte with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Exercise Science and is a fully certified STOTT PILATES® Instructor in Indian Trail, North Carolina. She was introduced to Pilates as a teenager shortly after being diagnosed with rotoscoliosis. Pilates improved her posture, strength, and flexibility, and eliminated the pain of her condition. Her personal experience fueled an interest in post-rehabilitative Pilates. Her classes cater to all abilities, from fit and active to special populations such as cardiac clients, children, elderly, and many more. As a certified prenatal and postnatal Pilates specialist and borrowing from her own experience as a three-time mom, she created Laura Pittman Mommielates, a Pilates program designed specifically for a woman’s needs during pregnancy, after pregnancy, and diastasis recti recovery. Since its inception, Laura has been involved in Core Compassion Project, a 501(c)3 offering post-rehabilitative Pilates to those battling breast cancer. She currently serves as a Master Teacher and as a member of the board of directors of Core Compassion Project. Her other certifications include the Jill Hinson Method for Breast Cancer and Tracy Mallet Booty Barre.
Marisa Oldefest
Marisa is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher, Qualified Fletcher Pilates Teacher, Certified Massage Therapist and instructor affiliate with Core Compassion Project. She has been teaching Pilates for over 23 years. Marisa found Pilates after an auto accident left her with a neck injury. She attended her first Pilates private session at a physical therapy clinic in Littleton, Co. After just minutes into her Pilates practice she began to feel relief in her neck pain and knew she had to become a Pilates teacher to share the benefits of Pilates with others. Marisa specializes in working with others who suffer from neck and back pain. She also has worked with children, teens, athletes and dancers. In 2020, Marisa became an instructor affiliate with Core Compassion Project, a 501(c)3 that provides Pilates scholarships for women and men recovering from breast cancer. Pilates is Marisa’s passion and she is always continuing her Pilates education in order continue to offer her clients the very best in the Pilates industry. Marisa truly loves teaching every body at every age and stage of their life! She is dedicated to helping others heal pain and injury through the Pilates method and helping everyone feel comfortable, strong and confident in their bodies! She owns Peace of Mind Pilates in Denver, CO.
Kerri Roberts
Kerri is BASI trained and certified, has been teaching in the Seattle area since 2012, and owns Main Street Pilates in Bellevue, WA. She has a passion for working with pre+postnatal clients. When Kerri is not at her studio, she’s snuggling her daughter Shoshana or walking her dog, Maui!