HEATHER GARRY

Heather Garry has been studying movement all her life. She started dancing at the age of three and has danced ever since! She was also a gymnast and contortionist in her youth. In 1994, Heather graduated with a B.A. in Fine Art in Dance and a B.S. in Psychology and she has been studying the Pilates method since 1996. Heather moved to Colorado to study Pilates after she sustained severe injuries in a motor vehicle accident that she was unable to heal using traditional methods of physical therapy. When Heather saw that Pilates finally helped her balance out the muscular deficits and weaknesses that she had been experiencing from all of the surgery that she had endured, she was convinced she had to teach this method and share it with others!! Heather says teaching both Pilates and Yoga is a gift, it's like living in a magic bubble!! Heather strives to help students find comfort and peace in their own bodies, to aid their bodies in the healing process and to help students understand the connection between the mind, the body and the breath. When we understand the direct link between our thoughts and the way the body responds to those thoughts, we have more insight into the dynamics that come into play and become manifested in the body. Heather is always trying to educate students so that they may better understand the alignment of the body and the mechanics of their movement and so that they may better unwind the tension that contributes to long held muscle patterns, that are often the source of pain and discomfort. Movement heals the body and it functions like medicine. It's Heather's belief that being able to move is a blessing and it is her journey to share that passion and joy with others. Heather is a 2nd generation certified Ron Fletcher Pilates Instructor which is considered a "West Coast" method of Pilates. She was first certified in a 2000-hour program in 1998 by Sabra Blaylock at Pilates Plus in Denver, CO. Pilates Plus was a Ron Fletcher Method studio and through her connections in this studio, she was able to meet and study with Ron Fletcher himself. Ron Fletcher was a First Generation Elder, a Master Teacher that studied with Joseph and Clara Pilates for 20 years. Ron was also an amazing modern dancer who worked with Martha Graham in the early years of her company and he worked with Japanese Choreographer Yeichi Nimura and Agnes Demills. Ron was a choreographer on Broadway, at Radio City Music Hall and for the Ice Capades and because of the influence of Modern Dance on Ron's work, it is often referred to as "Dancer's Pilates". Heather considers it a blessing that her path crossed with Ron's and that she was able to study Pilates directly from "the source" of this incredible method of exercise and body alignment. Heather completed her 600-hour certification as Qualified Teacher of the Ron Fletcher Work and the Fundamentals of Contrology in September 2020. She has also been very lucky to study with some of the best in the Pilates business including Patricia Guyton, Cathy Corey, Elizabeth Jones and Diane Severino . In 1999, Heather decided to add Massage therapy to her practice and became certified in that same year from the Cottonwood School of Massage in Denver. She then opened her own studio, Body Balance Techniques, and after a time, decided to shorten the name to BALANCE. BALANCE was a full-service Pilates studio and massage therapy practice in Denver, CO. She ran BALANCE for several years and then decided to return home to Connecticut, to be closer to her family, after the birth of her son Joseph. Joseph is the absolute light of her life!!

Upon returning home in 2001 Joseph was diagnosed with Autism and it was an extremely stressful time in her life. Having done Yoga on and off since college, she turned towards Yoga to manage the stress and the struggle of being a single mother with a special needs child. She found it so beneficial that she decided to pursue further study in Yoga. Heather completed her 200-hour yoga training certificate at High Street Yoga in August 2016 with an emphasis on Baptiste Power Yoga. Then closely on the heels of that certification, she furthered her study and completed a 300-hour certification program in Recovery Yoga completed at Zen & Now in May 2018. She has since added various certifications to her personal practice. She completed a Children's Yoga course with Denise Druce in March 2019. She then completed a 60-hour Yin Yoga certification in 2020 with Liza Dusson. In 2023 she completed another Comprehensive Pilates Teacher Training certification, this time with Balance Body studying Laura Pennock at Black Rock Pilates. In 2023 Heather took the training for The Roll Method and intends to complete the certification program.