Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicole Briggs.
Nicole Briggs is from Washington, D.C. There she studied dance and coach girls’ competitive gymnastics. After moving to San Francisco in 1995, she continued to dance and worked at a Chiropractic office. Her boss gave her the gift of Pilates lessons, before she left to finish her dance degree. Nicole graduated from UC Irvine with a B.A. in dance. She continued to grad school at Cal State Northridge for Kinesiology. She kept taking Pilates lessons because it fixed her back pain, among other joint problems.
Because of her love of movement and study of the body, she decided to teach Pilates. She was certified in 2005 and taught at Los Angeles Pilates studios and a physical therapy clinic. She became an assistant teacher trainer with a certifying program and opened her home studio in 2008. She ran out of space and expanded by opening a public studio, in Studio City, CA in 2011.
Nicole started her teacher training program in 2012, to pass on the classical Pilates method. In 2015 she was accepted to the Pilates master program at Vintage Pilates in Los Angeles. The program, led by Jay Grimes, brings more than 50 years of experience and was trained by Joe Pilates himself. Nicole moved her studio to Toluca Lake in 2016. Nicole guest teaches weekly at Vintage Pilates. She enjoys helping people move better, work out hard, and use Pilates in their everyday life.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Owning a business as a Pilates instructor and not a business major has been quite the learning experience. Luckily, I have had some amazing support from attorneys, accountants, other colleagues and studio owners, not to mention my husband.
Running a small business takes tremendous time, patience, and money. Difficulties include finding the right staff to support our mission, working against studios who say they teach Pilates when they really are not (market confusion and sometimes classes taught by those who did not receive a full education on what Pilates is and how to use it for the individual).
Please tell us about Strong Body Pilates.
We teach Pilates as intended by Joseph Pilates. One thing that sets us apart is the use of the original apparatus, by Gratz. Joe Pilates designed each apparatus for specific purposes and had Gratz build the apparatus. The weight, dimensions, and exercises all complement each other for the best changes in the body. Nicole has received training from one of the few people left in the world who worked with Joe Pilates, thereby passing down information from close to the source. Her goal is to use this information in practice to help and educate others.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I wish I found Pilates when I was young. After opening the studio, I would have spent less money on advertising, as word of mouth is the best way people learn of Pilates and trust who to go to.
Pricing:
- Starting at $20 for classes
- Starting at $60 for privates (intro series)
Contact Info:
- Address: 10660 Riverside Drive, Ste B, Toluca Lake, CA 91602
- Website: www.strongbodypilates.com
- Phone: 8185100827
- Email: [email protected]
