Follow Friday Vendor Spotlight: Balance, Your Pilates & Yoga Studio

I missed last week, but couldn’t wait to share this Follow Friday post dedicated to Balance, Your Pilates & Yoga Studio.  There are many so health benefits to the Yoga, Pilates, and Gyrotonic workouts provided at Balance, but there is also the physical benefit.  These workouts strengthen and tone muscles, tighten your core, and provide you with greater flexibility and stamina.  Every bride and groom (mothers, fathers, bridal party too) wants to look good on the wedding day.  What I love about Balance is that the owner, Susan Smith Burns, and her team of dedicated instructors, provide a fun and supportive environment for all clients to reach their  fitness goals.

I have been going to Balance in Bethesda, MD since 2008 (when I first got engaged) to try out Pilates as a new exercise routine.  I have been hooked ever since, and can honestly say that I never felt (or looked) more beautiful than on my Wedding day.   I especially credit the Pilates Total Fitness classes for my toned arms and back!

Susan opened Balance in 2001, when not as many people knew what Pilates was and how great a workout it is.  She started in her small studio with “foreign-looking equipment,” and has grown to two locations in Montgomery County, Maryland: Rockville and downtown Bethesda.  Susan and all of the knowledgeable instructors at Balance know exactly which exercises help women and men.   Whether you want to tone your body, develop muscles or look fantastic in your white dress (and tux), the goal at balance is not only to provide a good workout for clients, but to help people perform their many and varied daily tasks with ““spontaneous zest and pleasure”.

From Susan:   Essentially, my motivation to get into this business was how good it made ME feel. I’ve always been slightly obsessed with the growing number body image issues we see in women and girls these days and I found physical fitness in general and Pilates in particular to be a great way to teach empowerment. We’re always coaching “move from your center”, “initiate from your core”, etc, which applies both physically and mentally. I’ve had soooo many clients tell me that we’ve changed their lives — whether by enabling them to do things they never thought they would do, improving their them confidence, getting them stronger, or getting them out of pain (or just making them look really great on their wedding day!)

I was always active growing up, but didn’t consider myself an “athlete”.  It wasn’t until college, when my friend mentioned rowing try-outs that I saw how regular practice was as beneficial to my mind as it was to my body. When I was selected to row at the head of the boat, I felt empowered. I was not just physically stronger, but also more confident as a young woman. That link has never left me.

Coming up at Balance