Meet Our Instructors

Owner & Pilates Instructor, PRP and CoreAlign Certified Instructor

In 2000, Leah began Pilates to decrease chronic lower back pain. A year later, with her lower back issues resolved, her love for Pilates and her enthusiasm for teaching others led her into the training program to become a Certified Pilates Instructor. Leah was trained extensively in Classical Pilates at the Pilates of Cherry Creek Certification Center, a studio based on the work of Romana Kryzanowska. Romana is heir to the work of Joseph Pilates and is one of the living Pilates elders.

Leah opened her own studio, Pilates Bodies, in the spring of 2005. Leah creates individualized workout programs for clients wishing to increase core strength and flexibility, as well as improve posture to help prevent injury. She specifically tailors exercise programs for each of her client’s current physical and emotional needs.

Additionally, Leah has been trained as a Breast Cancer Exercise Specialist (BCES) through the Pink Ribbon Program, specializes in Pilates for pregnancy, is a certified CoreAlign instructor and has continued her work with Pilates for Rehabilitation for geriatric clients. Leah has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Pomona College in Southern California, majoring in Fine Arts and minoring in Economics.

A love of fitness and physical challenge brought Jennifer to Pilates. After years of running, Jennifer realized she needed a form of exercise to enhance and balance her body and mind for a lifetime. Pilates changed Jen’s approach to fitness and life so completely that she left her corporate sales career to become a Pilates instructor in 2010. She completed the Pilates Method Alliance certified classical curriculum at PH7 Pilates in Denver, CO. The gift of Pilates has changed her life forever and Jen loves sharing the principals of Pilates…centering, control and balance. Jen grew up in South Dakota, attended the University of Nebraska and studied English and Anthropology.

Jen is a native of Indiana, but moved to Colorado in 2004 and is happy to call Denver home. She is a life-long lover of movement and has been involved in many disciplines including dance, color guard and yoga, both as a participant, choreographer and teacher. In the early 2000’s, Jen performed in London and on Broadway with the visual ensemble in the production Blast. Along the way, she was introduced to Pilates as a means of staying fit and working through some of the wear and tear on her body from years of use.

Jen completed the 500-hour certification program at Whole Body Studios in Denver, CO in the spring of 2017 and has been teaching ever since. Additionally, she obtained the Kathy Grant Heritage Training Certification with Cara Reeser in 2018. Jen is also a graduate of the Nutrition Therapy Institute (NTI) here in Denver and is a certified nutritional therapist. When she’s not teaching, Jen enjoys traveling, hiking, knitting or taking on a new creative project around the house.

As a native of Israel, Vered has studied ballet, modern dance and Pilates since childhood and served as a physical fitness commander during her service in the Israeli Air Force. After military service, she worked as a C.P.A. with Ernst & Young for several years, but has since followed her passion for exercise and movement. Vered was certified as a STOTT Method Pilates instructor in traditional mat, reformer and equipment Pilates and Barre. She has recently moved to Denver with her husband and three children.

As a Florida native, Tammy earned a B.S. in Nutrition from Florida State University. She also studied movement sciences and earned her personal training certification through NSCA while cheering for their nationally ranked cheerleading team. Working in the health and fitness industry, Tammy was introduced to the Pilates Mat work and began incorporating it into her personal training practice. Shortly after finishing up Massage Therapy School in FL, she headed to the Rockies and attended Denver’s first Polestar Pilates Studio training program while cheering for the Denver Nuggets coed cheer team.

Feeding her enthusiasm and wanting to learn the classics, Tammy continued her Pilates training under Colleen Glenn (Romana trained) in Denver, CO. She has seen how life changing the Pilates Method can be for her clients, whether it is improving one’s posture, pre/post-natal, rehabbing back and knees or cross-training for elite athletes.

Leslie comes to us with a wealth of PT and Pilates knowledge as a certified Pilates instructor. She earned her certification from Body Arts and Science International (BASI Pilates). She holds a Master of Physical Therapy from the University of Missouri and is board certified as an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist. She has spent the past 20 years practicing physical therapy with a specialization in orthopedics/sports medicine, as well as spinal disorders, fractures, arthritis, sprain/strain injuries, balance and dizziness disorders. Leslie has a passion for optimizing the performance of the human body and is excited to bring her experience to the studio as she merges her career as a physical therapist with Pilates instruction.

Jennifer, who moved to Denver from New York was always an active person. Jen was searching for a new way to keep fit and challenge not only her body, but her mind- which is how she discovered Pilates as her next passion. While continuing to run a successful independent landscape design company, Jen realized she also wanted to use her creative talents in the Pilates world. She perfected her own Pilates practice for over ten years before completing her Pilates certification program at Whole Body Studios in Denver, CO. Jen loves the principles and core movements of Pilates. She is always building and adapting movements to increase the challenge, intrigue and personalized attention.

Jennifer went through a comprehensive pre-certification in classical Pilates at Pilates Aligned in Denver before completing the Advanced Teacher Training at The Pilates Center in Boulder in 2016. She is a Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher and has completed the Kathy Grant Heritage Training. She has also attended five Movement Science Made Simple Courses. To Jennifer, Pilates is about orchestrating the symphony of the body into one harmonious whole. The result is ability. She wants to share that with her clients so they leave feeling like they can take on anything.

Born and raised in the Denver Metro area, Julene is a comprehensively trained and certified Pilates instructor. She came across Pilates by accident, and found it to be the best way to rehab and reconnect with her body after injuries from extreme exercise based methodologies.

Julene completed 160 hours of in-person workshops and over 600 additional practice hours in teacher training. After several years of working under an Occupational Therapist, she is confident in working with rehab and pre/postpartum clients of all stripes. In her free time, Julene enjoys reading physical books and attending to her houseplants.

Kristy Harden is a Pilates instructor, Lagree trainer, Registered Dietitian, and married mother of three. Early in life, Kristy studied ballet at some of the country’s most elite programs and attended the University of Utah as a ballet major. Kristy later earned her BS Degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition. She practiced as a registered clinical dietitian for 15 years and taught Lagree for the past 6 years.

Having a desire to expand her technical body knowledge, Kristy became cretified as a Pilates Instructor through Pilates Academy International to deepen her awareness of body dynamics. Kristy has a great passion for teaching and delivers high-energy Pilates workouts that will leave you wanting more!