Born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Suzanne grew up surrounded by movement and music. Unable to complete a dance minor due to undergoing foot surgery, she chose to continue to move in a different direction and obtain her BA in Studio Art & Minor in Nutrition and Cultural Anthropology from SDSU. A few years after graduation she discovered and fell in love with the Pilates Method when she met internationally recognized Master Instructor Julian Littleford.
Suzanne completed his intensely precise Pilates full apparatus certification training program in 2008 and began teaching at his studio JL Body Conditioning in Del Mar
CA. Those six years of working under Julian’s dynamic and classical style of teaching left a permanent mark on how Suzanne teaches today. Her teaching career led her to
San Diego Sports Medicine: Pilates Wellness. It was in this environment that she learned what the true internal core stability muscles are and how to improve the function of bodies in a broader client base including pre and post-surgery, and special needs populations- such as those with spinal fusions, herniated discs, SI joint issues, osteoporosis and all those who required more of a physical therapy type Pilates program.
From her teaching experiences, Suzanne created her own unique, modernized approach that is based around alignment and functional movement. She provides a keen eye for form but likes to give a physically demanding session. She utilizes specific cueing to get proper breathing and function of the correct muscles while encouraging a deepening of the core perception to release unnecessary tension elsewhere and increase the body’s overall performance.
Whether it is a class, a semi-private, or a private lesson, her goal is to challenge each client past what they thought possible while having fun and feeling better than they did before they started. She loves to see her clients improve each week in strength and flexibility but to also see them get curious about their own bodies and gain more awareness to apply in their daily lives.
Fun Fact: She once lived in Glacier Bay, Alaska in her 20’s and spent three months there kayaking with Orca and Humpback whales and then hitchhiked across the Yukon Territory of Canada to the Kenai Peninsula. She also loves photography, architecture, hiking, traveling, and especially spending quality time with her family, her fiancé, and their new kitten Jasper.