Embodiment, the Nervous System & CoreAlign: Rethinking How We Teach Movement with Krista Loveless Lennartz

Embodiment, the Nervous System & CoreAlign: Rethinking How We Teach Movement with Krista Loveless Lennartz

Welcome back to another episode of CoLab Conversations, today we are joined by Krista Loveless Lennartz, a Portland-based movement educator, studio owner, and CoreAlign specialist with over 26 years of experience in Pilates and movement science.With a background in dance education, psychology, and a master’s degree in motor learning and control from Columbia University, Krista brings a deeply thoughtful and science-backed approach to how we teach, experience, and embody movement. In this conversation, you’ll hear how Krista: * Reframes movement from “doing it right” to building awareness and adaptability * Uses CoreAlign to support nervous system regulation and embodied learning * Teaches agency by helping students reflect, adapt, and make decisions in their bodies * Creates inclusive movement experiences that honor individual differences * Applies motor learning principles to deepen how people learn and retain movement * Builds a thriving studio culture rooted in collaboration, sustainability, and joy Whether you’re a movement professional, studio owner, or simply someone looking to deepen your connection to your body, this episode offers a refreshing perspective on what it truly means to move well. Krista reminds us that movement isn’t about perfection, it’s about presence, curiosity, and building a relationship with ourselves that fosters awareness, resilience, and joy. Resources Mentioned: * Krista’s blogs: https://thepracticespace.com/blog-newsletter * CoreAlign CoLab classes, workshops & community: https://www.colabmovement.com/corealigncolab * CoLab Flex On-Demand Library: https://www.colabmovement.com/on-demand Guest Bio:Krista Loveless Lennartz has been teaching movement for over 26 years and is a Portland-based movement educator, studio owner, and CoreAlign specialist. With a background in dance education and psychology from Marymount Manhattan College, she began her Pilates journey at the Kane School of Core Integration in New York City and later earned a master’s degree in Motor Learning and Control from Teachers College at Columbia University. As the owner of The Practice Space in Portland, Oregon, Krista integrates science, curiosity, and compassion into her work, helping individuals and instructors shift from “doing it right” to developing awareness, adaptability, and agency through movement, while fostering an inclusive, collaborative, and sustainable studio environment. Her specialties include: * Embodiment & Motor Learning: Applying neuroscience and motor learning principles to help clients better understand how they move and learn. * CoreAlign Training: Utilizing CoreAlign to enhance proprioception, balance, and functional movement patterns in a standing, real-life context. * Nervous System Awareness: Creating movement experiences that support regulation, adaptability, and present-moment awareness. * Teacher Development: Mentoring instructors to build confidence, curiosity, and effective communication in their teaching. * Studio Leadership & Culture: Building a sustainable, collaborative studio environment that prioritizes wellbeing, growth, and community. Connect with Krista:📸 @lovelesslearning on Instagram Follow CoreAlign CoLab:📸 @corealign.colab📸 @arwenbrooke_pilates▶️ @ArwenBrooke_CoreAlignCoLab on YouTube🌐 corealigncolab.com | colabmovement.com

Training Professional Athletes: Bridging Physical Therapy and Pro Sports with Priya Chisti

Welcome to the first episode of 2026 of CoLab Conversations. In this conversation, Priya Chisti shares how she integrates Pilates and CoreAlign into a high-level physical therapy clinic. Working alongside physical therapists in Orange County, she helps professional athletes from the MLB, NHL, and Team USA return to peak performance. Priya explains why she views the human body as a puzzle and how she uses movement to solve complex injury challenges. This episode highlights the powerful synergy between clinical rehabilitation and the creative, functional progression that Pilates provides for elite movers. In this conversation, you’ll hear how Priya: * Collaborates with physical therapists to take clients from clinical graduation into dynamic, long-term movement * Shares insights into working with professional baseball, hockey, and figure skating athletes to improve functionality and sport-specific patterns * Chose to share her “why” and “how” online, turning her social media platform into a generous educational resource for instructors worldwide * Leverages the CoreAlign for gait training, weight shifts, and specific feedback that traditional springs cannot provide * Embraces the apprenticeship style of learning and explains why seeing real-world sessions is vital for teacher growth We also talk about how Priya’s upcoming workshop on sport-specific training invites teachers to get creative with the CoreAlign, layer in props like the OOV, and rediscover the human element of teaching through lightheartedness and play. Resources Mentioned * Upcoming Workshop with Priya Chisti — Training Athletes on the CoreAlign [https://momence.com/l/P0hWxMw9] * Priya’s Website: www.pilatespriya.com [http://www.pilatespriya.com/] * CoreAlign CoLab classes, workshops & community: http://corealigncolab.com/https://www.colabmovement.com/corealigncolab [https://www.colabmovement.com/corealigncolab] * CoLab Flex On-Demand Library: https://www.colabmovement.com/on-demand [https://www.colabmovement.com/on-demand] Guest Bio: Priya has been practicing Pilates since she was twelve years old and has over ten years of experience as a professional instructor. After facing multiple injuries during her career as a professional dancer and touring from 2007 to 2020, she found that Pilates was the most effective method for managing her hyper-mobility. She holds a BA in Dance Science and a BS in Kinesiology from California State University, Long Beach, and bridges the gap between clinical rehabilitation and high-level performance at Newport Physical Therapy. Her unique background allows her to empathize with patients recovering from surgery while simultaneously challenging elite athletes to reach their peak. Her specialties include: * Sports Performance: Optimizing results for clients by focusing on proper form and the "why" behind every movement to get the most out of every session. * Injury Prevention: Utilizing three-dimensional study of body movement to evaluate muscle activity and joint/fascial range of motion, helping to minimize injury risk. * Rehabilitative: A specialized focus on individual needs rather than conventional high-repetition exercise, to increase strength through stability, mobility, and elasticity. * Dance Specialization: Supporting artistic athletes through core stability, alignment, and creative movement patterns tailored to the demands of professional performance. Connect with Priya: 📸 @pilates.with.priya on Instagram Follow CoreAlign CoLab: 📸 @corealign.colab 📸 @arwenbrooke_pilates ▶️ @ArwenBrooke_CoreAlignCoLab on YouTube corealigncolab.com | colabmovement.com

Resourcing Ourselves: A Year-End Reflection & What’s Ahead

As the year comes to a close, Arwen steps out from behind the interviewer’s chair to offer a nourishing solo episode focused on reflection, resourcing, and intentional care, for yourself, your clients, and your business. In this episode, Arwen reflects on the first full year of CoLab Conversations, highlighting the themes that emerged across conversations with CoreAlign educators, innovators, and movement leaders. From compassion in teaching to accessibility, curiosity, and nervous system regulation, these shared insights reveal what truly supports sustainable movement practices. Arwen also shares practical ways to move through the busy holiday season with more ease, by slowing down, listening inward, and offering the same care to clients and teams that we hope to give ourselves. She closes by sharing what’s ahead for CoreAlign CoLab in 2026, including live pop-up classes, expanded education offerings, and an open invitation for more voices to join the community. This episode is an invitation to pause, reflect, and step forward into the new year feeling grounded, supported, and connected. CoLab’s 2026 Community Survey As CoreAlign CoLab moves into a new year, we’d love to hear from you. If you’ve been listening to CoLab Conversations, taking classes, or engaging with the community in any way, your perspective matters. This short year-end reflection survey helps shape what’s ahead for CoreAlign CoLab in 2026—from education offerings to classes, conversations, and community support. ✨ Share your reflections, requests, and ideas HERE [https://forms.gle/v5zQ7dB2cjeNXZHV9]. Your responses directly inform future programming and help ensure CoreAlign CoLab continues to support you, your clients, and your work in meaningful ways. Thank you for being part of this growing community. Resources Mentioned * CoreAlign CoLab classes, workshops & community: http://corealigncolab.com/https://www.colabmovement.com/corealigncolab [https://www.colabmovement.com/corealigncolab] * CoLab Flex On-Demand Library: https://www.colabmovement.com/on-demand [https://www.colabmovement.com/on-demand] About the Host Arwen Brooke is the owner of CoLab Movement Studio, founder of CoreAlign CoLab, and an educator for Balanced Body Pilates & CoreAlign. She is also a founding member of the Pilates Education Collective. Arwen has been teaching Pilates since 2006 and training teachers since 2011. She became a CoreAlign educator in 2018 and completed her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in 2020, blending Pilates, CoreAlign, and yoga into her work. She specializes in pain relief, functional movement, and building strength with ease. Known for her clear, supportive teaching style, Arwen helps students understand their bodies and create lasting change. Based in the Santa Cruz Mountains, California, Arwen offers in-person sessions in Ben Lomond and virtual classes worldwide. When she’s not teaching, she’s hiking, traveling, or spending time with her family. Follow CoreAlign CoLab: 📸 @corealign.colab 📸 @arwenbrooke_pilates ▶️ @ArwenBrooke_CoreAlignCoLab on YouTube 🌐 corealigncolab.com | colabmovement.com

Why He Does This Work: A Closer Conversation with Jonathan Hoffman

Jonathan Hoffman — the visionary mind behind the CoreAlign, returns to the podcast for a deeper, more personal conversation about the work he’s been building behind the scenes. After four years treating movement-based chronic pain in a public PT clinic, Jonathan has refined a simple, accessible system of Strategic Exercises that’s helping clients feel better faster, often in ways that surprise even seasoned instructors. In this episode, Jonathan shares why these exercises work, how they connect to his decades of study, and why Pilates and CoreAlign instructors are uniquely positioned to help people before pain becomes a lifelong struggle. If you loved his first appearance, you’ll want to hear where his work has evolved and how it might change the way you teach and move. In this conversation, you’ll hear how Jonathann * Developed his Strategic Exercises system while working with real chronic pain cases every day * Uses simple, pain-free movement to help clients shift out of pain faster than they expect * Blends science, mindfulness, and full-body movement in a way instructors can actually apply * Identifies patterns in pain that point to the “right” exercise at the right moment * Sees Pilates and CoreAlign instructors as key players in preventing unnecessary pain and interventions Resources Mentioned * CoreAlign CoLab: Strategic Exercises with CoreAlign https://momence.com/c/27912 [https://momence.com/c/27912] * Previous Episode with Jonathan Hoffman https://open.spotify.com/episode/20cIpiwDEtYSpcvsGV9oE9 [https://open.spotify.com/episode/20cIpiwDEtYSpcvsGV9oE9] * Balanced Body Blog: The Core: https://thecore.pilates.com/strategic-exercises-a-game-changer-for-pilates-corealign-instructors/ [https://thecore.pilates.com/strategic-exercises-a-game-changer-for-pilates-corealign-instructors/] * Free Webinar: Strategic Exercises & the CoreAlign: Jonathan Hoffman Shares His Latest Innovations https://youtu.be/QeCrHtdCo_E [https://youtu.be/QeCrHtdCo_E] * Learn more from Jonathan Hoffman through CoreAlign CoLab https://www.colabmovement.com/jhoffman [https://www.colabmovement.com/jhoffman] Guest Bio: Jonathan Hoffman is a globally recognized physical therapist, movement innovator, and educator. His personal educators include physical therapists Bob Elvey, Brian Mulligan and Max Zusman. Jonathan is best known as the creator of CoreAlign, MoonRun, and StarBarre—groundbreaking systems that have significantly influenced Pilates, physical therapy, and the broader fitness industry. His work helps people move more harmoniously and function more effectively, particularly in upright positions.  Drawing on decades of study, research, and hands-on experience treating tens of thousands of clients—including elite professional athletes—Jonathan’s approach is shaped by his keen observation of natural movement, active listening, and a unique integration of science and intuition. His mission is to bridge biomechanics and holistic movement to promote sustainable, pain-free, and functional living.  Follow CoreAlign CoLab: 📸 @corealign.colab 📸 @arwenbrooke_pilates ▶️ @ArwenBrooke_CoreAlignCoLab on YouTube 🌐 corealigncolab.com | colabmovement.com

Stepping Into Strength: Expanding CoreAlign Possibilities with Carrie Lamb

In this episode, Balanced Body Educator, physical therapist, and studio owner Carrie Lamb joins us to explore what it really means to build strength, on the CoreAlign and beyond. Carrie shares how her background in physical therapy and Pilates led her to discover the CoreAlign, why it completely changed her approach to rehab and movement, and how she continues to find creativity and curiosity after more than 25 years in the field. From her small studio in Golden, Colorado, Carrie blends clinical insight with a deep love of teaching. In this conversation, she opens up about how to guide students from “what they can’t do” to “what they can,” how to think outside the box while honoring the CoreAlign curriculum, and why collaboration and community are vital for long-term growth as teachers and movers. In this conversation, you’ll hear how Carrie: * Discovered the CoreAlign and why it reignited her curiosity as both a PT and educator * Blends Pilates and CoreAlign in her studio to support real-world movement and rehabilitation * Cultivates collaboration and communication in her teaching team * Uses resistance, curiosity, and “stepping into strength” to help clients and teachers expand beyond their comfort zones * Developed her upcoming CoLab workshop to inspire creative exploration and confident teaching We also talk about how Carrie’s “Stepping Into Strength” workshop invites teachers to rethink resistance, challenge their habits, and rediscover the joy of play and experimentation, both in their practice and their teaching. Resources Mentioned * Upcoming Workshop with Carrie Lamb — November 16th, 1:00 PM PST Stepping Into Strength on the CoreAlign [https://momence.com/l/K1hbdEQo] * Carrie’s Websites: Classes & Studio: movementconnectsus.com [https://movementconnectsus.com/] Education & Training: connectwithpilates.com [https://connectwithpilates.com/] Guest Bio:Carrie Lamb is a studio owner and board-certified orthopedic physical therapist with over 20 years in practice. Her Pilates training is eclectic with certifications from Polestar and Balanced Body. These two programs combined with her physical therapy background have transformed Carrie’s understanding of the integration of mind, body, and movement. Her specialties include: * Integrating Pilates and CoreAlign for rehabilitation and performance * Teaching movement through curiosity, collaboration, and clear communication * Strength progression and resistance exploration for functional results * Mentoring instructors to think creatively and problem-solve with confidence Connect with Carrie: 📸 @connectphysical on Instagram Follow CoreAlign CoLab: 📸 @corealign.colab 📸 @arwenbrooke_pilates ▶️ @ArwenBrooke_CoreAlignCoLab on YouTube corealigncolab.com | colabmovement.com