Leslie Parker is the director of the Mindful Movement Centre, Toronto. A former professional ballet dancer, she has been teaching yoga, Pilates, and body conditioning for more than a decade. She uses her extensive knowledge of different movement forms to teach fitness, increase flexibility, and treat injury.

Throughout her career with leading ballet companies in the United States and Europe she drew on Pilates to enhance her dance practice and to rehabilitate serious injuries. She subsequently furthered her training as a Pilates teacher at the Stott International Certification Center in Toronto.

The experience of treating her own injuries inspired Leslie to specialise in injury rehabilitation. She brings real expertise and compassion to this work and collaborates with doctors, physiotherapists, athletic therapists, and osteopaths to develop healing programs. Her long career in bodywork has also given her invaluable skills in assessing people's bodies.

Leslie believes the breathwork, relaxation, and infinite kindness contained in yogic teachings complement her Pilates and bodywork skills. She was introduced to yoga at the Downward Dog Yoga Centre in Toronto in 2001 and since then has had the opportunity to study with leading teachers such as Shiva Rea, Maty Ezraty, David Swenson, Sharon Gannon, David Life, Diane Bruni, and Danny Paradise. Leslie teaches restorative, vinyasa (flow), and Ashtanga yoga.

In 2004 she founded Mindful Movement in London, England, a company that specialised in individual Pilates and Yoga programs. Her clientele (both male and female) included people from a variety of backgrounds and age groups. Athletes, executives, and artists came to Leslie to maintain fitness, to reshape their bodies, to rehabilitate injuries, and to treat chronic pain and stress.

Leslie's love of movement also led her to the practice of Budokon, which she studied under Sensei Jamal Pender and Kancho Cameron Shayne. She has since become a certified Budokon instructor and has recently earned red belt. She is currently the only person certified to teach Budokon living in Ontario. 

Leslie looks forward to welcoming you to the Mindful Movement Centre, where she hopes you will enjoy a friendly and nurturing atmosphere focused on helping you reach optimal levels of fitness and flexibility.

Amy Brown is the owner of Pilates for Life and has been teaching since 2000. She provides instruction in mat and machine-based Pilates (including certification), as well as in prenatal Pilates and Pilates for mommies and babies. 

Amy has appeared in numerous print and online articles, as well as on Citytv’s Breakfast Television, City Pulse’s Perfect Fit, and Rogers TV’s Toronto Living. She is also featured in seventeen instructional DVDs.

After an early career in modeling, a B.A. in psychology, and a degree in communications, Amy enjoyed four years in public relations at Alliance Atlantis Broadcasting before eventually opening Pilates for Life.

Amy feels very fortunate to work with an amazing team of instructors and clients at Pilates for Life and Mindful Movement Centre. It's a calming oasis in beautiful Yorkville, filled with positive energy. Guests feel taller, healthier and happier after every class.

Amy is proud to be a Lululemon ambassador.

Originally from Russia, Anastassia Adani teaches yoga following the Iyengar tradition. After completing a BA in Linguistics at the Moscow State University, she worked in various professions until life's unpredictable path led her to yoga. Seeking stability and a deeper sense of self , Anastassia immediately connected with the clarity and precision of an Iyengar practice. This, combined with a persistent desire to educate, led her to the YCT yoga teacher training programme.

Anastassia's classes are dynamic and nurturing. Keeping in touch with the principles of yoga, she empowers her students, providing clear and detailed instruction with a focus on the body's alignment in each posture. As her journey as a yoga teacher evolves, Anastassia hopes her students find a new sense of clarity, vitality and self reliance through her classes and their own personal practice.

"I have found health, balance and more importantly MYSELF through my practice and wish the same to everybody."

Tracey Currie is a certified yoga teacher who has led creative and inspiring vinyasa flow classes in Toronto for many years now. She is also a trained and experienced prenatal yoga teacher having initiated and taught the very successful prenatal and post natal program of classes at Breathe Yoga Studio in Toronto’s west end. The body can heal itself and with this strong belief, Tracey began creating and teaching a unique restorative yoga class that blends restorative poses with the ancient eastern modality of Thai Yoga Massage. This fusion has proven very popular with her students and she shares this special class at studios and through workshops in the city.

In all her classes, Tracey encourages each participant to work at a level and pace that reflects their trueness each time they arrive at the mat. She brings to her work a keen awareness of the body, its alignment and the breath-body connection which has been developed through many years of training in figure skating then later in theatre and various movement classes. A part of the inaugural teacher training at the Yoga Space under the tutelage of Kathryn Beet, Tracey went on to study with many different teachers over the years. She is very thankful for the knowledge and metta her many teachers and students have imparted and looks forward to being blessed and enriched by many more along her journey.

Alongside her yoga teaching endeavours, Tracey has also worked as a Certified Practitioner of Thai Yoga Massage over the past seven years. As well, she t eaches certification level courses and Prenatal Thai Yoga Massage for the internationally acclaimed Lotus Palm School in both Montreal and Toronto areas.

Mayana Clugston originally hails from Cape Breton Island and has been helping people for over 9 years free up restrictions and move forward with ease and vitality . The focus of her pilates and wellness practice is to support and empower others on their journey to health, and happiness. Mayana has a diverse background in movement, involved for many years in competitive athletics, dance training and performance, as well as a broad rehab resume. For High School, she attended Claude Watson School of the Arts with a major in visual arts and took a variety of classes in dance, drama and music. With an interest in the mind body connection, Mayana studied Kinesiology and Psychology at the University of New Brunswick, receiving awards as a student athletic therapist trainer as well as a varsity cross-country runner. After moving back to Toronto, she became a Certified Personal Trainer as well as a fully certified Movement for Health Pilates Instructor through Janet Lemon. Mayana's pilates classes are fun and challenging, moving towards the classical repertoire with a keen eye for correct form, as well as individual needs and goals. Mayana finds joy in helping others connect to their core, feeling strength and mindfulness as a metaphor for a higher quality of life on all levels. Mayana is also a skilled and experienced wellness practitioner. She has completed advanced training in Craniosacral Therapy with Russell Mater, as well as her Master level in Traditional Usui Reiki. Mayana has many hobbies including singing/songwriting, painting, meditating, reading, running, equestrian, animals/nature, outdoor adventures, yoga, etc. 

Danielle comes to Pilates with over 15 years of classical ballet training solidly behind her. Having first discovered Pilates as an invaluable tool for improving her dance technique, she moved on to train as an instructor at both Body Harmonics and STOTT Pilates.

Danielle brings her natural ability for imagery to class to make movements come alive for participants and awaken their body awareness. Both her mat and reformer classes flow – not unlike a dance – and sparkle with inventive choreography that plays with but always stay true to the basic foundations of Pilates.

With humor and care, she encourages participants forward with the goal of progress, not perfection. A firm believer that Pilates can compliment every lifestyle and fitness level, she teaches with the intent of helping people find a new ease in and utilize the most valuable tool they own: their bodies.

Jill has been teaching Pilates group and private classes since her certification in 2006, and she has loved every moment of it. Her practice developed from a curiosity about Pilates and the discovery of its benefits from her own participation in classes during the past 9 years. She felt it naturally completed the Movement for Health Instructor Training Program, and she is certified to teach mat, reformer, Cadillac, and Wunda Chair. Jill has an enthusiastic and playful approach to teaching, all the while providing a challenging workout for the entire body.

Natalya is an instructor both passionate and sought-after. She infuses her teaching with a depth of knowledge gleaned from years of classical ballet training, Stott Pilates certification since 2002, intensive studies of kinesiology at York University, and years of working with students from a range of backgrounds. Natalya has been fascinated with the human body and with movement since she can remember, and she derives great satisfaction from teaching others the language of the body. Natalya has taught athletes with sport-specific goals and has helped others moderate special conditions like fibromyalgia or hip replacements. She successfully teaches clients how to safely cope with injuries and to accelerate their healing processes. Natalya has worked with many mothers in both pre- and post-natal classes, not to mention with those who simply want to feel fit, healthy, and happy. Her inquisitive nature and her enthusiasm for health inspire and invigorate.

Natalya has had the great fortune of studying with many gifted teachers who have profoundly affected her mind, body and soul. She has completed numerous teacher trainings courses in both Pilates and yoga that have exposed her to the wisdom of different lineages and teaching styles.

Lourdes is a seasoned professional ballet dancer with more than 25 years of experience. She moved to Canada in 1997 and then began teaching ballet in Toronto. After obtaining her certification in the Stott Pilates Method in 2000, she started giving private and group classes at several prominent private clubs, fitness clubs, and colleges throughout Toronto, including at From the Center with Melissa Bierstock.

Her clients include professional skaters, ballet dancers, other athletes, and people suffering from physical trauma. This range has helped her develop a keen eye for corrections and a unique technique to help many improve their physical fitness and general well-being.

Kimiko’s fitness background is rooted in dance. Her extensive training in classical ballet and lyrical movement created a deep-rooted passion for this physically demanding art form. Her dedication soon earned her the opportunity to train with instructors such as Stelio Calagian and Vanessa Harwood and inspired her to pursue her dream of becoming a professional dancer. Unfortunately, injuries caused major setbacks and ultimately forced Kimiko out of her chosen career.

Without dance in her life, Kimiko was unsure how to stay strong and active. Then she found Pilates. Not only did it help her maintain strength, it also offered great rehabilitation benefits. Eager to learn more about how Pilates works for the body, she went on to train at Body Harmonics and at Stott. 

Teaching has always come naturally to Kimiko.  She has a keen sense of what people are looking for and of what keeps them motivated. Her patience and her emphasis on working at one’s own pace help them feel at ease. This newfound sense of confidence then encourages her clients to challenge themselves.

When she is not using pilates to help Mindful Movement's clients reach their goals, Kimiko directs her own fitness and strength boutique, 82 Resons, or dancers at Creswell Dance Academy.

“Art is what you can get away with.” – Andy Warhol

Rachael feels the same way about yoga. She dedicated herself to the practice of yoga at a time when she had just broken her creative bone. An artist ever since she was a kid, Rachael thus felt overjoyed to find another creative activity. She figured that if she could get away with teaching yoga as a way of sharing her yoga, her creative bone would heal in no time. Rachael's plan worked, and she is currently enrolled at OCAD University, studying material art and design with a minor in wearable technology. 

Rachael's artistic roots translate into her teaching on the mat. She guides very open and accessible classes in which she encourages her students to make their practice their own. "Practicing yoga, like making art, is about being present. Everyone can do it. It's going to look different depending on the student. But whatever it looks like, so long as you are present, you are doing yoga. And that's good."

Rachael is also studying Thai Yoga Massage at the Still Light Centre in Toronto. After graduating from University, she intends to get away with living somewhere tropical and opening a hot yoga/Thai yoga massage/art studio of her own. 

Having taught Pilates for eight years, Suzy takes a “live-it,” not just “teach-it” approach to everything she does. Movement and holism have been major themes throughout her life. As a Stott-certified instructor and fourth-year student of the Gestalt Institute of Toronto, her passion for teaching and knowledge has led her to the healing arts.

Her commitment to maintaining and updating her skills as an instructor have led Suzy to workshops such as muscle re-patterning with Karen Carlson, cranio-sacral therapy, Ashtanga yoga, and “Activating the Pelvic Floor.” In her spare time Suzy cycles, rock-climbs, reads, writes, and works on creating Gestalt workshops. She also tries to discover new and exciting ways to challenge her clients.

Suzy believes that Pilates complements every other form of exercise, as well as creating ease in everyday movement, a sense of confidence in the body, and the ability to physically express one's being.  

Born and raised in New York City, the lifelong athlete, fitness enthusiast, and international competitor Jamal Pender began martial arts training at age six as a member of the Jackie Robinson YMCA in Harlem, New York, under Shihan Lamar Thorton (the instructor of the actor Wesley Snipes). Jamal received his first black belt in Shotokan karate at age ten under Mr. Thorton.

 Jamal's passion for maintaining a healthy body and mind grew as he discovered weight training as a teenager and successfully participated in varsity football and wrestling. He continued his martial arts education while serving in the U.S. Navy and began training with Kwan Jang Nim David Sgro in 1994 in the art of Tang Soo Do, where he has attained the rank of Sa Bom Nim (master instructor).

In 2005, after relocating to Montreal, Jamal discovered the art of Budokon developed by Cameron Shayne and became the first Budokon instructor in Ontario. He has since moved back to the United States and now continues to teach and spread knowledge of Budokon in Washington, D.C. Jamal has shared his learning since 1994 and has initiated various martial arts and fitness programs for adults and children in Canada and the United States.

We are pleased to have Jamal Pender as a guest teacher at the Mindful Movement Centre.