Smart solutions to niggling issues
About Me
I was doing everything right and still getting hurt.
I was a competitive dancer, an elite athlete, and a lifelong mover but despite all the training, stretching, therapy, and rehab, my body kept breaking down.
Just weeks before a national salsa competition, I got injured and had to pull out. That was my turning point.
The problem wasn't that I wasn't trying hard enough or doing what works for most people. The problem was that nobody had explained why my body kept returning to the same patterns.
That experience eventually led me to the work I do today.
And, if you’re curious, I love to knit, I’m learning Scottish Gaelic, and I’m on a personal mission to find the best London Fog latte in the city.
Why Choose Flow Movement Therapy?
My clients value how I show up for them.
My clients often tell me that this is the first time someone has taken the time to connect all the pieces together.
I am extremely detailed in my assessments, exercise choices and cuing. I go reaaaaalllllyyy slowly in your exercises, to make sure you are feeling what I want you to feel.
I take time to listen, remember details about you and devote my undivided attention to you. I purposefully work shorter days so that I have the energy to give you my full attention.
I am deeply invested in getting results for you. I show up prepared with a plan to make sure our time spent together is as productive as possible.
I take the time to explain any details that I think are important. I know you want to understand your body better. I want you to understand what is going on. Part of your between-session support includes information to help you understand and explain to other people in your life.
You have access to me between your appointments. Got a question about how to set an exercise up? Not sure if you are doing it right? Need help understand what your pattern is? You have my support every day. No more waiting a week to update me or ask for clarification.
Between your visits is when the change takes place. I support you to make adjustments to your own environment and avoid your patterns with every moment of your week. This is how change happens quickly and permanently.
Who I work best with
My clients are usually:
active people who want to stay active into their senior years
people who have already seen good practitioners
people who have tried physiotherapy, chiropractic, Pilates, osteopathy, massage or orthotics
people who feel like they're doing all the right things but still aren't getting the result they're looking for
This work may be a good fit if:
You've tried several approaches and still feel stuck
Your foot, ankle, knee, hip, back or neck pain keeps returning
You feel uneven when you walk or play a sport
One side of your body feels different than the other
Your orthotics help but only for so long
You're active and want to stay active
You're willing to practice exercises consistently between visits
My approach
Your brain and body have 'factory settings'; the way you moved before life happened to you. Pushing the reset button requires knowing what to push. Both of my methods involve putting your body into positions and movements it's forgotten. By reintroducing these patterns I rely on a concept called 'neuroplasticity' which is the brain's ability to learn new things. Everything comes back to gait, and both of my methods have gait as their foundational concept.
Postural Restoration Institute (PRI)
"The human body is not symmetrical. The neurological, respiratory, circulatory, muscular and vision systems are not the same on the left side of the body as they are on the right, and vice versa. They have different responsibilities, function, position and demands on them. This system asymmetry is a good thing and an amazing design. The human body is balanced through the integration of system imbalances." (PRI website)
These imbalances can be compounded by our modern lifestyle, creating movement dysfunction and pain. Breathing gets thrown off further by your imbalances and so breathing becomes the key to rebalancing you. Using methods from the PRI courses, I can identify and undo the imbalances causing problems in your body and give you the tools to correct them.
I am a PRI certified provider which means I have dedicated 4 years of study and mentorship, taken the PRI exams and maintained my credentialing requirements.
Anatomy in Motion (AiM)
Anatomy in Motion will "determine exactly what movements you are missing or struggling to access, and regardless of your symptoms, will use Corrective Movements to re-educate the body in it’s movements and allow the body to reorganise itself and take the pressure of the system that is causing pain. We get the body to do the healing through movement." (AiM website)
How do I apply that in your visits? The body is one big system and reintroducing movements you had no idea you weren't doing can allow everything to work as it intended. Sometimes we look in places you'd never think to look, like your ankle sprain as a kid, the way you put pressure into your feet, or whether your ribs and pelvis can move in opposition.
Strength and Conditioning Programs
I also offer progressive strength & conditioning coaching but only for clients who’ve completed the restoration process. Smart programs assigned based on balancing out your body’s default compensations. If that’s where you’re heading, we’ll talk when the time is right.
Qualifications
Education
Masters of Science and Doctorate in Animal Behaviour - Simon Fraser University
Canada’s National Ballet School - Professional Program Graduate
Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with the National Strength and Conditioning Association
Certified Postural Restoration Institute provider
Achievements
30+ years of dancing at elite level, (ballet, salsa, latin hustle)
Canadian and World Amateur Salsa and Latin Hustle Champion
Relevant Training
Anatomy in Motion - practitioner with advanced education
Postural Restoration Institute - Postural Respiration (attended twice)
Postural Restoration Institute - Myokinematic Restoration (attended twice)
Postural Restoration Institute - Cervical Revolution (attended twice)
Postural Restoration Institute - Pelvis Restoration
Postural Restoration Institute - Impingement and Instability
Buteyko clinic - Breathing for Asthma and Respiratory Conditions
Julie Wiebe- Piston Science course
Experience
Movement restoration specialist, personal trainer and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (over 7 years)
Physiotherapy Assistant (2.5 years)
Salsa Instructor for school with dozens of national and world champions (2 years)