Zest And Pleasure

Sonjé Mayo worked with Joe Pilates as a young dancer, shortly after certifying as a physical therapist at the University of Cape Town. Her understanding of the body in motion and her ability to speak German with Joe Pilates gave her unique insights into his Contrology system. In this episode, Sonjé shares her impressions of Joe Pilates and his method.

About Sonjé

Sonjé Mayo was born in South Africa in 1945. She began classical ballet at age 4.

After certifying as a physical therapist at the University of Cape Town, her career as a ballerina took her to London, England, and then to the USA where she studied jazz dance initially with Luigi and then contemporary dance at the Martha Graham School in NYC.

It was Martha Graham who persuaded Sonjé to start ‘Contrology’ with Joseph Pilates. “I had questions and Joe had the answers to help me be the best ballerina I could be.”

Joe’s inspiring Pilates sessions during 1965, 1966 and 1967 proved to have a profound influence on Sonje’s future.

During the four years in NYC, Sonjé gained experience in a variety of dance styles on many TV shows, commercials and in theatre productions. Although ballet was always her first love, Sonjé set her sights on becoming a contemporary dancer mainly because of the interesting and challenging choreography that was emerging in the 60’s and 70’s. She danced with the Alvin Ailey Dance Company and this experience in particular inspired her to return to South Africa and impart her knowledge.

On her return to South Africa in 1972, Sonjé started her quest to pioneer modern dance in her country. She set her sights on training the talented indigenous population, and Joe’s Mat workout was the introduction to every dance class. She formed the first multi-racial modern dance company in the history of South Africa, JAZZART, which is still in existence in Cape Town.

She has won many choreographic awards in South Africa, including the coveted Vita Award twice. Her international awards include the Prix de Lausanne in Switzerland, the Isola de Capri in Italy and the Concours de Dance in Paris, France.

Sonjé represented South Africa at many international dance festivals worldwide, including the International Dance Festival in Stuttgart , Germany, and the Commonwealth Arts Festival in Victoria Island, Canada. Her unique style of blending contemporary dance with African dynamics, became her trademark. During the 70’s and 80’s Sonjé’s protest choreography brought the plight of Apartheid to the audiences in and out of South Africa.

Amongst her many achievements in SA, she introduced contemporary dance at the Johannesburg Art School, the most prominent school for the performing arts. She also pioneered the first ever Diploma Course in Dance at the Pretoria Technikon.

Sonjé returned to the USA in 1995 and settled in Nashville. She taught and choreographed for the Tennessee Dance Theatre and the Nashville Ballet company and started her own dance company, Évolution Dance. Her collaboration with top musicians in ‘Music City’ was met with great acclaim.

In 2002 Sonjé retired from the dance world and returned to Pilates. Her first few lessons were with Romana Kryzanowska who remembered Sonje “as the gal who spoke German to Joe.” Sonje obtained the Mat certification with Bob Liekens of Power Pilates in NYC in 2003. In 2004 she commenced her equipment certification with Romana’s protege, Clare Dunphy, who at that time was the Master Trainer and creator of Peak Pilates. In October 2007 she obtained the Peak Pilates Peak Comprehensive Certification.

Sonjé has become known for her rehabilitative expertise as a Pilates instructor. Dancers and athletes are recommended to her by the medical fraternity and other Pilates teachers.

Sonjé’s new interest is the Schroth method for treating Scoliosis. As a PT she has been certified in the Schroth Best Practice Method by Dr Marc Moramarco and Dr Weiss from Gensingen, Germany, who is the grandson of Katharina Schroth, the pioneer of the famous Schroth method.

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Ana V. Fridman (https://www.instagram.com/_vilates/), owner of Puerto Rico’s first classical Pilates studio (https://www.pilatespr.com/), tells us how she came to understand what Joseph Pilates meant when he said, “Contrology is the complete coordination of mind, body and spirit.”

She talks about lineage, leveling up, studio ownership, self-practice, and so much more, and I know many of our fellow Contrology lovers will absolutely relate to this conversation!

She found Pilates as a young dancer in Pilates elder Lolita San Miguel’s ballet company.

When she left the company, she became certified as a second-generation Pilates teacher with Lolita’s Legacy.

Her love of Pilates and curiosity to go deeper into the method took her to studios around the world, where she discovered "classical Pilates" and "contrology," and studied under both Romana Kryzanowska and Jay Grimes lineage programs.

As a former professional dancer, she brings fluidity, structure, and deep body awareness to her teaching. When she transitioned from performance to Pilates, she found a method that not only sustained her body, but enriched her life. Today, Ana Victoria teaches with clarity, care, and conviction, helping clients connect with their strength and vitality at every age.

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Michael Johnson discusses the Pilates eye chart, and how his own recovery from a head injury helped him understand the fundamental role the eyes play in motor control, inspiring his signature workshop series, MatFit Lab.

Michael has been a Pilates student for more than 40 years and has worked with renowned Pilates teachers Eve Gentry, Romana Kryzanowska, Jay Grimes, Kim Lee, Lolita San Miguel, and more. He was certified to teach by both Romana Kryzanowska and Kim Lee.

He also has certifications in yoga and personal training, with additional training in kinesiology, mobility, and calisthenics.

For more information about Michael and his programs, visit.

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Lori Coleman-Brown, MPT, is an internationally-renowned teacher trainer and Pilates educator with 30+ years experience.

A dancer from childhood, Lori pursued and earned a BFA in Dance from SUNY Purchase. She went on to earn a Master’s degree in Physical Therapy from Temple University.

Her decades of experience include providing physical therapy for professional dance companies and backstage on Broadway shows in New York and Seattle, staff physical therapy positions and partnership in a successful PT clinic.

Lori teaches Pilates, and she trains and mentors Pilates instructors.

She produces Atlas Pilates educational programs including undergraduate, graduate and continuing education.

In the early 1980’s Lori was sent by a dance instructor to Joseph Pilates protégeé Romana Kryzanowska in order to deal with a knee injury.

The knee healed completely, and Lori became captivated by The Pilates Method.

By 1986 Lori was teaching Pilates, and in 1999 was honored when Romana asked her to be a Pilates Teacher Trainer.

A featured instructor on Pilatesology, Lori also tours and teaches Pilates and Anatomy in studios of all sizes in Austria, Australia, Canada, England, France, the Netherlands, Japan, Singapore, and across the United States.

In 1993, Lori moved to the Pacific Northwest to co-found The Pilates Studio of Seattle (now known as Pilates Seattle International) where she served as a Director for 16 years and successfully trained more than a hundred new Pilates instructors.

Lori ultimately reached Master Teacher Trainer status (Level II) in the Romana’s Pilates organization.

Lori stepped away from studio ownership in order to focus on her teaching and is now happily working at Atlas Pilates in Seattle.

She learns something new every day while helping her clients get stronger, more flexible and happier by using the Pilates Method.

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Zoe Channon (https://www.instagram.com/zoe.channon/) is a Pilates Teacher based in Sevenoaks, Kent, outside of London.

Her Pilates teaching path was very similar to that of host Tracy Belcher.

Both fell in love with Pilates through contemporary Pilates programs and slowly found their way to classical Pilates.

In this episode, they talk about expectations versus reality, firsthand experiences, and their appreciation for their Pilates roots!

They cover the real differences in methodologies, equipment, and navigating heated social media environments as a Pilates lover and teacher.

This episode is recommended for anyone out there considering Pilates teacher training and trying to understand the differences between classical and contemporary Pilates.

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Chris Robinson is a two-time Muay Thai Kickboxing Champion and international fitness expert with disciplines in Bulgarian Bags, sprinting, and functional traditional training.

Chris was a collegiate track and field athlete at San Diego State University, where he earned a degree in kinesiology, and he has since lived every day in constant pursuit of peak performance.

Chris was inspired and certified by Pilates legend Romana Kryzanowska, whom he directly apprenticed with more than 20 years ago.

He continued his Pilates education for over 8 1/2 years with master instructor Jay Grimes, who was also a student of Joseph Pilates.

His love for fitness and top-level professional experience as a purist in The Pilates Method has garnered clients of all levels, including professional athletes, private clients, teachers, apprentices, and even Oprah Winfrey, for whom he served as personal core coach.

Find Chris at https://www.pilatesandsports.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/pilatesandsports_cr/

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Brooke Siler talksPilates precision, permission, and an elegant sufficiency.

Brooke, author of The Pilates Body, shares her memories of working alongside students of Joe Pilates before joining the Pilates teacher training program of Romana Kryzanowska.

She reflects on the differences between the classical Pilates she learned from Romana Kryzanowska and Joe Pilates' Contrology system.

If you enjoy this conversation, please subscribe/follow and leave us a rating!

John Howard Steel shares his memories of working with Joe Pilates in the original Pilates studio.

Steel is the author of Caged Lion, his memoir, which untangles Joe Pilates’ life story and the perilous journey of his exercise program known as Pilates.

In this conversation with Tracy Belcher, John shares what it was like to work with Joe Pilates and reflects on the studio's transition after Joe's death.

He also recalls working with Romana Kryzanowska, a student of Pilates who eventually took over the program.

Welcome to the Zest And Pleasure™ Pilates Podcast, hosted by Tracy Belcher and produced by Pilatay®.

This intro episode provides background on the host, the concept for Zest And Pleasure, and what you can expect.

Zest And Pleasure is Pilates podcast exploring the original Pilates method, its history, its future, and everything in between.

The Zest and Pleasure™ podcast is hosted by Tracy Belcher, owner of the Pilates blog and brand, Pilatay®.

Pilates newsmakers, historians, authors, and thought leaders join Tracy for casual conversations about the original Pilates method.

The title, Zest and Pleasure, comes from a quote by Joseph Pilates:

“Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness. Our interpretation of physical fitness is the attainment and maintenance of a uniformly developed body with a sound mind fully capable of naturally, easily, and satisfactorily performing our many and varied daily tasks with spontaneous zest and pleasure.”

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