A dedicated Pilates instructor and small-business owner, Gia Marakas works privately with clients to minimize pain from past injuries, achieve fitness goals, and discover an ultimate balance. By employing Pilates's key principles, these sessions will condition your body, sharpen your mind, and elevate your spirit.
As Joseph Pilates so aptly put it, through the Pilates Method of Body Conditioning, [the] unique trinity of a balanced body, mind, and spirit can ever be attained. Self confidence follows. Pilates is a body-conditioning method built on strengthening and stretching. Its flowing, varied series of exercises, done on a mat or Pilates apparatus, focus on the body's powerhouse, which include the abdominals and back.
As Joseph Pilates so aptly put it, through the Pilates Method of Body Conditioning, [the] unique trinity of a balanced body, mind, and spirit can ever be attained. Self confidence follows. Pilates is a body-conditioning method built on strengthening and stretching. Its flowing, varied series of exercises, done on a mat or Pilates apparatus, focus on the body's powerhouse, which include the abdominals and back.
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Born and raised in Los Angeles, Gia Marakas is a classically trained, certified Pilates instructor. At four years old, Gia began her path of movement with ballet, modern dance, and jazz (and her parents' much-played eight-track of "The Hustle"). While continuing her study of dance, Gia earned a BA from Loyola Marymount University, graduating Magna Cum Laude.
Joseph Pilates, a boxer and gymnast, originally devised the fitness method as a series of twenty-two mat exercises that build abdominal strength and body control. He created the exercises at an internment camp during World War I, helping sick prisoners gain strength and vitality. Early on, Pilates emphasized the importance of the mind in "controlling" muscles; engaging the brain has always been central to his method.
All too often I meet people who claim that Pilates is too difficult for them, or isn't for their body type. He created the exercises for the out-of-shape, the elderly, the infirm, for the smokers among us. It's this emphasis on simply being alive and feeling good about it - revering our bodies, no matter what shape or form they may take, as our sole vehicles on earth - that I believe is key to the Pilates method.
Reviews (2)
M. M.
Apr 13, 2013
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Gia is the best. I've been working with her for nearly two years and there's no question that she knows her Pilates. I do duets with different friends and she can customize the workout to suit the bodies and needs of both me and my buddy. I always leave feeling awesome -- I might have a case of jelly-legs walking to the car, but that's how I know the lessons are working. And, of course, I never have backaches as long as I'm consistent with the lessons. The best part: she's HILARIOUS, honest, and has an awesome attitude on life.
Tracey N.
Jan 24, 2010
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Gia has been my pilates instructor for almost 3 years and it has been an incredibly rewarding training experience. She consistently helps me reach my goals, be it to focus on a specific area or help me train for my other athletic endeavors. I'm a runner and currently training for my third marathon, and since working with Gia I've seen my running times improve through her focus on my core and leg strength and flexibility.
On top of her expertise as a trainer Gia is an incredibly compassionate person who always greets you with a smile, no matter how early in the morning it might be.
On top of her expertise as a trainer Gia is an incredibly compassionate person who always greets you with a smile, no matter how early in the morning it might be.
