Create Balance. Restore Ease. Live with Awareness
My Injured Back Became My Greatest Teacher
In 2019, a back injury brought my life and practice to a stop. Nerve damage, a drop foot, and the pressure to choose surgery: all of it forced me to listen in a way I never had before
I chose to heal differently: slowly, through mindful movement, chiropractic care, breath, and patience. That experience reshaped everything I believed about the body. I learned how pain speaks before it shouts, and how real strength comes from presence, not force.
Starting again taught me this: balance, curiosity, and awareness can rebuild what technique alone cannot.
Finding My Way to the Breath
My breath became the guide I didn’t know I needed.
Through my studies with Robin Rothenberg, I discovered that breath is not just a technique: it’s the bridge between body and mind, effort and ease.
It showed me how stress hides in the nervous system, how regulation begins with one quiet inhale, and how healing truly starts when breath, movement, and awareness work together.
What I Offer Today
My approach brings three elements into harmony:
Mindful Movement : Pilates, yoga, and functional strength for balanced mobility.
Functional Breathing : calm, efficient breath that supports movement and daily life.
Inner Awareness: the ability to listen, regulate, and trust your body again.
This is not traditional fitness. It’s a practice of resilience, grounding, and connection: built from the inside out.
Your Path Back to Yourself Begins Here
Healing isn’t a finish line. It’s a relationship — a steady, ongoing dialogue between you and your body. A place where listening matters more than pushing, and where small, intentional shifts create the ease you’ve been missing.
If you’re here because something feels out of rhythm…
if you’ve worked hard, tried everything, and still sense there’s another layer you haven’t reached…
or if you simply want to move and breathe without tension leading the way — this is where your next chapter begins.
This work is gentle but transformative.
It teaches you how to meet your body as it is, not as it “should” be.
It reconnects breath with movement, attention with sensation, effort with ease.
And little by little, it brings you back to a place of balance that feels like home.
Wherever you are today — in pain, in transition, in curiosity, or simply in search of steadiness — we begin there. Together, we rebuild trust, clarity, and the kind of resilience that lasts.
Your body has been asking for a different conversation.
Let’s start it.
→ Book a session | Explore breathwork | Join a retreat
MY OFFERINGS
1:1 Private Online Training
1:1 Private Online Training
Classical Pilates + Alignment-Driven Yoga
Private Zoom sessions tailored to your body, history, and goals.
I integrate classical Pilates, Iyengar-inspired alignment, functional breathing, and strength training to correct imbalances, rebuild stability, and improve movement efficiency.
Sessions may incorporate resistance bands, weights, blocks
Classical Pilates + Alignment-Driven Yoga
Private Zoom sessions tailored to your body, history, and goals.
I integrate classical Pilates, Iyengar-inspired alignment, functional breathing, and strength training to correct imbalances, rebuild stability, and improve movement efficiency.
Sessions may incorporate resistance bands, weights, blocks, TRX, balance tools, chairs, balls, and other supportive equipment.
This is structured, results-oriented training designed to help you move with strength and control.
Investment
Single Session:
$130
10-Session Package:
$115 per session ($1150 total)
(Weekly time slot required for package clients)
In-Person Private Pilates
1:1 Private Online Training
Upper East Side Studio | New York City Seasonal availability.
Train on fully equipped classical Pilates apparatus to assess mobility, alignment, and strength with precision. Ideal for deeper assessment and technical refinement.
New clients must commit to ongoing virtual sessions.
Investment
Single In-Person Session: $160
(Available seasonally)
New Student Foundations
5- Session Intro Package (Online)
Designed for new students who want clarity, confidence, and strong technical fundamentals.
In this series, you will learn:
• Functional breathing mechanics
• Proper muscular engagement
• How to coordinate breath with movement
• Alignment principles you can apply independently
You’ll also receive at least two
5- Session Intro Package (Online)
Designed for new students who want clarity, confidence, and strong technical fundamentals.
In this series, you will learn:
• Functional breathing mechanics
• Proper muscular engagement
• How to coordinate breath with movement
• Alignment principles you can apply independently
You’ll also receive at least two personalized recordings to support your home practice.
Investment
5-Session Intro Package: $500
(New students only)
Private Group Workshops
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
By Request | Up to 10 Participants
Ideal for friends, wellness groups, teams, or retreat gatherings.
Happy Back Workshop 3 Hours | $600 per group (up to 10 participants)
An educational and practical workshop designed to help you understand and manage lower back discomfort with intelligence.
You will learn:
• Common lower back conditions and
By Request | Up to 10 Participants
Ideal for friends, wellness groups, teams, or retreat gatherings.
Happy Back Workshop 3 Hours | $600 per group (up to 10 participants)
An educational and practical workshop designed to help you understand and manage lower back discomfort with intelligence.
You will learn:
• Common lower back conditions and how they present
• Why certain yoga and Pilates movements help — and why others aggravate
• Movement patterns and habits to reconsider
• How to modify safely and effectively
• A strengthening sequence you can repeat with confidence
You leave with a clear strategy — not guesswork.
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
3 Hours | $600 per group (up to 10 participants)
A focused workshop on functional breathing and nervous system regulation.
You will learn to:
• Identify dysfunctional breathing patterns
• Practice abdominal-diaphragmatic breathing
• Understand how breath influences stress, digestion, sleep, and mood
• Apply practical breath techniques in d
3 Hours | $600 per group (up to 10 participants)
A focused workshop on functional breathing and nervous system regulation.
You will learn to:
• Identify dysfunctional breathing patterns
• Practice abdominal-diaphragmatic breathing
• Understand how breath influences stress, digestion, sleep, and mood
• Apply practical breath techniques in daily life
This is breathwork grounded in physiology — immediately usable and measurable.
Private Mexico Retreats
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
Breath & Nervous System Intensive
Quintana Roo Coast | Private Groups (4 -10)
Regulate. Reconnect. Remember.
I host intimate, private retreats designed exclusively for your group of friends or family.
These immersive experiences integrate:
• Movement and breath training
• Nervous system education
• Meditation and sound integration
• Cultural experiences including temazcal an
Quintana Roo Coast | Private Groups (4 -10)
Regulate. Reconnect. Remember.
I host intimate, private retreats designed exclusively for your group of friends or family.
These immersive experiences integrate:
• Movement and breath training
• Nervous system education
• Meditation and sound integration
• Cultural experiences including temazcal and cacao ceremony
• Nature immersion and structured integration
You’ll leave with practical tools to regulate stress, restore balance, and move through life with greater clarity and resilience.
Private group pricing available upon inquiry.
Testimonials
Tondra Lynford
"I have had a number of Pilates instructors, and Monika is by far the best. Her knowledge and experience are evident in her ability to identify a client's unique body issues and thoughtfully move forward in addressing them. She is vigilant as she guides her client to correctly "re-train" poor or maladaptive movements."
CLICK BELOW TO FOR MORE CLIENT TESTIMONIALS