"I think self-acceptance and self-compassion... it's gonna keep changing and if you hear the loud stuff saying, I can't do that anymore - no." - Amy Havens
In this episode, Nic is joined by Amy Havens, a veteran Pilates educator, mentor, and movement teacher based in Santa Barbara with over 30 years of experience in the industry. Amy has trained across multiple lineages - including Fletcher, BASI, Kathy Grant, and Madeleine Black - and is widely respected as one of the most thoughtful voices in Pilates education today.
They explore what it really takes to become a truly great Pilates teacher - from the qualities that no training manual can teach, like patience and compassion, to the art of learning to see and respond to the bodies in front of you. Amy shares her rich origin story, from discovering Pilates as a dance student in 1989 to becoming injured, finding healing through the work, and eventually committing to teaching as a lifelong calling.
They also dig into the current state of the Pilates industry - the growing divide between fitness Pilates and the more healing-oriented tradition, the case for prerequisites before teacher training, and why mastering the fundamentals will always matter more than creative programming. Amy makes a compelling case for mentorship as the missing piece for so many new teachers, and shares what that relationship can look like when it's done well.
Timestamps
00:00 Intro to Amy Havens
00:14 What makes a truly great Pilates teacher
02:08 Learning to see and respond to different bodies
04:49 Amy's origin story - discovering Pilates in college
08:10 Observing from the front desk and falling in love with the work
10:42 Getting cold feet before teacher training - and why that was the right call
13:23 Amy's formal training with Madeleine Black at the Physical Mind Institute
15:27 Learning to teach, not just to do
17:34 How injury became the turning point toward teaching
21:38 Why the best teachers are often those whose lives were changed by Pilates
22:40 The case for prerequisites in Pilates teacher training
28:13 What great mentorship actually looks like
31:46 Amy as a forever student - training across multiple lineages
37:06 How studying different styles shaped Amy's teaching
43:29 The state of the Pilates industry - two forks in the road
45:14 Fitness Pilates vs. healing Pilates - is it all Pilates?
47:52 Why studio owners need to do better at describing what they offer
53:00 Don't teach too much too soon - a lesson from Madeleine Black
55:25 Why mastering fundamentals matters more than creative programming
56:44 Quick-fire questions
01:03:28 Where to find Amy
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