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aboutus
I'm Teresa (She/Her Femme), Oakland, CA born and where I currently live. I have been teaching fitness since 2008 and ever since then, my goal has been to make movement available and accessible to the people who never felt comfortable walking into a status quo studio because the staff and participants would be a**holes if the person didn't fit the aesthetic.
As a Black queer femme and a former sex worker, I know what it feels like to be othered, so I opened Pilates Barre and Jams in 2017 to center Black, Brown and Indigenous humans as well as Queer, Fat-bodied, Non-binary humans and Sex Workers. It just made sense. Who would I be fooling if I didn't include the very peeps who have brought so much joy, love, support, and badassery to my life?
There is no such thing as a pilates body. The Fat Sex Therapist said, "Thinness is a White Supremacist beauty ideal". At Pilates Barre and Jams, feeling good, feeling strong, and being able to do functional movements pain free is our ideal.
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So if you've always wanted to try Pilates and felt like you would never find a spot with weirdos and queerdos like yourself, your search is over. I look forward to meeting, laughing with, encouraging, and witnessing you.
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Until soon,
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t.