Center of Balance Staff

Administration

• Tom McCook, Co-owner & Director, Instructor
• Karen deMoor, Co-owner & Business Manager
• Bridget White, Receptionist / Studio Administrator

Instructors

• Amy Moore
• AnnaLena Thilderkvist
• Evangeline Kochanek
• Jocelyn H. Saiki
• Juliet Tablak
• Katja Simona
• Michiko Wade

• Mystie Cho
• Owen Grady
• Susan Johnston
• Sue Meadows
• Therese Voelker
• Tina Madison

Special

• In Memory of Brody

Tom McCook

Co-owner & Director, Instructor

Tom is an internationally recognized fitness and movement specialist. Beginning his full time career in personal training in 1984, Tom designs programs for health and life performance for working professionals, people rehabilitating from injuries and world-class athletes including Olympic Gold Medal swimmers Natalie Coughlin, Jenny Thompson and Misty Hyman. Teaching Pilates since 1995, Tom is a Master Instructor of Pilates and CoreAlign for Balanced Body. His teaching approach integrates several mind/body practices including Pilates, yoga, Shiatsu, stretching, The Franklin Method, BodyCode System and life coaching. Tom is committed to his own daily meditation and movement practice, which broadens his effectiveness in designing programs for balance and optimal health. In 2003, Tom produced the exercise video "Combining Pilates & Yoga for Balance." Tom and Center of Balance have been featured in several national magazines, newspapers and television programs.

To contact Tom, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Karen deMoor

Co-owner & Business Manager

Together with Tom, Karen owns and manages Center of Balance. She oversees the business, planning and financial matters of the studio as well as designs the marketing materials and maintains the website. Karen's background is in non-profit management and fundraising, communications, and international political advocacy. Her work has been mainly involved in global environmental and human rights issues, with focus in Central and South America. She was the Development Director of Pesticide Action Network and National Press Director for Oxfam America, an international development and disaster relief agency. She holds a BA in political science from Tufts University in Boston. Karen has been practicing Pilates and Yoga since 1997, and completed PhysicalMind Institute's Initiation 101 Pilates Mat training with Tom in 2001, and CoreAlign 1 & 2 in 2010.

To contact Karen, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Bridget White

Receptionist / Studio Administrator

Bridget keeps the studio running smoothly with her warm welcome and attention to scheduling. The "glue" of Center of Balance, she responds to inquiries and requests, schedules appointments, and manages our client database. She brings to Center of Balance a wide range of skills and experience in administration, data management and reception work.

Bridget is available Monday though Thursday 9am - 6pm and Friday 9am - 3pm, with lunch break 1:30om - 2:30pm. You can reach her at (650) 967-6414.

To contact Bridget, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Amy Moore

Instructor

Amy is a certified Pilates instructor, CoreAlign and Elvis "the Pelvis" instructor. She completed her training with PhysicalMind Institute and Tom McCook at Center of Balance. An experienced teacher by trade, Amy enjoys motivating and encouraging confidence through goal setting and personalized instruction. Her passion is to help clients improve postural awareness and develop efficient, healthy movement patterns for everyday living. Through Pilates and a balanced lifestyle, she has experienced her own healing from neck and shoulder pain and brings energy and enthusiasm to helping others experience freedom of movement.

AnnaLena Thilderkvist

Instructor

AnnaLena comes from a background of dance, competitive gymnastics and running. During her maternity leave from her Engineering Manager position at Applied Materials, she decided to get certified to teach Pilates. She quickly realized the benefits in her own body and the positive differences it made in her clients, and decided to leave the corporate world to make her passion for movement into her new career. She has been studying with Tom McCook at Center of Balance since 2006, when she received her Mat and Standing Pilates certification from PhysicalMind Institute, and completed her full equipment certification with Balanced Body Education. In 2010, she completed the CoreAlign teacher training. AnnaLena brings energy and spirit to her sessions, and is dedicated to helping each client reach their potential as they gain strength, balance, and flexibility, and inspire them to bring healthy movement into their daily life.

Evangeline Kochanek

Instructor

Evangeline came to Pilates at age 16 because of back pain and it became a vehicle for her healing. Wanting to share this with others, she took part in Ellie Herman's San Francisco Pilates certification in 2000. She has a B.A. in Dance from Mount Holyoke College where she also studied biology, anatomy and music. She has led Ellie Herman trainings in Korea and the US. She studied Pilates-based rehabilitation with Lizz Roman and Nora St. John, and became a Balanced Body Faculty member in 2007. Since starting at Center of Balance in 2008, Evangeline has added BodyKey, CoreAlign and Yoga to her teaching repertoire. In 2011, she completed a 200-hour yoga teacher training at YogaWorks in San Francisco. Evangeline regularly assists Tom McCook in leading new students through the Balanced Body teacher training process. Today, she takes every opportunity available to improve her teaching by continuing her own education in anatomy, scoliosis, yoga and the latest Pilates concepts. In her classes, she promotes a noncompetitive environment and teaches students to develop strength and relaxation through a disciplined and mindful practice.

Jocelyn H. Saiki

Instructor

Jocelyn is a Certified Pilates and CoreAlign instructor, and a Franklin Method Level II educator. With her deep understanding of functional anatomy, Jocelyn teaches clients to move with ease by utilizing the natural strength within their bodies. Clients improve balance and coordination, enhance their performance in sports and daily life by understanding how muscles and joints are designed to work. Jocelyn came to Pilates with a chronic back injury and learned how to rehabilitate with Pilates and anatomy training. She provides fun tools for clients to incorporate Pilates form, focus and breath into everyday activities, enjoy physical movement, feel stronger and find balance by embodying natural form and alignment. Jocelyn is currently on a leave of absence.

Juliet Tablak

Instructor

Juliet is a certified Pilates instructor through PhysicalMind Institute with an extensive background in classical ballet and a certification in Anusara-based Yoga. Teaching Pilates since 1999, she is skilled at working with beginners to advanced movers. With her deep and broad knowledge of functional movement and anatomy, she guides clients to not only understand an exercise itself but also how their body best performs the exercise. Juliet’s goal for her clients is that they gain an intimate understanding of the Pilates technique and how it applies to their individual body, so they may use it in all movements they do. This helps each student understand how to prevent or heal from injury and keep the whole body balanced and aligned.

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Katja Simona

Instructor

Katja is a certified Pilates and CoreAlign instructor, personal trainer and Aikido black belt. She was introduced to Pilates as a way to recover from an Aikido injury and quickly realized how it helped her to heal faster, move more efficiently and develop a better understanding of connections within her body. Katja received her formal Pilates training with Tom McCook at Center of Balance and found her path to teaching by integrating her skills as a former teacher in the Swiss school system, her fitness background, and her 12+ years of Aikido experience. She believes that Pilates helps the body to move in a healthier, more functional way, expressing its natural strength and beauty. In her teachings, Katja is patient, kind, precise and observant.

Michiko Wade

Instructor

Michiko Wade is a certified Pilates instructor and completed PhysicalMind Institute's teacher training with Tom McCook at Center of Balance. She was introduced to Pilates in 2002 because of her chronic lower back pain. She learned through Pilates how to eliminate/minimize pain with correct alignment and by creating length in the spine. In 2010, she completed the CoreAlign teacher training. Michiko enjoys outdoor sports including jogging and hiking in nature. She is committed to helping people who want to develop functional strength and flexibility and create balance in life.

Mystie Cho

Instructor

Mystie is a highly energetic certified Pilates and CoreAlign instructor who embodies the movement principles of Mobilize – Stabilize – Strengthen in her daily practice. She completed her comprehensive training though EHS and Balanced Body University and her CoreAlign training with Tom McCook. While working in the high tech industry for nearly 10 years, she suffered from chronic lower back pain and was introduced to Pilates in 2007. She immediately saw its valuable benefits, which inspired her to teach. Mystie’s enthusiasm to build a consistent and disciplined training program enables her clients to safely progress to their desired level. Clients develop awareness of their posture and alignment while learning to coordinate body, mind, and spirit. Influenced by her ballroom dancing and martial arts background, Mystie’s sessions are structured to provide muscular power with corresponding endurance without causing physical fatigue and mental strain. At the end of a session, she is happy to see clients feeling confident and vibrant. 

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Owen Grady

Instructor

Owen has been teaching Pilates and Yoga full-time in the Bay Area since 2002. He is a certified Physical Mind Institute Apparatus, Mat and Standing Pilates instructor. He began his studies and teaching of Pilates with nationally-recognized Pilates Master teacher Tom McCook, founder of Center of Balance in Mountain View, CA. He credits Tom's mentorship & coaching as key factors in his rapid development and success in teaching movement full time. In 2005, Owen began studies with Eric Franklin, founder of the Franklin Method, combining vivid imagery and experiential anatomy to help people navigate their bodies with greater ease and facility. Owen is a Level 2 Franklin Method Movement Educator. He is also certified by Pino Carbone of Body Code Systems in Bodykey instruction and completed the CoreAlign teacher training in 2010. Owen's Yoga teaching is founded on a combination of his personal practice of Iyengar and Ashtanga Yoga and more recently influenced by the Core driven styles of Ana Forrest and Jill Miller, with whom Owen recently completed his Level 2 Yoga Tune Up® certification. Yoga Tune Up®, developed and created by Jill Miller, is a "whole body" regenerative fitness system integrating elements of Yoga, calisthenics and body therapy.

Susan Johnston

Instructor

Susan is a certified Pilates and Yoga instructor, long-time meditation practitioner and avid golfer. She completed her comprehensive Pilates training with Tom McCook at Center of Balance through Balanced Body University. In 2004, Susan completed her 200-hour Yoga certification through Avalon, where she mentored with Dr. Kelly McGonigal. She taught Vinyasa flow yoga classes for Stanford University's Health Improvement Program. Susan’s yoga teaching is influenced by the core-focused styles of Ana Forrest and Jill Miller and it was her interest in core strengthening that led her to pursue Pilates. Susan enjoys helping clients move with greater ease and balance. She brings energy, enthusiasm and a sense of humor to her sessions.

Sue Meadows

Instructor

Sue Meadows is a Pilates Method Alliance Certified instructor. She completed her Pilates certification training with Nora St. John and has trained with Valentin, Tom McCook, and Elizabeth Larkam, plus Stott and Powerhouse Pilates. She has been in the health and fitness industry since 1984 as a health promotion consultant, group exercise instructor and personal trainer. In the transition into the second half of her life, Pilates has been a major influence in Sue's personal and professional growth. She blends technical expertise, creative style and contagious enthusiasm, guiding clients to enrich their bodies and lives through movement.

Therese Voelker

Physical Therapist & Instructor

Therese is a Physical Therapist, Polestar Certified Pilates instructor and CoreAlign teacher. She earned her Master's degree in Physical Therapy in 1993 and has received additional training in McKenzie and Maitland based manual therapy. Therese began studying Pilates exercise with Master instructors Brent Andersen, P.T. and Elizabeth Larkham, M.A. in 1998. Through this experience, she learned how valuable Pilates work is in the rehabilitation of orthopedic and sports related injuries. Therese enjoys creating fun, innovative programs geared towards helping individuals restore balance, strength and healthy movement.

Tina Madison

Physical Therapist & Instructor

Tina is a physical therapist, yoga, Pilates and CoreAlign instructor. She holds a BA in Human Biology from Stanford University and a MS in Physical Therapy from Duke University. She was certified in Ananda Yoga in 1994 and completed Stott Pilates mat and reformer teacher training in 2001. She currently is pursuing further Pilates study with Tom McCook through Balanced Body. Tina has an extensive background in sports medicine and orthopedics, and has been in practice for over 30 years. She has worked in a variety of settings including private practice, athletic training facilities, and university health clinics. She is also active as a teacher and consultant for establishments such as the Stanford Health Improvement Program, El Camino Hospital Community Health Program, Palo Alto Medical Foundation and Foothill College. She has over 700 hours of continuing education including Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais, Craniosacral Therapy, Restorative Yoga and Pilates for Osteoporosis. Tina loves movement and is fascinated by the body. This, combined with her professional and practical training, enhances her ability to collaborate with her clients to align with their goals and guide them toward efficient and easeful movement that enhances their lives.

In Memory of Brody

For many years, Brody was our unofficial greeter and could sometimes be found beneath the front desk conserving his energy. Gentle and sweet, he specialized in human affection and may have licked your toes in exchange for a pat on the head. Brody passed away October 2008 and we miss him dearly. We adopted him from Golden Gate Labrador Retriever Rescue, an organization in need of loving homes for rescued Labs - particularly in this tough economic climate and home foreclosure crisis, pets are now much more vulnerable to abandonment.