Lesly Levy taught aerobics, Spinning and yoga before discovering that Pilates combined them all in one neat little package.
PILATES STYLE Tell us about your childhood.
LESLY LEVY I was born in Chicago in 1960, then moved to the south suburbs in 1968. Right before my senior year in high school, my father was transferred to Boston. I went to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where I studied English, communications and French. I met my future husband Alan during my first semester, and we were engaged by our last semester.
PS How did you get into fitness?
LESLY Soon after graduating college, I moved to New York City to be with my fiancé. I worked as a media buyer at Young and Rubicam advertising, where like me, everyone smoked. I quit smoking on my wedding day (after 10 long years) and gained 16 pounds within two months. That’s when I joined the Brooklyn Queens Racquet Club.
In 1986, Alan and I decided we wanted to start a family, so we bought our first home in Westchester. Our daughter was born in 1987, and our son in 1990. I became a stay-at-home mom, and got more and more into fitness. Immediately after we moved, I joined the Briarcliff Racquet Club. A year after I had my second child, I was working out in the weight room when a woman came up to me for guidance. Because I was not a trained professional, I did not feel comfortable helping her and referred her to a personal trainer who was on the floor. She told me that she would prefer to be trained by a woman more her age and suggested that I think about becoming a personal trainer. So I thought, Why not?, and in November 1992, I acquired my personal trainer certification with ACE.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May - June 2017-Ausgabe von Pilates Style.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May - June 2017-Ausgabe von Pilates Style.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Finding New Momentum
Overcoming obstacles caused by the pandemic, the virtual version of this popular festival still achieved its goals.
Carola Trier's Extraordinary Journey
In his authoritative biography of the first woman to open a studio, Reiner Grootenhuis delved into her personal papers to tell the harrowing story of her time in a prison camp during World War II.
Racism in the Pilates Industry
Incidents of police brutality and the ensuing Black Lives Matter protests have shed a bright light on systemic racism in the U.S., including in the Pilates industry. Here, Black instructors share their experiences.
For Self-defense
Moves of the Month
Comfort Food Made Healthy
This fall, cozy up to tantalizing comfort food that’s also healthy. A new cookbook from Kristin Cavallari shows you how.
Pilates Postcard
A Pilates teacher shares how the method is making waves abroad.
The Ultimate Gift
One year ago, Kahley Schiller’s life was completely upended by an extreme health crisis. But thanks to her 20-year Pilates practice, the 40-year-old was able to recover quickly.
Revelations
For Sarita Allen, a star of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and a protégée of Kathleen Stanford Grant, Pilates was key to her decades-long career.
Meaning WITHIN THE Movement
The Five Elements of Chinese Medicine help you go deeper into your practice, promising plenty of play along the way.
PILATES IN THE HOOD
Though she’s trained many top stars, Kim Carruthers says she’s most proud of her work as the founder and director of a nonprofit bringing the method to underserved communities.