Connection is our Mantra
Meet the team
Mindful Movement: Yoga, Pilates, aerial
Dr. Kristi Shaw
Ph.D., MHS, C-IAYT, RYT500, E-RYT200, NCPT;
Owner, Founder, Yoga, Aerial & Pilates
Kristi began her yoga teaching career in 2006 at the local YMCA, community centers, art centers, in people's homes, the local hospital, lunch rooms of coworkers...you name it, she's taught there! Following the path of yoga therapy as an integrated approach in her teaching style, Kristi completed her RYT 500 and C-IAYT hours with University of Maryland Medical School, Center for Integrative Medicine, and decided to open her own studio to fully embrace her love of integrative medicine, therapeutic movement and complementary practices under one roof.
Kristi became certified as a comprehensively trained Pilates teacher following the opening of Coastal Retreat, with a focus on finding new ways to manage her Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) - a connective tissue disorder that causes the body to have loose ligaments, leading to easy joint dislocations and a myriad of other symptoms and conditions. The ability to challenge the smaller stabilizing muscles of the body, while training the larger muscles, is a key feature of Pilates and one that Kristi swears-by as part of her EDS "maintenance" plan.
Today, you might find Kristi teaching an early morning Pilates class, a Sunday afternoon Restorative Yoga session, hosting an EDS support group, or working with a client in a personalized session. You might also NOT find her - because she still works a full-time career outside of the studio, has two children (middle and high school), a horse, seven dogs, a cockatiel and a husband of almost 20 years.
The studio is her HAPPY PLACE and she hopes you'll find it to be YOUR happy place too!
Sharon Ryan
Yoga &
Reiki Master
Sharon Ryan-Gotimer is a RYT200 certified in Yin and Laughter Yoga, a Reiki Karuna & Usui Master Level Practitioner, having practiced for 30+ year, and a DPA - Dream Pattern Analyst.
Sharon has a 30+ year background in Corporate America as a CFO and business development consultant. Understanding the need for self-care, Sharon has taken her two greatest loves Yin Yoga & Reiki and created a practice called Nurturing Yoga, allowing the student to nurture one’s spiritual and personal development using the science of yoga through the 8 Limb Path and energetic body work.
Angie Lavezzo
Yoga
Karen Knauss
Yoga & Pilates
Karen Knauss, RYT 200, Physical Therapy Assistant, Certified Ashaya Yoga Instructor and Radiant Child Yoga Teacher, Karen blends her physical therapy background with alignment-based yoga instruction. Trained at Willow Street Yoga Center by Maria Hamburger, Joe Miller and Natalie Miller, Karen continues studies in children's yoga through Radiant Child. Karen is a Pilates mat and equipment teacher, a certified stand-up paddle board instructor, and a certified Yoga of 12-Step Recovery (Y12SR) leader.
Dr. Ann Smith
Yoga & Meditation
Ann Smith, PhD, sits a lot as a clinical psychologist, national trainer and consultant for the treatment of Substance Abuse and PTSD. Prior to that, she moved a lot in her work as a drama therapist, a yoga instructor and as a general overall New Yorker who walked everywhere instead of sitting. Ann has completed more than 500 hours of yoga training under the guidance of The World Yoga Center in New York City and Anusara Yoga. These days, instead of walking to work, she does facial yoga during her commute, and shares her love of yoga and meditation with her patients.
Laura Geller
Pilates & Aerial
Emily Teale
Yoga
Jess Newell
Barre & Yoga
Pilates Teacher Apprentices
Elizabeth,
Gretta, Jenna & Donna