Andreina. To say she is the BEST zumba teacher I've ever had and that I ADORE her class would be…read moretrue but an understatement. She teaches me more than Zumba - I leave her class not only feeling happy to have moved my body to samba, reggaeton, salsa music but also Inspired by Who She Is & How She Teaches. Andreina juggles having a full time job, 2 kids, a partner, extended family, other interests (photography), non-profit work (travel to underserved countries, giving up her time to teach donation classes every Saturday in October to raise funds for women with cancer), teaching zumba (4 classes per week) at Flying Studios and leading annual zumba retreats (Cuba in 2016!). She does all of this and yet, each time I see her, I am struck by her peaceful & relaxed demeanor. I attended one of her donation classes at the Main Plaza on Bay Street (last donation class this Saturday 10/31 @ 11a - kids welcome) and noticed she wisely adjusted the choreography to compensate for the ground (concrete) and gave frequent breaks for water as it was sunny & hot. She had a guest teacher and a live drummer. She invited the people watching above (2nd level balconey) to come join us. It was a fun hour for an excellent cause (sending women with cancer to a retreat). Andreina is an amazing dancer, has a fabulous body, exudes high energy and an infectious positive attitude, keeps the class moving together at a brisk pace, but what SETS her FAR APART from OTHER zumba teachers is the following: 1. Andreina's goal is to ensure EVERYONE has a good + safe time, so her attention is 100% focused on ALL her students (whether it's a group of 50 or 20) when she is teaching. She will dance in all areas of the room - not just the front - she will dance next to newbies or people who are struggling and when she dances next to you, it is impossible to not smile and feel lighter. :) She will adjust spacing between lines or students at the end of songs (making room for late comers and/or giving people equal space) 2. Andreina goes over new choreography at the beginning of class. 3. Andreina goes over choreography she notices people having trouble with after a song (short break). Breaks down hip gyrations and samba. She gives "homework" to do while you are cooking, etc. 4. Andreina focuses on core - she will point to her belly to indicate "abs in" for the times when engaging one's core is a good thing for certain moves. 5. Andreina focuses on beginners. She asks first-timers to raise their hands at beginning of class and she tells beginners to come at least 3x. She also gives wise advice for beginners - get the legs FIRST then arms. 6. Andreina's choreography is easy to pick up - footwork/arms not complicated - each side is 2 to 4 counts - if you come to class regularly, you will even learn how to samba - (for me, the key was to stop thinking and just let my body go). She also keeps the class fresh for regulars with new songs and choreography but also willing to do old favorites if requested. 7. Andreina is so talented, yet very sweet and low ego. If you have a routine you really are burning to do, you can show it to her and teach the class. (We are currently enjoying a student Chloe's choreography.) 8. Andreina is VERY aware of injuries and indiviual limitations. She demonstrates up and down leveling for certain moves. Examples: Touch floor or touch down towards your knee or not bend at all. For plank pushups, you can stay in plank, do mountain climber, or do pushups with knees down or not go down to floor and just move your body to the music. For other moves, you can jump (high impact) or not jump (low impact). You adjust her moves to what your body needs and can handle. Urban Dictionary defines "Andreina" as the following: "Lights everything up. Bewitching in beauty and grace. The end all be all woman." It is an accurate description of Andreina as I know her.

Andreina is an amazing instructor with so much passion for her practices. I love the feeling of…read moreflow and connection when I take her classes. I am grateful that she and others from Flying Studios have brought Zumba, Yoga and meditation to the virtual space during the CV SIP, maintaining our sense of community. Thank you for sharing your gifts.

I'm been working with Anne for a few months and she is absolutely incredible. I was a complete…read morebeginner and very nervous to start working out at first and she made me feel super comfortable and excited for my work out journey. I have seen progress and it's only been about three months. She is always on time and very professional. She's also very flexible on finding a schedule that works for you. I would highly recommend Anne and I'm excited to keep working with her! I wake up every morning that I work out with her excited compared to in the past I would dread having to work out. This has definitely helped my confidence and mental health in addition to getting stronger and more fit physically.

I highly recommend Anne. Full disclosure, I have not worked with her as a personal trainer, but was…read morea regular at her HIIT fitness classes at the YMCA in downtown Berkeley. I looked forward to her classes every week because of her excitement for helping everyone, not matter their starting fitness level, find a way to be active, engage with the class with a variety of modifications to choose from, her sense of fun, playfulness, and creativity, and the thoughtfulness she put into planning each class. She thought of fun themes for exercises-- like creating a set of exercises that involves going to the beach, surfing, and doing burpees and starfish jumps. I don't know if the story made sense-- but it did make the exercises more fun. Anne has a spark for creativity and making activity and exercise fun. I looked forward to Anne's class every week and can only imagine that her training work is even better!

Ashley (and her adorable daughter Harper) are the best! My ~5 month old and I love starting our…read moreM/W/F mornings at baby bootcamp. Each class is the perfect mix of cardio, strength and endurance, with modifications to meet your fitness level/stage of pregnancy or postpartum. Ashley's energy is infectious and she thoughtfully crafts unique workouts for each class. Being a first time mom, bootcamp has also been an incredible way to connect with other local moms. I'm very grateful for this community and highly recommend it to all!

I come for the exercise and stay for the community!! Ashley has created a fantastic village of…read morefamilies who have fun while getting our exercise in. I love taking my kids to class. They play with the other toddlers and babies while I sweat it out and feel healthier. I always feel better after class and I have so much fun talking to the other moms. Not to mention our monthly social events like trivia and hot tub nights. Join us!!

I'm writing this review because I have had a quite good experience with this place and I think they…read morehave received harsh treatment here. Personally, I'm glad I decided to take the preponderance of negative reviews here on Yelp with a grain of salt and give this place a try. I'm really not sure what happened to the critics to make them rate MindBody Connection so poorly, and to be fair, perhaps they do have some legitimate criticisms, but, in my opinion, this place as it currently operates definitely deserves more stars. The trainers here are very professional, friendly, and knowledgeable, and provide significant individualized attention. All of the mat Pilates classes I've gone to here have run overtime (though not significantly enough to wreck one's schedule) due to the trainers' decisions to spend additional time working us over, then stretching us out afterward. Plenty of breathing instruction was provided - if you are someone who needs to be told how to breathe each and every second of every moment of your life, well, all I can say is, I'm surprised you've survived outside of the womb long enough to learn to read these words. The classes are challenging and engaging, and if you do them regularly, you will absolutely end up with a strong core. I did not experience any of the indifference or disorganization that others have complained about. Perhaps those were legitimate issues in the past, but, if so, these folks appear to have corrected the problems. I would wholeheartedly recommend this place for its small class sizes, skilled and friendly instructors, and challenging curriculum, to anyone seeking to improve their core strength.

I have no doubt that the owner, Angi, knows fitness and Pilates. What the studio needs to learn is…read morehow to treat new, and potentially steady, customers. I was one of the Living Social participants, and only went to one class. I will not go back. First, it was very hard to get into a class. I had to insist that because I have a full time job, I cannot come to class at 10 AM or 4PM. I was finally allowed into an intermediate group. There was no greeting - you have to be buzzed in, and the person coming to the door was a student who looked as if she didn't want to let me in and asked what I was doing there. One other person had her back to me at the computer - this turned out to be Angi. After 5 minutes had passed she finally acknowledged my presence. Her first greeting was not "Welcome to our studio" but "Are you signing up for the class permanently since it is so full you would need to reserve your spot by the 3rd class?". I said that I hadn't taken ANY classes there yet so didn't know. (it turned out that the only people in the class were me and the person who came to the door). Class started almost 15 minutes late. The instructor (not Angi) was knowledgeable, but the flow of the class was not great. It did end right on time, which meant we had a 45 minute class instead of the hour. When I called later to find out more information about my classes, I never received a call back. It was clear that even though they had agreed to do the Living Social deal, they were not happy about it. A friend of mine told me that she had had the exact same experience and would not be going back. So at least two interested and motivated clients have moved on to other studios.

I've been going to Corpo Kinetic 1-3 times per week for the past 5 years, for individual sessions…read moreand the occasional mat and reformer class. It's not an exaggeration to say that this place has been the most important healing modality for me in my 40s. I was an active rock climber and yogi for 20 years until hypermobility and repeated injuries closed out those fitness options for me. Working with LizAnne, Julia, Olivia, Karla, Michelle, Kaleen, Andrea, and Quinn, has kept me fit and strong, built up the necessary stability to keep my joints in place, and maintained my core identity as an athlete. We've worked together through shoulder surgery, necrosing sesamoiditis, carpal tunnel, rib displacement, knee displacement, sacral looseness, and more. These brilliant instructors aren't afraid to challenge you while staying within your limitations, and are brilliant at coming up with exercise alternatives to avoid injured areas. Even with the hypermobility and injuries, I'm able hang upside down and fly in this studio.

This is a very cute small studio in a nice location in North Oakland. Julia, the studio owner, is…read morean excellent teacher -- careful sequencing, careful instruction, knowledgeable. However, I've done classes with a half dozen or so other teachers and they were all pretty meh. For me, it just isn't worth it when there's only one teacher whose classes I enjoy. However, if you're looking for a private instructor, Julia would be a good choice.

I am writing this review as both a health care provider and a client of Leah Paperno. Leah rocks! I…read morecouldn't have asked for a better pilates instructor. I've been doing privates with Leah for a few months now and have noticed many positive changes in my body. My hamstring muscles (biceps femoris, intermembronosis and intertendonosis) tend to be tight, my groin muscles (gracilis) tend to be tight (and weak) and my abs (rectus abdominus, obliques) tend to be weak. Thanks to Leah's observations, we have explored both stretching out these bad boys and making them stronger. My body awareness has increased dramatically under Leah's instruction and I feel my body both open up and become stronger. Everyone should be so lucky to have a wonderful pilates teacher like Leah! The nitty gritty: Cash or check, park in the lot that shares with Mariposa Bakery and get there on time to make the most of your sessions with Leah! Find Leah here: http://leahpaperno.wordpress.com/

A welcoming, organized, fully equipped studio in a lovely space, with a darling chocolate lab…read moreon-site (as in labrador retriever, not a laboratory for making chocolate :) But the best thing about this studio is Alyssa Conn. Her in-depth knowledge of anatomy, exercise physiology, orthopedics, bodywork, and movement is tremendously helpful if you're dealing with pain, injury, or asymmetry. What's even better is that she explains things to me very clearly and patiently, which is important because I want to understand the underlying causes of my frequent injuries and how to treat and prevent them.

I have been training with Amy and Nic at Lift and Sprint for about 4 years now and so far it's the…read moreonly group workout that I've LOVED enough to stick with. And I've tried a lot of different types of workouts.... Things I love about Lift and Sprint: - you get to workout outdoors (watching the sunrise from the track is way better than a dark smelly gym) - every workout is different, which keeps things fun and interesting - they accommodate all ages, levels, and abilities (they trained me through two pregnancies) - great community vibe (no egos or BS) - close attention to form and technique (almost feels like personal training but in a group setting) Lift and Sprint has given me more than just a place to workout, but has helped me to develop healthy habits at home in a way that has permeated my life and overall well-being!

Lift and Sprint has changed my life. Literally…read more No matter your fitness level (seriously!!!), Amy and Nic will make you feel comfortable with working out. When I started, I don't think I could run a half mile without dying. Now, I have several 5k races under my belt, and I'm hoping to do a 10k before the year is up. I still remember my first workout - my arms were so dead that I could barely turn the steering wheel while driving home. It was hard to imagine continuing to do it, but everyone was incredibly nice and welcoming. I was tired of feeling weak and tired, so I made myself go back. And back again and again, and now it's not so hard to make myself go. Once, I forgot to bring my workout clothes to work with me, so I went in what I was wearing (knee high rain boots, leggings, and a short-sleeved shirt). This is the kind of person Lift & Sprint turns you into, even if you thought it would never happen. The workouts won't be easy. But they are only 45 minutes. If Amy has had too much coffee on a Monday, you may find yourself thinking "omg, what have I done? Make it stop." But it's only 45 minutes, and trust me, you can survive 45 minutes.

Lise is my life saver!!…read more I've been seeing Lise for over 2 years, once a week and I've learned so much about my center and my body from her. She has a lot of patience with us and always there to correct our postures to maximize the work out. She also helps me with my back and neck problem. One time, I had this horrendous back pain that I couldn't even stand up straight or getting up and down, after an hour of pilates work and her body work on me, I was standing up straight and was able to walk normally again!! She's now in the Rockridge area at Claremont/College.

I have been working with Lise for over 7 years now. I've done classes and private sessions. She is…read moreamazing! She has the foundational knowledge of a doctor about the workings of the body and the compassion and thoughtfulness of a therapist. Lise works intuitively and can tailor your sessions to your day- to- day needs.