Meet
the team
Feel Good Fitness for Everyone
With over 15 years in business, Esprit Pilates is a family, fitness and rehabilitation focused studio. All of our teachers hold internationally recognised qualifications with Polestar Pilates – the leading Pilates education body in the world. We welcome you to our nurturing environment of wholistic health, wellness and fun!
Melissa Franks
Owner & Founder of Esprit
As owner and founder of Esprit, Melissa has been teaching Pilates for over fifteen years.
She first discovered Pilates as a young dancer and went on to teach dance for 15 years whilst simultaneously becoming a Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor. From there she moved into Pilates instruction, finding it to be her passion and eventually focussing on it exclusively.
Melissa loves the precision of movement required in Pilates and the way it blends rehabilitation with fitness to create an activity that can suit almost all bodies, conditions and goals. She has a keen awareness of holistic health, nutrition and energy therapies. Her other interests include yoga, pole dancing, ballroom dancing, essential oils, cooking and meditation.
Qualifications:
- Diploma Professional Pilates Instruction (Polestar)
- Diploma Dance Education (FATD)
- Cert IV Pilates Mat Work (Polestar)
- Cert IV Personal Trainer
- Cert IV Children’s Fitness
- Cert III Fitness Instructor (specialising Group Exercise)
- Level 1 Power Plate Instructor
Karen Scanes
Pilates Instructor
Karen began Pilates mat classes as a mother of two young boys who was looking to regain her flexibility, core control and a little bit of sanity! Within a few short months, not only did she notice an improvement in her body ‘age’, but also a noticeable difference in her mood, mindfulness and ability to manage stress. After years of practice and becoming increasingly aware of the benefits of Pilates for all walks of life, Karen set out to share the joy of Pilates with others – as Joseph Pilates famously said, “Everyone is the architect of their own happiness” and for Karen, Pilates was a key factor in this. Now qualified in mat and studio Pilates through Polestar Education, Karen’s teaching is motivated by successfully helping others feel better by finding improvement in flexibility, range of movement, lengthening and strengthening – whether this be for general health and well-being, or targeted exercise to support functional movement (e.g. for injury recovery or lifestyle athletic pursuits).
Qualifications:
- Member of the Pilates Alliance of Australasia
- Diploma of Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Instruction Method (10828NAT) (just waiting on the certificate in the post 😊)
- Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Series Certificate (Certified Practitioner of Pilates Studio)
- Provide First Aid HLTAID011
- Polestar Pilates Comprehensive Matwork Series Certificate (Certified Practitioner of Pilates Mat)
- Bachelor of Science Honours – Botany
- Bachelor of Science – Natural Sciences
Orla McGuire
Pilates Instructor
Orla qualified in health & fitness almost a decade ago. She quickly found her niche in functional fitness, helping people who were unable to train as they had due to injury or illness.
She had practiced Pilates on & off for many years, particularly as her mode of rehabilitation exercise after many sporting injuries. Pilates quickly became part of her strength routine prior to falling pregnant with twins. After their birth, and as soon as was feasible, she engrossed herself back in the world of Pilates, gaining her Certificate IV in Pilates Matwork with Polestar Pilates.
Orla loves and enjoys instructing mat Pilates and guiding her clients to a life of increased alignment, mobility, and wellness. She is a a believer in holistic health and incorporates whole wellness through exercise and essential oils practice.
Qualifications:
- Certificate IV Polestar Pilates Matwork Instruction Method
- Certificate IV Personal Training
- Certificate III Group Fitness
- doTERRA Wellness Advocate
Raya Cole
Pilates Instructor
Raya has been enjoying Pilates for over ten years and teaching Mat Pilates since becoming a Certified Practitioner of Mat Pilates through Polestar in 2019.
She loves helping people find joy and ease through movement and believes that ‘movement is medicine.’
When not teaching Pilates, she enjoys staying active by running & walking. She is also a mum of two girls and enjoys soaking up some sunshine with a good book.
Qualifications:
- Cert IV Mat Pilates Practitioner, Polestar Pilates
- Pilates for Pregnancy (Polestar)
Kelly Brook
Pilates Instructor
Kelly commenced dancing at a young age, she attended a performing arts high school, The McDonald College of Performing Arts, she then completed a Certificate IV in Performing Arts (majoring in dance) at ED5 International under the direction of William A Forsythe.
Kelly has BA Honours Degree in Musical Theatre at LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore, with skills in Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Contemporary, Hip Hop, singing and acting.
With many credentials in in the performing arts industry, health and fitness has always been main priority for her. She fell in love with Pilates as another form of keeping herself and body in check through many performances and long rehearsals. From there the passion grew and she became a Pilates Mat instructor in 2016.
After having her first child, she found she had abdominal separation; Kelly turned to Pilates at Esprit Pilates to help heal her rectus Diastasis. From there her passion blossomed and became a Reformer Pilates instructor through Polestar Pilates early in 2018. She has also recently added Barre Attack Pilates to her list of fitness and Pilates credentials. Kelly loves being an instructor at Esprit Pilates.
“Nothing is better than helping others achieve their goals, and seeing others live a happy and healthy life”.
Qualifications:
- LaSalle College of the Arts
- BA(Hons) Musical Theatre
- Ed5 International
- Cert Lvl 3 Performing Arts – Dance
- Studio Pilates
- Certificated Mat instructor
- Polestar Pilates
- Certified Reformer instructor
- Barre Attack
- Certified Barre instructor
Clare Greenwood
Pilates Instructor
Clare’s Pilates journey began many years ago, with her first Pilates Mat class at a dedicated studio. From her first class to now, Clare has grown to understand the rehabilitative benefits of Pilates as she gained relief from long standing injuries.
It was after the birth of her second child, an experience that put her life in the balance, that she embraced it as a holistic practice for nourishing mind and body. Pilates played a vital role in her eighteen-month journey to recovery. A journey that was not only restorative, but transformative. It imbibed in Clare, a renewed zest for life and a drive to help others through the restorative practice of Pilates.
Clare’s experience provides a unique perspective and compassion for women who have experienced complicated births and birth trauma. Pilates was part of her healing journey and it is this healing that she wishes to share with others.
With the driven determination to be a positive, strong and inspiring role model for her daughters, Clare sought a career change. Moving from a corporate world of insurance claims she become a certified practitioner of Pilates Mat.
Clare has studied meditation and mindfulness integrating the benefits of a holistic approach into her practice. This inspired her to create a Pilates for Better Sleep class. Clare continues to look for ways to calm, restore, heal and invigorate mind, body and soul.
Qualifications:
- Polestar Certified Practitioner of Pilates Mat
- Polestar Certified Course in Pregnancy & Postnatal Pilates
- Mindfulness & Meditation, Self Love & Self acceptance course.
Flora Cauchi
Pilates Instructor
- 200h YTT (focus on Vinyasa Yoga, taught by Level 3 Sr yoga teacher Anneriek Favelle)
- 40h Yin Yoga training (Anneriek Favelle)
- 35h Prana Vinyasa (with Shiva Rea: international teacher and founder of Prana Vinyasa)
- 50h Mediation and the Subtle Arts (Rod Galbraith, In Yoga)
- 50h The Art of Creative Sequencing (Arian Lavanael)
Flora stumbled upon yoga a little later in life than she would have preferred but fell completely in love with it in 2013 after taking her first Vinyasa class. She loves the self-discovery practicing yoga brings through mindfulness, self-awareness and relaxation, in addition to the wonderful physical benefits.
She feels yoga has made her stronger – physically and mentally – more centred and an overall calmer person.
She completed her teacher training in 2018 and has continued to grow as a teacher with further training in Yin Yoga, Prana Vinyasa, Meditation and Creative Sequencing. She teaches that turning the focus inward can instil a great sense of respect for both body and mind.
Flora strives to create an environment in which her students can practice at their own pace and challenge themselves as they wish in their own journey of self-discovery.
Aleea Newton
Pilates Instructor
More info to come! xx