Meet Our Team

Ariel Lehaitre, MSPT, PMA, CPT, Owner and Founder

Ariel is the founder and owner of Pilates Santé. She is a highly skilled Physical Therapist and Polestar Certified Rehabilitation Specialist in Pilates-based Exercise, of 20 years. She received a  B.S. in clinical exercise physiology, and an M.S. in physical therapy from Boston University in 2002.

Ariel trained as a pre-professional classical ballet dancer at the School of American Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Numerous dance injuries led her to pilates for rehabilitation and conditioning. Injuries sidelined a ballet career but opened up a path to professional salsa dancing. Ariel instructed and competed in numerous countries, including Mexico, Italy, Spain, Singapore and Columbia.

Ariel's dance career and injury recovery journey inspired faith in the healing power of pilates. After practicing in a traditional outpatient orthopedic physical therapy clinic for six years, she became aware of limitations in therapeutic outcomes. The desire to implement pilates as the foundation of treatment led her to create Pilates Santé - pilates for "health” in 2008. Her Philosophy is that by improving a clients functional ability, they can return to their desired lifestyles and regain their health. Ariel's focus is on correcting muscle imbalances & poor movement patterns, improving motor control, strength and functional mobility for clients.

Ariel is passionate about teaching pilates teachers how to work with various injuries and conditions of the body, and therefore started a teacher training program, which includes specialized workshops and individual mentorships. Prior to this, she worked as a Polestar Pilates Mentor for their Teacher Training Program from 2011 to 2016. She has completed additional specializations: CoreAlign, Pilates for Osteoporosis, Pilates for the Oov, and Pilates Adaptations for Scoliosis.

Ariel is a single mother to a 7 year old little girl. In her free time, she enjoys learning. She is currently enrolled in the center for thriving relationships coaching program. Other interests include holistic nutrition, meditation, and her spiritual journey.

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THERESE VOELKER
​MPT

Therese​ earned her M.P.T. in 1993 from Mount Saint Mary's College, and has gained valuable experience as a physical therapist working in outpatient private practice, hospitals and rehabilitation facilities. Therese is a Polestar Certified Rehabilitation Specialist in Pilates-based Exercise, and focuses on the correction of muscle imbalances, core stabilization, and improved functional mobility and strength throughout the body. Therese is a CoreAlign teacher, and has received additional training in McKenzie and Maitland based manual therapy. She began studying Pilates in 1998, with emphasis on the rehabilitation of orthopedic and sports related injuries. 

MARCIA SORIANO
PTA, Pilates Instructor

Marcia completed the Ohlone College Physical Therapist Assistant Program with honors in 2018 and has worked in both outpatient and inpatient settings. During her career path towards Physical Therapy, she received a Balanced Body based Comprehensive Pilates Certificate at the College of San Mateo in 2015. She aims to empower her clients with the tools and resources to help them move through life. In her spare time, Marcia can be found spending time with her family, enriching herself with continuing education courses in either Physical Therapy or Pilates, and bonding with the ocean through surfing.

CHRISTINE ZAFIROPOLUO 
​​PTA, Pilates Instructor

Christine received her B.S. degree in Kinesiology/Physical Education at Fresno State University, A.S. degree in Physical Therapy from De Anza College and is a certified Polestar Education Rehabilitation Pilates instructor. She has over 20 years experience with a wide variety of areas that include rehabilitation orthopedics and Pilates, aqua therapy, and personal training. She also worked as a corporate physical therapist assistant where she implemented injury prevention, ergonomics, treatment and exercise programs. In her free time she enjoys spending time with family, trail running, mountain biking, swimming and snowboarding. ​

GABBY ORTANEZ
Pilates Instructor

Gabby started her movement journey back in 2013 with the TRX suspension trainer in the Philippines. After seeing the importance of functional and bodyweight training, she moved to the Bay Area and pursued her career in fitness. She is currently a NASM certified personal trainer, Lagree fitness instructor, and a Polestar Pilates certified instructor. Her style involves a body-neutral, enthusiastic, and safe approach to movement that meets
​you where you are.​

CRISTINA WALSKI
​Pilates Instructor

An active equestrian, Cristina’s passion for Pilates began over 15 years ago as a way to enhance her riding and support the physical demands of her life with horses. This led Cristina to teach the classical work of Joseph Pilates and earn accreditations from Balanced Body and STOTT Pilates.  Cristina is also a certified Personal Trainer and Functional Training Specialist through the
​American Council on Exercise. 

FERNANDA TOMASI
​Pilates Instructor

​Fernanda is fascinated by the beauty and complexity of the human body. She earned her BS degree in Physical Therapy at the Federal University of Londrina  in 2009 and MS degree in Cardiovascular Rehabilitation at the University of Brasília.
Her journey with Pilates began when searching for treatment for fibromyalgia and was taken by how its methods improve body awareness and the understanding of movement, reflecting on daily life and well being. She became motivated to share this newfound skill and became a certified Pilates instructor.​

CATHERINE KIRSCH
Pilates Instructor

Catherine has a deep-rooted passion for movement and dance. She received her MFA degree from Tisch School Of The Arts. To this day, she loves choreographing contemporary dance works.
Catherine is a local south Bay Area Pilates instructor. She was certified in the method of body conditioning in 1994 at Romanas' Pilates. She was a Pilates professional at SUNY Purchase College and for Performing Arts Physical Therapy in New York City. Catherine was also a lecture professor for 'Issues in Dance Medicine' at San Francisco State University.
She has continued her work in the Pilates industry by creating Pilates programming for the original Club One in San Francisco, while teaching at numerous studios in the bay area.​

SERENE WILKEN
​Pilates Instructor

Serene's love for movement started with gymnastics and dance at a young age. As much as she loved both disciplines, Pilates was recommended to continue her passion for exercise and conditioning after high school when she was seventeen.
Over the past 20 years, Pilates provided stability and control, giving her body exactly what it needed after years of dance and gymnastics. Her passion for exercise expanded with BASI's comprehensive Pilates training program in 2011. Seren also holds the BASI Pathologies and Injuries certification and BASI Pilates Mentor program with the founder Rael Isacowitz.
Serene is also certified in FRC (Functional Range Conditioning) specific to joint mobility training and YogaBody Breathwork. Serene is passionate about how Pilates can be a foundational practice to teach mind-body movement, corrective exercises for rehab, and enhance movement skills. She believes every workout is an opportunity to connect and improve your practice.

TRUPTI PATEL
Pilates Instructor

MAIA DAU
Apprentice Pilates Instructor

Trupti's love for mindful movement exercises began 22 years ago when she discovered the benefits of Pilates after a pregnancy with resulted in chronic back & hip pain.
​Though she had tried other forms of pain management and rehabilitation, none of those provided the long-lasting relief she got from following a regular Pilates exercise regime.
Now, Trupti is a comprehensively trained and Club Pilates certified Pilates instructor with 5 years of teaching experience. Her goal always is to help clients create a strong foundation for movement so they can better function in their daily lives & activities.
Trupti has certifications from Barre Above and TRX suspension training. 
She has personal experience working with clients with spinal conditions. She has a deep-rooted passion to work with athletes who need to recover from injuries or correct muscle imbalances.

Maia received her B.S. in biological sciences from the University of Southern California, where she also studied dance and competed for the triathlon club team.
This highly active lifestyle led her to find and fall in love with pilates. She appreciates how the pilates method takes great consideration for muscular stability and the functional movement patterns of everyday life.
She used many of its techniques in her work as a physical therapy aide before becoming a Pilates instructor.

Office & Administration

BREANNA MANCINI
Marketing Manager

Breanna is a dedicated student pursuing a B.A. in English Literature. With 5 years of customer service experience, she's honed her communication skills and discovered in interest in marketing.
Her goal is to blend her linguistic talents within the world of marketing to help business grow and thrive. 
In her free time, Breanna enjoys reading, painting, and taking her French Bulldog, Jack, on car rides.
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CHRISTINA PAVLOVIC
Office Manager

Christina received her B.S. from the University of Guelph in Biological Health Sciences. She has worked in healthcare administration for over four years prior at a local physical therapy clinic back in her birth country, Canada. 
In her free time, Christina enjoys doing agility training with her Australian Shepherd dog named Panda and discovering all the many different flavors of tea in the world!

Interested in joining our team?
Pilates Santé Jobs