Meet the Instructors
The Pilates Center of St. Louis
Meet Our Instructors
Make the right choice when it comes to your fitness needs. At The Pilates Center of St. Louis, we have a full staff of certified and professional instructors who are experts in their craft. When you want a Pilates center with a personalized, boutique touch, you know who to turn to. Call (314) 569-9400
to find out more about our fitness classes.
Karen Prechtl
Karen Prechtl is the owner of The Pilates Center of St Louis. Karen has been in the fitness industry since 1980. She is at her fourth and favorite location in Ladue which has been open since 2008. Karen has an extensive knowledge about and experience with movement. She has a degree in music and a background in dance.
She started teaching fitness classes in St. Louis and found that teaching Pilates would be the next logical step. In 1993, Karen opened the first Pilates studio in St. Louis and never looked back. Karen had the privilege of doing her initial training at the Pilates Center of Boulder with Pilates elder, Romana Kryzanowska.
She learned about the importance of form and was reminded that Pilates techniques really could help heal improper movement patterns and help relieve stress and pain. She recently became a certified Teacher Trainer with Balanced Body, an internationally acclaimed certifying organization.
The Pilates Center of St. Louis hosts workshops for aspiring teachers and does ongoing training for our talented staff of instructors. More than ever, Karen enjoys sharing the wonderful benefits of this method of conditioning the body and awakening the mind.
Inessa Santos
Inessa Santos has been studying the Pilates Method since 2007 and is certified through Pilates PhysioServ (Applied to Physical Therapy), in Brazil. When she learned the Pilates Method, she fell in love with it and has yet to stop developing herself and discovering new techniques, including personally taking advantage of it during her two pregnancies.
Inessa went on to graduate school in Brazil, where she has acquired her knowledge about anatomy, biomechanics, and Physical Therapy. Inessa also has specialization in Neurological rehabilitation and she has trained all types of clients, in particular, people with injuries.
She loves working with challenging exercises to make her clients stronger and satisfied.
Lauren Watts
Lauren began teaching at the Pilates Center in September of 2021, as an apprentice instructor. She completed her comprehensive Pilates certification in May of 2022 and is currently studying for a personal training certification through NASM.
Lauren was introduced to Pilates during her pre-professional ballet training in St. Louis, MO. She also studied ballet, Pilates, and Yoga during training programs at prestigious ballet schools, including Boston Ballet, Ballet West, Next Generation Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, and Texas Ballet Theatre – all on merit scholarship. At age 17, Lauren began dancing professionally with Missouri Ballet Theatre. She has also performed with Milwaukee Ballet. Throughout her time as a dancer, Lauren felt that Pilates improved her balance, core strength, alignment, and body awareness.
She has been enjoying life outside of the dance world for several years and is grateful that she gets to share her love of fitness and movement with clients!
Anna Welke
Anna started her Pilates training with BBU's Karen Sanzo in Dallas and finished here at The Pilates Center of St. Louis with Beth Ruder. Prior to Pilates, she trained to be a yoga teacher with Pam Schulte of Just Practice Yoga.
Anna, a former lawyer, left corporate America nine years ago, to fulfill her dream to teach; a dream that began sixteen years ago when she journeyed into a yoga practice which then led her to Pilates.
Anna taught at this studio until three years ago, when she moved to Dallas. She is delighted to be back. She takes great joy in assisting her students' self-explorations through the medium of Pilates and seeing them enrich their lives through improving their well-being.
Tonia Lee
Tonia joins The Pilates Center with over 21 years of experience in the fitness industry as a NASM certified personal trainer, over 15 years in fitness management and a decade as a certified Peak Pilates instructor. She is a creative Pilates instructor and overall fitness specialist with backgrounds in dance, barre, martial arts, HITT, personal training, yoga, and corrective exercise.
Tonia has also completed extra Pilates modality training with Balanced Body and STOTT. Tonia takes pride in learning different formats in Pilates to offer her clients new techniques. This is what makes her Pilates sessions so creative, always challenging, and fun. She enjoys challenging her clients and pushing them to the next level, working their bodies in multi-faceted ways to get results; whether it be strength, toning, flexibility, increasing range of motion, or corrective exercises. She has a love for encouraging and improving her client's physical health.
Elaine Adamson
Apprentice Instructor
You might recognize this friendly face! Elaine started working at the Pilates Center in 2018 helping out part time at the Front Desk and it quickly bloomed into more than a job. She fell in love with the people and Pilates and The Pilates Center soon became a second home.
While she still manages most day to day studio operations she has been teaching as an apprentice instructor for over a year. She started her Balanced Body training in 2020 and is eager to finalize her training in the near future.
She loves being surrounded by Pilates day in and day out and is grateful for the opportunity to learn from all of the talented instructors here at the Pilates Center. She has a background in dance, art, and coaching and feels like teaching Pilates was a natural fit. Elaine loves that Pilates is gentle yet challenging and hopes to share the joy and benefits of Pilates with others!
Kelly Rode
Kelly was introduced to Pilates in 2016 right here at the Pilates Center! She had recently undergone knee surgery following a skiing accident and Pilates helped her correct muscle imbalances, improve core strength, and regain confidence in her own body and movement skills. Kelly has completed her Pilates instructor training through Balanced Body under Rebecca Milton and is currently working towards becoming a nationally recognized Pilates instructor.
Early in her career Kelly worked as an Occupational therapist for several years primarily with the geriatric population. She enjoyed helping patients regain function and independence after various injuries, illnesses, and surgeries.
Kelly feels that teaching Pilates in the perfect way to combine her clinical knowledge with her passion for health and wellness. She loves sharing her joy for Pilates with others and heling clients to move better and improve their quality of life!
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