Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Relyea-Spivack.
Hi Emily, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up dancing at a pre-professional level, and began experiencing dance-related injuries as I got more serious about pursuing a professional dance career. In 2010, during my senior year of high school, I was training in The Alvin Ailey School’s Junior Division program in NYC. The training was incredibly demanding, and I was commuting from NJ into NYC 6 times per week; basically going straight from school to my dance classes, having no time to fuel myself with proper nutrition and/or cross-train outside of dancing. In April or 2011, I underwent my first knee surgery for a meniscus tear. That fall of 2011, I was enrolled to start my freshman year of college in a performing arts conservatory dance program on a partial scholarship. I did as much rehabilitation in physical therapy as I could to prepare my body for dancing at a college level, but I was still not properly conditioned holistically throughout my body; I had very poor body image during this time too, struggled secretly with disordered eating habits, and had never been taught how to sustainably keep my body conditioned on a physical level. After attempting to skirt by with the bare miniumim my freshman year with the demands of a conservatory dance program, my body felt like it was failing me. In March of 2012, I underwent my 2nd knee surgery to this time, repair a meniscus tear on my other knee. This surgery required a lot more healing post-op. The recovery was much slower, but it was the blessing in disguise I didn’t know I needed. I was determined to do this rehab process “right” this time; to rehab and learn how to condition my WHOLE body, and not just my knee itself. I worked with an incredible physical therapist who was also a comprehensively certified Pilates Instructor, and it was my first introduction to working on the Pilates apparatuses. It was the first time I had experienced rehabbing an injury as a piece to a greater whole, rather than just an isolated piece. The rest is sort of history you could say. During my senior year of college, I enrolled in my first 550 hour comprehensive Pilates certification program through Polestar Pilates and completed it in the summer of 2015. 3 months prior, I had graduated with my BFA in Dance. After college, I went on to pursue what would be a 4 year long freelance dance career in NYC, and also taught Pilates in both boutique and large corporate studios throughout NJ and NY. I developed a robust clientele during my time living in NYC, teaching everyone from celebrities and very high profile clients, to 80 year old seniors recovering from total hip replacements, professional athletes, and everyone in between. I had been teaching Pilates for about 5 years when I felt like I needed to hit the “reset” button on my teaching and education. In 2021, I completed Alycea Ungaro’s Real Pilates 600 hour Comprehensive Pilates Teacher Training certification (RPTT). This prestigious training program was the deep dive into refining my teaching craft that I needed. It allowed me to teach both the traditional Pilates method as Joe Pilates himself had developed it to be taught, layered in with my Polestar Pilates training which enabled me to worth with clients who were more rehabilitation-driven, or had special conditions and/or pathologies. Back when COVID shut down all gyms in NYC in March of 2020, I went to live with my at-the-time boyfriend in Pennsylvania. The day after the shutdown, I had clients texting me asking if we could do “Zoom Pilates”. I had no idea what Zoom even was! I downloaded the app, taught myself to use it, and started seeing my clients from NYC for virtual privates, semi-privates, and eventually group classes. While most of my colleagues from the performing arts industry were collecting unemployment due to every performance gig being cancelled until further notice, I was bringing in more income than I ever had. My virtual teaching era, you could call it, took off immediately. I felt incredibly blessed to have had a pre-existing clientele pre-pandemic to be able to have such an instantaneously thriving online business. I made it official by forming an LLC, calling my business initially PilatEASE Virtual Pilates; a punny name that I wanted to suggest the nature of doing Pilates from the “ease” of home. I began filming on-demand workouts and started a whole on-demand library; I filmed everything from technical workouts to shorter supplemental workouts. Time went on, and my then boyfriend and I relocated to upstate New York. I landed a job dancing with a modern dance repertory company which felt like a dream job after spending 4 years freelancing with job uncertainty, and was able to take my virtual Pilates studio with me. We spent 3, precious years there. I acquired a slue of new in-person clients from renting space at fully equipped studios to keep that skillset up. I also rebranded my business to “Emily RS Pilates” during this time. I got into strength training for the first time in my life and got the strongest and healthiest I had ever been in my life. I finally felt like I healed my relationship with food and exercise from my pre-professional dancing days. I had an extremely fulfilling 3 season long run with the dance company, and was dancing the best I ever had, pain free. My boyfriend became my husband during those 3 years in upstate new york, and we said goodbye to move once again to the Annapolis Maryland area for a new job of his. I transitioned those clients from new york to virtual clients, and kept going strong with my online teaching. I had about over 200 different on-demand classes and curated programs at this point, had done several free challenges, and ran a couple of cohorts of a mentorship training program specifically for professional dancers. When we moved to Maryland, I continued to dance recreationally, but knew that my husband and I were transitioning into a new phase of life; the, *buy a house and start a family* phase. We closed on our first home together in July of 2024, and I found out I was pregnant 5 days before Thanksgiving of that same year. My messaging and social media content naturally shifted towards prenatal Pilates content as I documented my health and fitness journey throughout my whole pregnancy. I also made my first ever Prenatal Pilates program for my on-demand library in real time throughout my pregnancy. I gave birth to my son in early August on 2025, and naturally began my postpartum fitness journey. I am in the process of filming a Postpartum Pilates program that is scheduled to launch in time for my son’s 1st birthday in August of 2026. Presently, I am juggling teaching a modified online 1:1 virtual client schedule, with being a pseduo stay-at-home mom, and a part-time in person Pilates Instructor. I still see some of the virtual 1:1 clients from those immediate post-covid days in 2020 to this day, as well as many new beloved clients and on-demand members. While I hope to get back to the stage one day, I am retired from dancing professionally for the time being, and am very at peace with that.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Definitely anything but smooth! I went into some detail in telling my long, winded story of going from an injured, deconditioned dancer to a strong and healthy one thanks to Pilates and the discovery of proper cross-training, but it was an extremely difficult road to get to the healthy place i am today. I had college professors tell me that I should think about switching majors because there was no hope for me in having a dance career after I graduated college. I struggled really badly with body dysmorphia, poor body image, and developed really unhealthy habits around food. I had an all-or-nothing mindset when it came to diet and exercise, and if I went off course with what I deemed to be “allowed” in those departments, I would go flying off the handle with a binge, or spiral into a dark self-deprocating headspace. I faced lots of rejection from dream jobs during my time auditioning for dance companies in NYC. Having the 2 knee surgeries back to back felt like getting knocked down, getting back up again, and then getting knocked down twice as hard, and taking several years to “get back up again.” The road has been a bumpy one!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I would say that I am first a foremost a movement enthusiast. I’m a Pilates Instructor and movement educator who specializes in training prenatal & postpartum women, athletes and performers, and special populations.
I’m most proud of how I’ve adapted and evolved my teaching practice over the 11 years I’ve been in this industry. I think it’s really difficult to admit when you’ve changed your mind about certain values and beliefs you used to have, and keep an open mind to allow new research and findings to inform your teaching approach. Staying adaptable is key when you’re teaching. That has definitely been the case for me- i’m constantly learning new things and staying flexible in my beliefs when it comes to the Pilates method and movement in general, and i’d like to think that that is also what sets me apart from other movement professionals. I’m able to be empathetic to someone’s situation and relate to them on an emotional level, but then able to look at them objectively when it comes to determining what goals I have for them and giving them what they need over giving them what I favor.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I was a total rule follower. The “goody-goody” girl who never did anything wrong and was deathly afraid of getting into trouble ever! I was a great student and not necessarily a teacher’s pet per se, but my parents always got very good reports about my classroom behavior and sweet demeanor on back to school nights. I was a social butterfly, and never had any trouble making friends, but was also very reserved and somewhat shy, and never liked being in the spotlight when it came to getting attention. I began dancing at age 2, so interest wise, my world always revolved around dance. I played soccer recreationally for lots of years but was painfully bad at it and always wished that I was at dance class when I was on the soccer field. I had an interesting blend of a tomboy and girlie girl aesthetic- the ahtleticism from soccer and dance mixed with having a younger sister who I was always playing dress up and dolls with I guess. I was a good student from a compliancy standpoint, but was never an over achiever type of straight A student. I always did my homework, but I struggled with standardized tests and later on, really struggled with math in particular. I’ve always needed to learn things in a way that made sense to me and related to my “world”, but always loved learning. And that’s still true to this day!
Pricing:
- 1:1 Lessons: Pricing varies, email me for more information
- On Demand Membership: $22/month or $240 for an Annual Membership subscription
- Virtual Live Mat Class: $20 p/class
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.emilyrspilates.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilyrs___?igsh=MW13Zjl0dmE5bDZzMQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@emilyrelyea-spivack3893?si=fXzu3oEGPaGXaEgB
