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Our Staff
“Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness. In order to achieve happiness, it is imperative to gain mastery of your body.”
~Joseph H. Pilates
Joy George-Bryden
Owner & Director
Joy George-Bryden was Certified by the New York Pilates® Studio under the tutelage of Romana Kryzanowska as an Authentic Pilates™ Instructor and through Romana’s Pilates Instructor Training Program. She is also a Pilates Method Alliance (PMA) Gold-Certified Instructor. Joy has completed more than 2000 hours of comprehensive Pilates Teacher Training in Philadelphia, Boston, and New York and is regarded as a second-generation Pilates teacher, tracing her Pilates lineage back to Joseph Pilates himself through her teachers Romana Kryzanowska and Sari Mejia Santo, who learned directly from Joseph Pilates at his original studio in New York City. Joy has also trained with Pilates Elders Jay Grimes, Mary Bowen, Kathy Grant, and Lolita San Miguel, as well as master teachers Bob Liekens, Peter Fiasca, Cynthia Lochard, Jerome Weinberg, Brooke Siler, Alycea Ungaro, Michael Fritzke and Ton Voogt. Joy was first introduced to Pilates as a dancer in 1978, and has been a Certified Pilates Teacher since 1993. She has logged more than 16,000 hours of teaching in the Authentic Pilates Method, and continues her training with approximately 100 hours of continuing education per year. Certified in all levels of Pilates mat and apparatus work, she is dedicated to maintaining and teaching the original system of exercises and philosophies developed by Joseph H. Pilates — what is today called True Pilates.
In 2009, Joy became a Teacher Trainer for the United States Pilates Association™ (
U.S.P.A™). She is a teacher of teachers for The New York Pilates Studio®Teacher Certification Program, with Joe's Place-True Pilates serving as a training site and affiliate studio.
Joy is a State Licensed Massage Therapist and Reflexologist, Certified by the National Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork, with a specialty Certification in Orthopedic Massage. Her technique incorporates many years of training in sports massage, orthopedic massage, myofascial release, trigger point & deep tissue therapy, Swedish massage, reflexology, shiatsu and Thai massage.
She is a Licensed Personal and Corporate Wellness Coach and Certified Nutrition Specialist, an ACE-Certified Clinical Exercise Specialist, an ACSM-Certified Health & Fitness Specialist, and a Personal Trainer, Certified by both the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Joy also completed certificate training in the TRX Suspension System in 2010. A former professional dancer and NIKE-sponsored fitness spokesperson, with more than twenty-five years' experience in the health and fitness industry, Joy's background includes extensive training in exercise physiology, kinesiology, strength and conditioning, post-rehab fitness, nutrition, and stress management, as well as practical experience in health club, sports medicine, physical therapy and hospital settings.
She is a member of the National Association of Professional Women, the American Massage Therapy Association, the Pilates Method Alliance, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, the American College of Sports Medicine, and Wellcoaches.
Joy completed her Master of Science degree in Health Psychology after receiving her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting. When away from her Pilates business, she enjoys working in her home studio producing oil paintings and drawings, primarily studies of the human figure and the body in motion. She is currently at work on a practical manual of the True Pilates System, which will be illustrated with a series of figure drawings depicting the artful movement patterns of Pilates.
Debbie Billings
Senior Certified Pilates Instructor
Debbie began her Pilates journey in 2000 when the health club she attended added
Pilates mat classes to the group exercise schedule. After a few classes she was hooked,
and after about a year, began taking private lessons in order to fine tune her form and
experience the various Pilates apparatus. Her passion for Pilates grew, and in 2005
she entered the Peak Pilates Teacher Training program and completed her comprehensive
Certification. Debbie also plans on completing her Authentic Pilates Certification through the
New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program in 2011.
Debbie has been teaching at Joe's Place-True Pilates since 2005 and is our Senior
Instructor. Currently, her life is organized around teaching and practicing Pilates. She
believes that working within the classical Pilates tradition is the best way for clients to build and maintain a strong core, improve flexibility and balance, create stronger and leaner muscles, strengthen bones and increase energy.
Debbie plans to practice and teach Pilates well into her older years, and hopes to improve the quality of her clients' lives by passing on her understanding of the classical Pilates system.
Connie McLean-Stead
Certified Pilates Mat Instructor and Pilates Apprentice Instructor
Conie is a retired speech-language pathologist, who serviced children with disabilities for
thirty-four years in the public schools on Cape Cod. Her love of teaching has carried over to
instructing adults in the Classical Method of Pilates.
Connie was introduced to Pilates in 2006, and soon realized that the consistent practice of
Pilates improved her chronic back issues. Diagnosed with scoliosis as a young child, she has
always been active and aware of the benefits of maintaining her strength and flexibility.
Connie was certified as a Pilates Mat Instructor through Power Pilates in 2008. In 2010, she entered the New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program. Connie plans to complete her Authentic Pilates Certification in 2011.
Rachel Spuria
Pilates Apprentice Instructor
(photo & bio coming soon)
Rachel entered the New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program in 2009, and plans to complete her full certification in 2011.
Debbie Mason
Pilates Apprentice Instructor (photo & bio coming soon)
Debbie is completing the pre-requisites required to enter the New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program in February 2011, and plans to complete her full certification by 2012.
Mona Kelly
Pilates Apprentice (photo coming soon)
Mona, a French native, holds a Masters Degree in European Public Policy. Before moving to the United States in March 2010, Mona worked as a Marketing and Human Resources Director in a large market research company in the Netherlands. With a lifelong passion for movement, more than 10 years of dance and yoga experience, Mona was certified as a Vinyasa yoga instructor in 2005. She has been teaching in Europe since then while pursuing her business career. After relocating to Cape Cod, and in need for a career change, Mona decided to become a full time fitness professional and is now an ACE-certified group fitness instructor. She also recently received certification in the TRX Suspension System.
Mona’s strong interest for precision, quality and fluidity of movement, naturally brought her to Pilates. After taking mat and apparatus training at various studios in Europe for the past 5 years, Mona made the decision to pursue the New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program. She plans to complete her full certification by 2012.
Teaching has also been a wonderful and meaningful experience. She enjoys helping a client find a deeper awareness of his/her body as well as to realize its strength.
Mona is passionate about her husband and their son Nathaniel, and enjoys being outdoors, interior design, and photography. She is also the proud stepmother of two bright young adults, Marissa and Jeffrey.
Allen Larson
Pilates Apprentice (photo & bio coming soon)
Allen is entering the New York Pilates Studio® Teacher Certification Program in February 2011, and plans to complete his full certification by 2012.
Amanda Winans
Marketing Manager
In 2008, Amanda joined Joe's Place-True Pilates as our Marketing Manager. Her strong
background in marketing combined with her interest and commitment to her own Pilates
practice gives Amanda a true client perspective and helps us shape our marketing methods
toward client benefit and value.
In addition to her duties at Joe's Place, Amanda is the owner of Great Point Marketing,
a business she started after working within the industry for several years. Amanda is a
true people-person -- high energy, extremely detail oriented, with strong planning and
communication skills. Coupled with creative ideas for product applications and the ability
to coordinate the efforts of many to meet her goals, she is productive and efficient -- and we are thrilled to have
her talents representing our studio.
A Cape Cod resident for 12 years, Amanda lives in Cotuit with her husband, and two beautiful children.
Marilyn Luczsz
Administrative Assistant - (photo & bio coming soon)