Our August 2021 Member of the Month's mother dreamed for her daughter to be a ballerina, but that wasn’t in the cards for her. Her mother also pushed her daughter towards Pilates as a way to try and get her to walk like a dancer. We are proud to introduce our August 2021 Member of the Month, Brandis Sarich!
Brandis grew up in San Francisco. She loved gymnastics and spent most of her childhood doing tumbling routines in order to get from point A to point B. As she got older, Brandis began gravitating towards yoga and trained to be a yoga teacher, being very dedicated to practicing Ashtanga for years. “Unfortunately, I injured myself a lot doing extreme yoga and had to let go of my dedication to practicing yoga.” Fast forward to 2019, and Brandis takes notice of her good friend Debbie (who Brandis practiced yoga with) practicing Pilates on Maui. “Her joy in doing Pilates made me curious, and then I found Maui Pilates Studio, with a ballet dancer as the teacher (my mother highly approves). It was meant to be.”
Brandis has been a Maui Pilates Studio Ohana Member since 2019. We asked Brandis what are some positive changes she's noticed from practicing Pilates regularly. Here's what she said: “My body is in less pain and I'm learning better body awareness. I'm taller and leaner. My pre-Pilates clothes hang off me, which is a positive in my case. I think somehow I’m in better control of my mental health also. In my job, it’s easy to get stressed to a breaking point. I never think I’ll be able to step away from work and make it to class, but I still go to Pilates and BREATHE and get out of my head and into my body and leave class feeling balanced and calm.” Brandis is always eager to learn. Recently, she had a major discovery: “I can move my shoulder girdle independently of my ribs. I never knew this was possible.” Brandis also finds it challenging to change patterns in her body. "My shoulders always want to fire first and lift up to initiate movement.” If you are considering starting Pilates, Brandis says: “Go see Or and follow his advice. He has your best interests in mind”. Brandis is always grateful for the love she shares with her partner, Pono. “He is my champion, who supports and loves the things that I love, like Pilates.” Pono is not shy to show his love for Brandis by sporting a tattoo of Brandis on his leg! Check it out next time Pono comes to class. Besides Pilates, Brandis and Pono also love to surf and paddle their OC-2. We asked Brandis what the future looks like for her? Her answers started with the past… “From the time I was 4, I spent most of my time in my dad’s engineering office where I learned drawing and client relations, and by the age of 5 had determined that I would be an architect because they had better art supplies than engineers. Architects never really retire, but my hope is to travel more with my love, Pono, paint more, and work a bit less.” One travel plan on her bucket list is to travel to Kyoto, Japan. Brandis' wish is to be dressed in traditional Japanese clothes and have tea! Brandis wants to close with a shout out to the Maui Pilates Studio Ohana: “I adore the Maui Pilates Studio Ohana that's been created. Even when I’m stressed and tired and not talking, I’m so happy to be practicing Pilates with all of you!”
