top of page
OUR TEACHERS
@ Spinefulness Studio, Palo Alto

Our Teachers

Palo Alto Instructors
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA INSTRUCTORS 
IMG_0179.jpg
Jenn Sherer

Jenn found Spinefulness after suffering 25 years of back, neck, knee, shoulder, & bunion pains.  She used to believe these pains and any overall body tightness was caused by aging or genetics.

Today, Jenn feels younger and stronger than she did a decade ago. She's passionate about having others discover the potential of wellness at any age. She knows that much of the musclar-skeletal aches & pains of an "aging" body doesn't have to be tolerated. She loves to give others hope & help them unwind their bodies by understanding the physics of their flesh & bone.

 

Jenn has a B.S. in Product Design Engineering from Stanford University and is a student of the anatomy and energy of the spine.

unnamed-2.jpg
Janet Cook 

Janet was first introduced to Spinefulness (then called Balance) in the late 1990's. For her, Spinefulness explained the regal alignment and effortless movement she had witnessed during her world travels. She applied the practice to level her pelvis, extend her spine and reduce the awkwardness & curvature from her scoliosis.  

 

Janet has a BS in textile design from Auburn University is also a license Certified Massage Practitioner. She had a career in project management in pharmaceutical product development before she turned to the healing work of Spinefulness and massage and this spinal journey which has changed her life-physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Instructors By State
 SPINEFULNESS INSTRUCTORS BY STATE:
Certified and In Training

ARIZONA

Season Harris

Tuscon, AZ

 

Teacher In Training: Completed 3/5 of her teaching requirements. Last training on 1/28/20

Continuing education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2019)

season@spinefulness.com

Please reload

CALIFORNIA 

Alyson Bloom

Chico, CA

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed in 2019, Last training on 7/14/19

Continuing Ed:   Georgia 12 hour Aplomb workshop Sept 2019

alison@spinefulness.com

Amy Butte

Santa Monica, CA

Teacher In Training: Completed 1/5 of her teaching requirements. Last training on 2018

Of course it is posture! A couple of herniated discs and serendipitously meeting Jenn Sherer finally led Amy to learn the simple keys to correcting curved, asymmetric, and fussy posture. Spinefulness aligns us back along our body's bones and core, yielding health, relaxation, and strength. Amy has studied Spinefulness since 2013 and teaches students in the Los Angeles area. 

 

Prior to teaching, Amy has worked to solve another core problem, climate change, with work in renewable energy and sustainability. She has an MBA from Wharton and a BA from Stanford. Amy also enjoys walking and biking, meditation, and writing.

Dana Davis CA

Petaluma, CA 

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed in 1997

Continued education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2018)

Dana Davis first met Jean Couch around 1994, when her boss threw his back out and got help from Jean. She entered Jean's teacher training in 1996 and was certified in 1997.  She had no intention of becoming a teacher initially, but really just wanted to improve her horrible posture. That changed when she saw the incredible benefits that Balance/Spinefulness brought to her and so many others. She now operates Sonoma Body Balance, a posture and yoga studio in Petaluma, CA.

Dana has practiced yoga since 1984 and is a graduate of the 3-year Advanced Studies Program at the Yoga Room in Berkeley (a 500-hour program). She is certified by Judith Lasater to teach Restorative Yoga, by Elise Miller to teach Yoga for Scoliosis, and by Dr. Loren Fishman to teach Yoga for Osteoporosis. She has a B.A. in Psychology and an M.A. in Spirituality and was a professional Flamenco dancer for 7 years in San Francisco, performing twice in the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival."

dana@sonomabodybalance.com

Heather Stillman

Culver City, CA  (Los Angeles Area)

Teacher In Training: Completed 150 out of 160 hours of  her teaching requirements. Last training on 7/16/19

heather@spinefulness.com

Judi Silverman

Santa Barbara, CA

Certified Teacher: 200hrs Completed in 2002 

Continued education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2019), Spinefulness workshops (2017, 2018) 

Judi Silverman is a Certified Spinefulness Teacher; she earned certification in 2002.  She has continued to take week-long workshops with Jean Couch and Jenn Sherer in 2017 and 2018.  In 2018 she studied Aplomb in Paris with Noelle Perez Christianeans. She also studied with Stefano Lenzi, of Aplomb in Bologna Italy.  Judi practices Spinefulness 24/7. She feels that the beauty and genius of this work allows a person to become strong and possess a youthful body alignment, while being pain-free.  She feels that everyone of every age can benefit from learning these simple principles. She looks forward to connecting with new students!

judi@spinefulness.com

Karen Engler

San Francisco, CA

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed in 2011

karen@spinefulness.com

Kimi Mack

kimi@spinefulness.com

Laura Albrecht

Santa Cruz, CA

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed in 2009

Continued education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2009,2010,2015)

Laura lives in Santa Cruz, CA. In 2009, she found Spinefulness and it continues to be a grounding presence in her life. It's helped her overcome her previous sports injuries, back aches, foot pain and to deepen her yoga practice. Mostly, it allowed her to inhabit her body with intelligence and poise–something she never felt in all her years of athletics and yoga. Laura holds a BA in English from UC Berkeley where she also played NCAA Division I Soccer.  She has studied at the Ashtanga Yoga Institute at Mount Madonna Center (200 hour certification) and holds a Personal Trainer Certificate from the American Council on Exercise. Spinefulness informs the way she teaches yoga and trains clients. She has extensive experience working with young athletes and people with disabilities.

laura.elizabeth.albrecht@gmail.com

Satyana Lauri Hall

Grass Valley, CA

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed before 2005

satyanahall@gmail.com

Thea Sawyer

San Jose, CA

Certified Teacher: 160 hrs Completed in 1997

Continued Education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2019)

Thea had crippling back pain, scoliosis and lumbar disk damage that
limited her activities, sapped her energy and profoundly affected her life.
Physical therapy that brought no relief. One she discovered Spinefulness,
she began to feel and release muscular tension her pain diminished right
away. Its healing power of has made her a passionate practitioner. Thea
has been teaching at the Balance Center since 1992 and was also certified
by Noelle Perez at the Aplomb Institute in Paris, France in 1997. Her
empirical studies of healthy posture have taken her to Mexico, Argentina, India,
Portugal, France and The Netherlands. She loves to share her knowledge of
pain-free posture and how to maintain energetic movement at any age.

thea@spinefulness.com

Please reload

Linda Kamisato

 Bethesda, MD

Teacher In Training: Completed 40 hours or 1/5 of her teaching requirements. Last training on 7/16/19

linda@spinefulness.com

Please reload

ILLINOIS

Jessica Myers

Quincy, IL

Certified Teacher:  Completed 160 hours of training on 1/28/2020


Jessica Myers discovered Spinefulness in 2008 when she began finding various books on the
subject. By 2013 she knew she needed to find a teacher. After the first week of Jenn and Jean’s
teacher training, Jessica realized that Spinefulness is more foundational than the various tai chi
forms she’s been teaching since 2005. Jessica also felt Spinefulness should be a precursor to the
medical qigong training she is completing now (even though traditional Qigong posture doesn’t
quite match). “Spinefulness has taught me to see how people move, and I see most of us would
be so much more comfortable in our bodies with a little Spinefulness. So, spine, hips, feet, one
person at a time.”

​217-222-8965 (landline)   Facebook.com/taichiquincy

     

taichi@adams.net

Please reload

INDIANA

John Raven

South Bend, IN

Certified Teacher: 200hrs Completed in 2017. Updated training in 2018

Continuing education: Advanced Aplomb Spinefulness (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019)

John has been studying Spinefulness since 2009.  In addition to his extensive training in the US, he has also study from the source in France, called Aplomb.  

 

At 16, John was diagnosed with arthritis in both of his big toes. This eventually made it almost impossible to walk.  He also had a bike accident which caused numbness (pudendal neuralgia).  He tried yoga, physical therapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, and message.  But nothing helped the arthritic toes or pudendal neuralgia.  Finally, he discovered Spinefulness.  It immediately made sense to John that the human body is designed to be naturally strong and pain-free.  We are not designed to break down and be disabled with injuries at such young ages.   While attending Spinefulness workshops, his pain would go completely away.  As he got deeper into the practice he got better and better at keeping the pain away on his own.  John has a BA in Economics from IU Bloomington.  In his free time, John enjoys walking, reading, gardening, dancing, and improv.

Please reload

MASSACHUSETTS

Pamela Smith

Northampton, MA

Certified Teacher: 200hrs Completed in 2019, Last training on 1/22/19

     

pamela@spinefulness.com

Please reload

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Joy Flemming

Peterborough, NH
 

Certified Teacher: 200hrs Completed in 2019, Last training on 1/22/19

Joy Flemming has been a massage therapist for over 30 years, and recently added Spinefulness to her techniques. She was Director of Complimentary Therapies at the Center for Integrative Therapy in Chicago, IL from 1995 to 1999, where she was part of a team treating patients in chronic pain, and has had a private massage therapy practice in NH since 2012. Joy says: "Adding Spinefulness has been the missing link in my understanding of how to treat muscle pain - I have always been looking for greater postural understanding, and now I have an effective method to teach clients to modify posture and movement, which can reduce chronic pain." Joy practices and teaches in the Peterborough, NH area, and is also a bassoonist teaching and performing in the Southern NH/VT area.

joy@spinefulness.com

Please reload

NEW YORK

Suki Sohn

Irvington, NY 

Teacher In Training. Completed 1/5 of her teaching requirements. Last training on 3/6/15

suki@spinefulness.com

Please reload

WASHINGTON

Nina Sajeske

Port Townsend, WA 

Teacher In Training. Completed 3/5 of her teaching requirements. Last training on 1/23/18

nina@spinefulness.com

Please reload

bottom of page