Instructor Trainer bios

Kanako has been involved in physical training for most of her life and was trained in ballet, jazz dance, and modern dance since early childhood. She turned to Pilates after a lower back injury as a means of conditioning and improving her strength. She immediately fell in love with it and since then, her passion hasn't changed. She trained in the STOTT PILATES^® method in Canada, Tokyo and Hong Kong and in 2006 she received her Certification as an Instructor. She went on to become a Lead Instructor Trainer for Merrithew^® specializing in STOTT PILATES. In 2013, Kanako assisted with the World Tour stop in Japan and has taught Instructors in Singapore and Malaysia. A Certified Gyrotonic^® Trainer, she enjoys working with Instructors and clients helping them achieve their goals.

Karen began her Pilates journey as a client at the Merrithew^® Corporate Training Center in Toronto; where she immediately fell in love with the practice the moment she got on the Reformer. A former gymnast, dancer and all-round athlete, she loved the mind-body challenge and immediately recognized the benefits of rehabilitating old injuries and building strength without compromising flexibility. In 2010 she earned her Certified Instructor designation, and then became a Merrithew Instructor Trainer in 2014, specializing in Matwork, Reformer, Cadillac, Chair and Barrels. For two years, Karen taught at the Corporate Training Center before moving to San Francisco in 2016.

Karen teaches clients of all ages and fitness levels, with a special focus on injury prevention and post-rehabilitation reconditioning. A CPCC certified coach, she loves to motivate her clients and to ensure their practice is part of improving their health and wellness overall. She also enjoys challenging her students to formulate their own solutions and answer their own questions, helping them deepen their understanding of their practice and develop the confidence to share their knowledge with others.

Karen Christensen started dancing at the age of 7 after a bout of polio. She went on to be a professional ballet dancer working in companies in the US and Europe. Karen later became educated as a Psychomotor therapist and became the leader of a physical therapy unit at a nursing home. Being pulled back into the world of dance again, Karen continued to work with modern dance companies in Denmark as a ballet mistress, rehearsal assistant and guest teacher and opened her own dance school in Copenhagen, later moving to Aarhus to work with a dance company there. After studying the original Pilates method including training with Romana Kryszanowska, Karen chose the STOTT PILATES^® contemporary approach for her certification in 2002 and has worked with it ever since. She is an Instructor Trainer for Merrithew^® specializing in STOTT PILATES Matwork, Reformer, Cadillac, Chair, and Barrels. She continues to train professional dancers in classical ballet as well as Pilates.

Katharina Kuehnen, born and raised in Austria, is a former professional ballerina who danced with the Vienna State Opera Ballet and the Bavarian State Ballet. She discovered Pilates in 1999 as an essential counterbalance to the physical demands of ballet, eventually embracing STOTT PILATES^® as her second career after retiring from the stage in 2008.

She earned her Full STOTT PILATES^® Certification in 2009 and began teaching at Pilatesbody in Munich, working with a wide range of clients—from dance studios to osteopathic centers and high-performance athletic programs. In 2011, she became a STOTT PILATES^® Instructor Trainer for Mat& Reformer.

In 2014, Katharina relocated to Dubai, working as an Instructor Trainer for Real Pilates while continuing to freelance. Her focus later expanded to holistic wellness; she completed her Health Coach certification with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in 2019 and earned her Level 4 MELT neuro-fascial instructor certification in 2024.

Katharina returned to Austria in 2019 as a Floating STOTT PILATES^® Instructor Trainer for Merrithew^®, primarily serving the DACH region. Since 2023, she has been based in Munich, where she continues her work as a floating IT, freelance Pilates and MELT instructor, and health coach.

Katherine came to the Pilates industry from a dance background, having danced professionally in New York, Oregon and Idaho. While at University in New York, she came to love Pilates and relied on it to keep her fit and injury free. She achieved Full Certification with STOTT PILATES^® in 2010 after training first at Pacific Northwest Pilates with Master IT Melanie Byford-Young and later in England with YMCAfit. In 2011, she joined the team at the UK Licensed Training Centre, YMCA Pilates Academy as an Instructor Trainer for Merrithew^® specializing in STOTT PILATES, and is qualified in ZEN•GA^® Matwork and Equipment. She greatly enjoys helping people understand their own bodies and seeing the positive impact this method can have on functional fitness. She was granted Merrithew Lead Instructor Trainer in 2018.