A Studio Born from Conviction
Sarah Ellison danced professionally for twelve years. When a hip injury ended that chapter, she found herself in a clinical Pilates session, working on a Gratz reformer with an instructor who had trained under Romana Kryzanowska. That first session changed everything.
She spent the next four years training comprehensively in the classical method, completing over 600 hours of apprenticeship under Sari Mejia Santo, herself a direct student of Romana. Sarah learned not just the exercises, but the logic behind the order, the reason for every spring setting, and the art of reading a body and knowing exactly what it needs.
Core Balance Pilates opened in 2018 in a small space in Capitol Hill with three reformers, a mat room, and a simple idea: classical Pilates, taught seriously, in classes small enough to actually teach. No mirrors. No music. No distractions from the work.
Seven years later, the studio has expanded to its current home in the Highlands neighborhood. The reformers are still Gratz. The class sizes are still capped at six. The work is still classical.