After surviving a pandemic shutdown, Leah Rogers’s business has emerged transformed.
Rogers founded her yoga studio in Pass Christian in 2017 and has rebranded the business as Selah Pilates & Wellness — relocating to her hometown of Ocean Springs. The health crisis forced the studio to shut down from March to mid-July, Rogers explains, and it became too difficult to maintain the brick-and-mortar location while competing with free online yoga offerings — so some tough choices became necessary.
“COVID forced me to really level up as an owner and an instructor,” Rogers says, “but it also opened up new opportunities. You know what they say: When one door closes, another opens!”
In January, the doors officially opened to her new Pilates studio, located at The Inlet Shops and Residences off of Highway 90. The revamped Selah features a different class schedule and flow, high-end Pilates equipment and instructors who are certified and degreed in multiple movement fields.
Amid all the changes, mindful movement remains the business’s guiding principle.
“Our core philosophy is ‘breathe, align, refine,’ and (we focus) on moving from the breath, aligning properly and refining our movements over time,” Rogers says. “The Pilates method works from the inside out, and true wellness is an inside job.”
Selah, the owner adds, is ideal for those who value movement as a way to invest in their wellbeing and want fitness to feel like self-care. Rogers became familiar with mat Pilates as a dancer, and after becoming injured, she was introduced to apparatus equipment as a way to rehabilitate. She is especially excited to offer Selah clients reformer, Cadillac and tower equipment, allowing them to experience an array of styles and reap the associated rewards — including greater strength, flexibility and endurance.
“I know firsthand the blessings and benefits of the Pilates method as Joseph Pilates himself intended it,” Rogers says. “The apparatus equipment is part of that, but it is very expensive. I have to balance the growth of my business, having limited space with COVID restrictions, and business expenses with adding to our apparatus collection to fulfill my studio vision.”
Patrons can participate in small group classes or opt for private or semi-private instruction. Services primarily are centered on Pilates apparatus and mat work, but Selah also offers some anatomy-informed yoga and barre classes. Rogers emphasizes that the studio’s instructors have trained for years and continue their education regularly to stay current in their knowledge and techniques.
“I am always looking to grow and improve as an instructor, and my staff is like that too,” Rogers says. “I know we all plan to keep training and learning to better serve our Selah community.”
IF YOU GO:
(228) 219-2788
2501 Bienville Blvd., Suite 3, Ocean Springs
9 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 9 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, closed Sunday
www.pilatesgulfcoast.com
@selahpilateswellness – Facebook & Instagram