We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Danielle Yasuda. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Danielle below.

Danielle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

I think one of the perks of being a small business is being able to do things your own way. It allows for more creativity and diversity. For example, there’s no higher power telling me we can’t offer a donation based class, etc. Which is exactly one of the ways Movement by Kiko tries to differ. The majority of our group classes are offered on a donation base or sliding scale. We will never turn someone away for lack of funds and believe it’s more important that everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic situation, has access to movement. This mindset comes from the belief that movement is healing, and everyone should have access to healing.

We also differ in that our classes bring in some somatic practices. Meaning we foster awareness of self and body and encourage our clients to give their bodies what it needs in any given moment. So it’s not one of those classes that’s going to push push push. I believe high intensity workouts have their time and place, but that’s not what we offer here. We focus on body awareness and movements that feel good while still offering a decent sweat.

And that practice of tuning into your body might feel counterintuitive at first especially when we have learned to bypass and push through, but I believe there is greater freedom in learning how to access both.

In our 1 -on -1 sessions, we also dive more into somatic work. I got interested in somatic work after being in talk therapy for years and feeling like I had reached a plateau. Nervous system work was the first work that I started to feel actual change again.
I also greatly appreciate how it correlates to movement so it seemed like a natural melding of the two.

Danielle, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Of course! I got into Pilates at a young age but I never thought I would teach it, let alone be a teacher of any kind. But because I have always been in love with movement, it made perfect sense and honestly feels like something that was always going to happen whether I knew it or not. Once I started teaching, I realized how much joy comes with it and how lucky I am to be able to work with people for a living.

Movement by Kiko offers Group Pilates Mat classes around Pasadena and Atwater Village. We also offer 1-on-1 sessions at a private studio in Eagle Rock. We have a strong focus on body awareness as well as on injury recovery. We focus on pilates techniques that help restore correct functioning while building strength, lean muscles and increasing flexibility + mobility.

You can find more details about times + rates here! https://www.movementbykiko.com/

I’m so proud of the community we’ve been creating- it’s filled with people who want to foster a better lifestyle. Whether that’s taking an hour in the day that is just for themself, it’s recovery from an injury, or it’s healing a lost connection to self. It’s a community of like minded people who love movement + healing as much as I do.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

We’re going to get a little personal here, but I had to unlearn this innate part of myself that said I wasn’t allowed to be seen. In the somatic work I’ve been studying, I’ve learned just how much actions and the states of our nervous systems are passed from generation to generation and I started to understand where this rooted belief of not being allowed to be seen came from. The fact of the matter is my family members from the past couple generations (if not more) had to be quiet and conform so not to anger those restricting them, whether that was in Internment camps or in navigating a new country without speaking the language. It makes total sense why they learned it was not safe to be seen.
But a few generations later, I found that I held on to those beliefs as well, even though the circumstances were no longer the same. So that’s the lesson I’ve been working on unlearning. To do the work I do and to do it well, I’m learning the importance of vulnerability and authenticity. It requires letting others see you which is very much a work in progress.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Ooof. This is close to home. Unfortunately a massive pivot in my business and life took place at the start of this year. I had been living in Altadena for the past 8 years of my life and when I wanted to start my business, I knew immediately I wanted it out of my home in Altadena. It felt like the perfect fit. The perfect environment that felt far enough out of the city for my clients to rejuvenate for an hour. And it was perfect. I mean, the house itself was in no way perfect, but the location, the massive windows, the trees that completely covered it, the fact that it felt like a cabin; that was all perfect.
Due to the Eaton Fires earlier this year, I unfortunately lost everything and have since been figuring out next steps, working to rebuild, and contemplating about the future.

My temporary plan is to rebuild in Eagle Rock. I was lucky enough to find a cute home where I’ve been working to turn my garage into a mini studio space. It definitely works for now and I feel fortunate to have so many supportive friends and family that have enabled me to rebuild a temporary spot so quickly. As for long term, I still feel fairly uncertain. The future state of Altadena feels fairly uncertain. But within the community there is still a sense of hope that it will rebuild without letting too many developers in who want to change the innate appeal of Altadena. And so I hold on to that hope as well and try to stay as aware and involved as possible.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.movementbykiko.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kikoyasuda/

Image Credits

G L Askew