5 Questions For Pilates Platinum Founder Heather Dorak

Ever wondered what your favorite fitness guru eats for breakfast?

What about the beauty routines of the most health-conscious bloggers? Our Thrive Questionnaire series asks some of the biggest movers and shakers in the health community about everything from their inspirations to obsessions.

This week, we’re hearing from Pilates Platinum founder Heather Dorak. Once she tried Pilates, she was hooked — and has even said it healed her life. Read on to find out about her daily routine and why she loves her work so much.

How did you start? What was the impetus for Pilates Platinum?

I have been a dancer all my life. Dancing was and still is a huge part of my life, but it suddenly came to a halt when I suffered an injury that took me out of dancing.  Looking to still stay active, Pilates Platinum began shortly after I experienced my first workout on a Megaformer, which is the revolutionary version of the Pilates machine, the Reformer.  Immediately I fell in love with the workout and experienced amazing results after just a short time. My passion for health and fitness inspired me to open my first studio in Hollywood in 2006 with a small goal in mind: to introduce this amazing workout to the community.

The phenomenon caught on very quickly, so much that I decided to expand my business and have opened studios in Brentwood, Venice Beach and Santa Monica.

Pilates Platinum is dedicated to creating a fun and energizing workout that is a journey for the mind, body and core. We believe that great customer service, a beautiful clean studio, state of the art equipment and amazing trainers are key to creating the best fitness experience for our clients. Through our passion for health, fitness and service, we believe that each 55-minute class can be transformed into an amazing experience every time and will inspire our clients to achieve their personal fitness goals.

What do you love most about teaching Pilates?

I love feeling the love people have for Pilates. You can just feel it radiate off of them. Not a single person comes or leaves with a bad attitude. My clients have shown me that there is not a single day one of them dreads coming into the studio to get their workout in, unlike what so many of us have experienced walking into a gym or with other workouts. The clients truly love coming to class. Their attitudes are contagious and carry with you throughout the rest of your day!

What makes you different from every other gym or Pilates class?

There is a reason for our madness, meaning there is a very strategic way in which the instructors move the clients from each exercise. Pilates Platinum is dedicated to creating a fun and energizing workout that is a journey for the mind, body and core. We believe that great customer service, a beautiful, clean studio, state of the art equipment and amazing trainers are key to creating the best fitness experience for our clients.

Not a single class will be like another, even if you came every single day of the year. You will exercise a different workout each and every time.

Tell us a little bit about your diet. What are your favorite snacks?

I eat as few processed foods as possible. Keeping everything as organic and as fresh as possible is key in the way I fuel my body. I always love trying out new snacks I see at Whole Foods or from a local vendor.

Making my meals as colorful as possible is the easiest way to know I am eating a variety of healthy delicious food. Salads are the easiest way to accomplish that task. Organic, fresh cold-pressed green juice is almost a daily staple, too.

I love kale chips, raw almond balls, and chia seed pudding for snacks.

What are the tools you use every day to help you thrive?

I get a  good night’s sleep. I do something for myself every day. I practice paying attention to my breath. I stay active. I hear a family member’s voice. I live selflessly by helping others. I “stop to smell the flowers.” I smile at everyone and I spread words of encouragement. I drink plenty of water.