The Emergence Podcast

We all want the shortcut to mastery. But what if the only way up is through 10,000 hours of unglamorous, gritty work? On the newest episode of Emergence, ⁠Katie ⁠ and I strip away the glossy facade of the fitness industry to talk about what it actually takes to build a lasting practice. We’re digging into why abandoning the desire for instant gratification is your biggest asset, and how treating e...

What happens when the person used to holding everyone else up suddenly needs to be carried? In this episode of Emergence , we sit down with Michael Autore to explore a profound role reversal. As a coach and service provider, Michael was always the pillar of strength for his clients—until a sudden cancer diagnosis forced him to step back and learn the hardest lesson of all: how to receive. Michael...

Emergence Episode: From Dance to Healing, Authentic Teaching, and the Power of Pilates with Ashlea From suffering a severe spinal injury at age 18 to becoming a leading Pilates voice with over 200,000 followers, Ashlea’s journey is a testament to the healing power of mindful movement. In this episode of  Emergence , Laura sits down with Ashley McKee— classical Pilates instructor and founder of Ela...

Redefining High Performance, Neurochemistry, and Radical Autonomy with Jordan Fairclough In this episode, Jordan Fairclough joins Laura to dismantle the traditional, rigid definition of "winning at all costs" and replaces it with a sustainable framework built on longevity, presence, and internal mastery. Inside the episode: The "Suitcase Test":  Why true performance is about li...

In this episode of The Emergence Podcast , we sit down with Alana Wilber , founder of BOA Pilates , to discuss what it really takes to build a sustainable career as a movement educator by following your joy and trusting your intuition. Alana shares her candid journey from navigating tech sales in San Francisco to intentionally building a solo studio and a robust online infrastructure. We unpack th...

Max Lobato on Studio Energy, Burnout, and Ditching the "Instagram Pilates" Performance Teaching movement is a massive energy exchange. This week on  Emergence , we strip away the rigidity of the fitness industry to talk about the human behind the teacher with London-based classical Pilates instructor Max Lobato. We get into the reality of 12-hour teaching days, navigating the intense energy of hig...

Welcome back to the  Emergence Podcast ! We are officially kicking off Season 2, and if the current fitness landscape feels like the "Wild West" to you, you aren't alone. In this season premiere, host  Laura Gunder —ex-professional ballerina turned NYC classical Pilates instructor—sets the stage for a year focused on the  human  side of being a fitness professional. For years, Laura...

Laura reflects on her conversation with Kira Lamb this week, exploring the concept of reverence in movement practice and teaching. She discusses the importance of respecting your craft enough to embrace struggle, curiosity, and the discomfort of not knowing, recognizing that mastery takes years of trial and error. Laura reminds listeners that sustaining yourself as a practitioner requires adaptabi...

In this week's episode, Laura welcomes New York-based Pilates instructor Kira Lamb for a conversation about building a sustainable teaching practice rooted in classical methodology. Kira shares her journey from ballet dancer to creating the viral Contrology Freak Challenge, and offers practical wisdom on navigating the early years of teaching without burning out. The conversation explores the...

In this week's episode of The Walk, Laura reflects on her conversation with Erica Almodovar, exploring the ongoing journey of becoming a skilled Pilates teacher. Laura discusses embracing struggle as part of the learning process, reminding listeners that certification is just the beginning and true mastery comes through years of practice and embodiment. She addresses the business side of teach...

In this episode, Laura sits down with renowned classical Pilates instructor Erica Almodovar, who shares her journey from managing health clubs to studying directly under Romana Kryzanowska and becoming an international teacher trainer. Erica reflects on her nearly 30 years in the industry, the invaluable lessons from observing Romana's teaching, and her commitment to passing on the classical m...

On this week's episode of The Walk, Laura shares a candid reflection on the importance of slowing down and resisting the urge to constantly push for more. Drawing on her conversation with Emilio Lara about humility and sustainable success, she discusses her own tendency to become controlling during uncertain times and emphasizes that ambitious fitness professionals must balance their drive for...

On this week's episode of The Emergence Podcast, Laura chats with Emilio Lara, a coach, trainer, and multi-hyphenate creative based in Mexico City. They dive into a focused conversation around movement and discipline and how that translates into his way of life—across fitness and creativity. Emilio shares stories from his journey, from being an active kid inspired by his older brother's tr...

On the Walk this week, Laura discusses key insights from her conversation with first-year instructor Emma Baker, emphasizing the importance of bringing one's full life experience into teaching rather than fitting a narrow definition of fitness professional. She explores practical strategies, including focusing on "needle-moving" micro-actions over overwhelming macro goals, creating g...

In this episode of The Emergence Podcast, Laura sits down with Emma Baker, a New York-based personal trainer who made the leap from ballet dancer and corporate writer to fitness professional just a year and a half ago. Emma shares the realities of being a new trainer in New York City, from managing the physical and mental demands of running between studios to navigating the identity shift that com...

Laura reflects on last week's conversation with Stephanie Krempa and gets candid about her own struggles with burnout and overextension. Drawing from Stephanie's holistic approach to wellness, she opens up about pushing past her boundaries despite knowing better—a tendency many ambitious, Type-A personalities share. Laura emphasizes the importance of listening to your body's cues befor...

This week on the Emergence podcast, Laura sits down with certified trainer, nutritionist, and yoga instructor Stephanie Krempa to discuss the realities of building a sustainable fitness career. Stephanie shares her journey from competitive runner battling female athlete triad to holistic coach, exploring the industry pressures around appearance, navigating injuries and weight fluctuations, and why...

In this episode of The Walk, Laura revisits her conversation with strength and nutrition coach Roxie Jones, diving deeper into the concept of biodata feedback and the allostatic load model as frameworks for understanding how chronic stress impacts the body. She emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between productive signals from the body and persistent noise that indicates deeper issues, ur...

In this episode, Laura sits down with Roxie Jones, a strength and nutrition coach based in New York who shares her winding journey from fashion to fitness. Roxie opens up about her SoulCycle obsession that led to teaching multiple classes a day before burning out, her honest experience with bodybuilding competitions in her twenties, and how she evolved from aesthetics-focused training to performan...

In this week's episode of The Walk, Laura reflects on her conversation with coach Kat Zenger-Atienza, exploring how fitness professionals can stay grounded amid technological and social uncertainty. She emphasizes the importance of establishing morning routines and systems that anchor practitioners in their bodies, enabling them to show up more thoughtfully for clients instead of constantly re...

In this week's episode, Laura interviews fitness professional Kat Zenger-Atienza about her transition from general population training to specializing in prenatal and postpartum clients. Kat discusses how becoming a mother fundamentally shifted her perspective on movement, leading her to recognize the privilege of accessing quality fitness resources and education. The conversation explores her...

In this episode of The Walk, Laura reflects on her inspiring conversation with Pilates instructor Sara Talbert, drawing key insights about authenticity and business sustainability in the fitness industry. Laura discusses Sara's advice about taking calculated risks and believing in yourself when pursuing a full-time teaching career, while exploring her own journey of embracing her unique person...

In this episode of the Emergence Podcast, Laura sits down with Sara Talbert, a seasoned Pilates instructor with over 25 years of experience in the industry. Sara shares her journey from discovering Pilates as a college runner to building a thriving studio business while raising three children. She discusses the transformative impact of finding mentor Sonjé Mayo after decades of teaching, which rei...

In this week's episode of The Walk, Laura reflects on her conversation with Jordan Fairclough, a former Liverpool FC performance coach, about taking calculated risks and betting on yourself in your fitness career. She emphasizes the importance of creating safety nets before making major career pivots, drawing from her own experience of building a private practice while maintaining stability at...

Laura is joined by Jordan Fairclough, a former Liverpool Football Club first-team physical performance coach who spent seven and a half years working with elite athletes before choosing to follow his intuition and pursue his own venture. Jordan shares his journey from realizing he was living someone else's dream as a footballer to finding himself "out of alignment" despite working at one of the wo...