Ashleigh Hayes said she found herself walking into a local Pilates studio nearly a decade ago hoping to find an escape from the anxiety lingering from her severe car accident. 

Hayes said she felt she could let go of the anxiety and tune out the world during the workouts, which focused on intentional breathing, body awareness and controlled movements. 

“Being able to escape (and) tune out the world, (Pilates) was everything I needed,” Hayes said. “It taught me discipline, breath work, alignment; I’ve grown so much just because of Pilates.”

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