THIS IS US
“Our passion for helping others to move their bodies with strength and control has been a developing journey, and has grown along with our personal journeys of understanding and improving our own bodies”.
OVERVIEW
/ JUSTINE JOHNSON
I am a registered biokineticist and certified yoga and pilates instructor, so my main focus is the movement and improvement of the human body.
I am passionate about helping others to understand and improve their own strength, awareness, flexibility and control. I love the challenge of working with each unique body that comes through my door. The journey I walk with each client in discovering and understanding the capabilities of their own bodies is endlessly inspiring and a great privilege.
Background
/ MY JOURNEY
Being a competitive swimmer at school, and later realising that I loved teaching swimming as well, deciding to become a biokineticist seemed a natural step in terms of combining my love of swimming and movement with working with people. I studied BSc Human Movement Science at Wits, and BSc Honours in Biokinetics at The University of Zululand. I became a fully registered biokineticist in 2008.
After four years in different biokinetic practices I decided to enrol in Classical Pilates training. This was a huge turning point in my understanding of moving the human body with mindful awareness. I found the experience of feeling and understanding how to move my own body imperative to understanding how to move the bodies of the patients and clients who came to me for biokinetic treatment. This experience led me to open my own biokinetic practice in 2011, where I could apply my biokinetic knowledge using pilates as my exercise and rehabilitation modality. I completed my advanced Classical Pilates certification in 2012, and became a 3rd generation teacher under the Romana Kryzanowska lineage.
In 2015, I decided to try Vinyasa yoga because I was looking for a movement modality offering complementary outcomes to pilates. I first fell in love with the control, focus and flow that was emphasised in yoga and later with the holistic approach of yoga in addressing the body, breath and mind. After three years of practicing yoga for myself and noticing the changes in my personal strength, flexibility, body awareness and muscular control, I could no longer keep the yoga out of my work and completed the 200hr Vinyasa yoga teacher training at The Yoga Republic in 2018.
My journey so far has been exciting, fulfilling and has taken me places I never thought I’d go. My passion for physical movement has been enhanced by the philosophies of spiritual, emotional and intellectual movement that play such a huge part in a happy, healthy whole. I continue to learn and continue to adapt, and as I do, I impart more knowledge to the people I love to help.
OVERVIEW
/ CHANTÉ FOURIE
In the words of Steve Jobs: “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle.”
As a registered Biokineticist and certified Pilates Instructor, I feel so thankful and blessed to truly love what I do. Movement and general health are passions and priorities in my life. I find it so satisfying to see improvement in a person’s physical abilities, awareness of their body and overall wellbeing.
Background
/ MY JOURNEY
My love for movement developed when I started dancing at a young age. What I loved most was the ability to express myself through movement. I also found that dancing strengthened me while improving my mind-body connection. This was a key factor in deciding to study Human Movement Science. I completed my BSc Honours in Biokinetics at NWU Potchefstroom and from there, in 2019, I worked at the Institute of Biokinetics in Potchefstroom.
Looking for different exercise modalities to complement and use as a Biokineticist, I completed the Contemporary Pilates Mat Course with Tanya Thompson in 2019. In January 2020, I accepted the position of Associate Biokineticist at JJust Move – Yoga, Biokinetics and Pilates Studio – in Kyalami, with the intention of furthering my knowledge and experience as a Biokineticist. Learning to use Classical Pilates as a movement and exercise modality as well as learning to use it as an exercise rehabilitation tool has been an enriching journey. My knowledge continues to grow every day at JJust Move, where I am blessed to have Justine Johnson as a mentor. What I am finding most exciting is learning to see how a client is moving and from there, choosing which movements and exercises will help each individual client to get the most benefit out of every session. I have learnt, and continue learning, to become more aware of every movement and how to use my words to access the areas which need the most attention for every client. As a Biokineticist with anatomical knowledge, working in this way, and having Pilates as one of my tools to help rehabilitate a patient’s injury and improve their overall quality of life, is not only exciting, but fulfilling as well.
I believe that through different experiences and choices, life has led me to this point of working and learning in this studio and I am enjoying every minute of it. I am eager for the road ahead and look forward to gaining as much knowledge and experience as possible along the way.
One of my favourite quotes from Joseph Pilates is “Change happens through movement and movement heals.” My goal for each client that I work with is to instil the following: Move frequently. Exercise with awareness. Use movement as medicine whenever possible. Remember you do not stop moving when you get old, you get old when you stop moving. JJust Move.
