Meet The Team – The Pilates Sculpt Studio Chapin SC

Meet The Team

Tara Zigdon

Owner & Instrucor

My husband and I are the proud owners of this award winning studio. I love my beautiful home of South Carolina, and I’m thrilled to be a local business owner of this amazing facility, a huge priority of ours is to always give back and stay involved in the surrounding community!

I have been an athlete since I was a small child playing sports such as soccer and basketball into the college level. I fell in love with the practice of pilates after being briefly paralyzed from my waist down, after 6 months of rehab and then joining pilates, it truly transformed my body back to the healthiest it’s ever been. I returned to college a few years ago after having my second child, my goal was to become a doctor of physical therapy. This journey has been slowed down, as I have opened several businesses the past couple years, and I am now a mom of 4! However slow my journey may be to becoming a doctor I do not anticipate ever stopping continuing my educational journey, and will reach that goal one day. I have over a decade of coaching experience, and a decade of pilates experience. Owning studios has allowed me to accomplish one of my life callings, and that is helping people live a better life through physical fitness. Pilates is a life changing method, and the apparatus we use are proven to transform the body. I truly believe that joining the Pilates Sculpt Studio can positively impact your life, weather through enhancing your physical fitness, or introducing you to the wonderful, supportive community that comes along with it!

Marcellina Mele

Instructor

Marcellina Mele, PMA®-NCPT, knows that physical movement is vital for holistic body wellness. She started her Pilates journey in 2002, was classically trained in 2013 in all levels of mat, props and prenatal. In 2018, she obtained her contemporary certification for all apparatus under McEntire Pilates. She further achieved her Certified Pilates Teacher designation through the National Pilates Certification (NPCP-PMA) in 2019. With a background as a pole vaulter, runner and dancer she understands the athletic demand of bodies, through her journey and her own health issues she also understands the demands of a changing and aging body. Marcellina is continuously learning so she can be the best teacher to all her clients; she caters her sessions to the clients’ needs, while challenging them to meet their goals. As a second profession, her focus and passion are acknowledging that “Pilates is not just an exercise, but a way of life!” — helping people achieve healthier lifestyles and keep moving!

Shireen Kawaguchi

Instructor

Miss. Shireen has always valued health and fitness. As a teenager she first learned Mat Pilates from watching VHS tapes. In 2009, she received her Beginner Mat Pilates training through Power Pilates, and taught group classes at a local athletic club for about a year. Years of working a desk job took its toll on her back and she returned to Pilates to help with her back pain. During the pandemic in 2020, she decided to change careers and become a full time Pilates instructor and completed a 500 hour certification. She has been teaching group reformer classes since 2021. Wanting to truly understand the Pilates Method, she began studying classical Pilates and completed a 950 hour Advanced Comprehensive Training through The Pilates Center, Boulder, CO in 2023. She grew up in Portland, OR and recently moved to Columbia, SC with her military husband. She enjoys teaching Pilates full time and helping people improve their overall health through Pilates.

Nicki

Instructor

Nicki has been teaching pilates since 2010. As an active runner, she started practicing pilates at the age of 23 because it is a wonderful compliment to high impact activities. When her son was born in 2009, Nicki transitioned into a stay at home mom and decided to pursue her interest in teaching pilates. Nicki is certified to teach both Mat and Equipment Pilates by PHI Pilates and Beacon Pilates.

Nicki is passionate about helping others achieve their fitness and wellness goals through Pilates. She believes pilates is truly for every body and it’s a form of exercise that can meet you where you are. She teaches classes and works with clients privately.

In her spare time, Nicki is the mom to 2 children and the sweetest dog. She is a member of various community organizations and helps lead a Pilates and Prayer Bible Study at her church. She also really loves date nights with her husband and spending time with her family in the pool or at the lake.

Lynne McIntosh

Instructor

“I have been doing Pilates for about 14 years. I was a gymnast growing up and a runner. When I tore my hamstring, I knew that I needed to incorporate a form of exercise that could help strengthen and lengthen my tight muscles. I immediately fell in love with Pilates and it changed the way that I moved and felt. With a nursing degree from USC and my last child going to college, I knew that getting certified and teaching Pilates was a perfect fit.” – Lynne McIntosh

Lynne is a huge part of our pilates community and has been involved with our Devine St. location for over a decade! Lynne provides challenges each class combing contemporary and classical styles, we are lucky to have her!

Laura Rollins

Instructor

Laura started her Pilates journey in 2012 with a semester of Mat Pilates to fill a credit her senior year of college. Since then, she has sporadically taught classes when requested and enjoyed the occasional youtube practice.

It was December of 2022 when Tara slid into Laura’s DMs looking for a Pilates instructor for the Chapin location and Laura’s life was truly changed by Pilates. Now an instructor and regular student, Pilates has changed Laura’s life for the better! With a background in sports medicine and over a decade of experience as a group fitness instructor, Pilates is the

Perfect addition to Laura’s exercise routine and life.

Pilates is for EVERY body!

Denise Perrine

Instructor

500 hour comprehensive Pilates certification October 2021

TRX suspension training July 2020

200 hour YTT (yogaRenew)

“I’m a Colorado native who moved to SC in June 2017 for family reasons. I hold a BA in Technical Communications and after working in the Oil and Gas field in Engineering/Geology for 40 years, I finally retired from corporate America in December 2021. Now here I am, teaching Pilates, proving you are never too old to reinvent yourself!

My Pilates journey began in the fall of 2018, when searching for an exercise program that would be gentle on my aging body with knee issues. I’d heard of Pilates and decided to give it a try and fell in love instantly. After my first year of practicing, I was amazed at the physical and mental results. To further educate myself in Pilates, I enrolled in Club Pilates Teacher Training in October 2019. In October of 2021, I officially became a 500 Hour Comprehensive Pilates Certified Instructor. I also completed my Yoga teacher training in 2023.

In mid-February 2022, I started teaching mat Pilates and yoga fusion classes at a yoga studio in Chapin. In December of 2022, I started teaching Cadillac-reformer Pilates at The Pilates Sculpt Studio. I love the Pilates boutique feel and small class size at The Pilates Sculpt Studio.

I enjoy the way Pilates celebrates individuality—it honors the uniqueness of each body, mind, and journey. I love sharing my love of Pilates with my clients and hope that the connection I foster with my instruction, creates an atmosphere of trust and stresses that you are never too old to learn something new.”

Jordan Mancini

Instructor

I’m Jordan Mancini, and fitness has been a lifelong passion of mine. Several years back, I fell in love with the practice of Pilates. The connection between mind and body, the graceful strength it cultivates kept me coming back for more. As of 2022 before opening the first Pilates Sculpt Studio, Tara, the owner, took me through the 500 hours of compressive pilates training, and I have become a certified Pilates Sculpt Instrucor. Since then Ive attended several workshops always continuing my education, and I look forward continuing to do so! Guiding others through this transformative practice brings me immense joy. I find fulfillment in helping people discover their inner strength and achieve a balanced, flexible, and strong body. I’m thrilled to work with individuals at every stage of their fitness journey – whether you’re taking your first steps or performing advanced moves, I’m here to support and challenge you.

Liubov Liuzan

Instrucor

Luibov is a certified Balanced Body Pilates equipment instructor with more than 15 years of work experience, as well as a fitness instructor with more than 20 years of work experience.

She is from Ukraine.

Liubov has a full high education with a master’s degree in the field of recreation and health fitness. Liubov studied Pilates with Balanced Body Pilates Education and worked in Ukraine and the USA. She has experience working with people of different ages and abilities. Liubov uses an individual approach, focuses on teaching correct techniques and safety when performing exercises, and creates programs.

Mercer Eaddy

Studio Manager

My name is Mercer Eaddy, and I am from Greenville, SC. I love going to concerts, listening to live music, and kayaking. I love animals, and I recently adopted a stray kitten named Stevie. I am a nursing major at the University of South Carolina, and I have always had a passion for helping others. Exercise is so important to maintain a healthy lifestyle, and I am very happy to be a part of a group of people who are motivated to help myself and others achieve their fitness goals with Pilates.

VOTED 'BEST FITNESS CENTER' & FINALIST FOR 'BEST PILATES STUDIO' 2024