JO SMITH  

LEICESTERSHIRE / WARWICKSHIRE
Equipilates Biomechanics Trainer™
www.equalign.co.uk
07881201254
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Jo is a Chartered Physiotherapist who graduated from the University of Brighton in 2002. She has been interested in Pilates since her student days, completing her undergraduate research project on the control of breathing during core muscle firing. She has extensive experience working in many different areas within the NHS, including musculoskeletal rehabilitation and breathing re-education, amongst others.

However it was her strong passion for classical dressage and the horse/rider interaction that led her to Equipilates™. Her interest grew such that she now runs a Physiotherapy and Pilates practice for horse riders, alongside her work within the NHS, where she also teaches Pilates to patients with musculoskeletal disorders. Jo has completed specialist training in the "Management of the Human Equestrian Athlete" as well as level 1 and 2 Matwork Pilates and specific Pilates for Horse Riders training. 

Jo has been riding since she was a small child and has worked in a riding school, dressage yard and racing yard so has a wealth of experience across the equine industry. She competed her first horse, Boo, in dressage and eventing before taking a break from horses to have her daughter. She now has a young mare, Lottie, who has considerable natural asymmetry, and is training her using groundwork and work in hand, as well as ridden work, to allow her to become balanced and symmetrical within body and limbs. 

Jo is passionate about helping all riders to develop a balanced and symmetrical position, as she has felt first hand the difference this can make to the horses performance. She enjoys working with riders in a variety of equestrian disciplines, at all levels, to achieve their goals. Equipilates™ provides her with the tools and the flexible approach, combined with her respiratory and musculoskeletal Physiotherapy experience, to assist all riders to be the best they can be. 

She offers one to one assessments and small group sessions and welcomes enquiries for tailored Equipilates™ programmes across the Midlands.