About Us: People
Henry “Hank” Richardson – Senior Instructor: DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Henry “Hank” Richardson is the Senior Instructor for D E F I N E: body & mind. Hank is a former All-American and National Team Member for the sport of Springboard and Platform Diving. After a successful career as a scholarship diver, Hank graduated from the University of Florida and moved to New York City where he joined the program Teach For America to teach 6th grade children in the South Bronx, NY. As a school teacher, Hank was surprised that his old injuries from diving were still causing him discomfort. With the encouragement of a friend, Hank found himself taking his first Pilates/Yoga/Ballet hybrid class, at the spa, exhale, in New York City. Sixty minutes and lots of shaking later, he found a method of exercise he knew would change his life. Six months later, he found himself teaching his very first exercise class in New York City, and within one year, he was helping open and teach at locations all over the country. Hank has helped run studios in Boston, Bridgehampton, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. In 2007 he moved back to Houston to begin his MBA at Rice University. In graduate school Hank developed DEFINE: body&mind, and right after graduation in 2009, Hank opened the first DEFINE: body&mind studio in his hometown of Houston, TX. Hank is a certified yoga instructor through Lex Gillan, The Yoga Institute, in Houston, TX. He is a certified Yamuna Body Rolling instructor as well as a certified Health Coach from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Hank is very passionate about educating clients on the body&mind. This passion comes from his own interest in learning about the body&mind as Hank broke his lower back while diving, and he believes DEFINE: body&mind, the studio, the products, and the services are the most powerful combination to achieve optimal health and optimal performance of the body and mind. He hopes all clients will be able to define their body, define their mind, and define their balance in order to feel, look, and be at their best.d
Casey Bielenberg – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Casey moved to Houston in 2005 after receiving her undergraduate degree in Communications from the University of Illinois. Since childhood she has been an athlete, competing in several sports over the years including swimming, softball, soccer, and tennis. As an adult, Casey has found a way to continue her commitment to fitness through participation in half marathons, regular yoga practice, and most recently—a triathlon! To maintain her health and strength for these competitions, Casey has found that DEFINE is the most balanced and rewarding way to sustain her peak performance. She is proud to be a part of the DEFINE team and eager to share her passion for health and fitness with the Houston community.
April Coutino – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
April Coutino was born in El Paso, Texas, but having a family in the military, she has lived in various places around the world. With years of training in Ballet and competitive sports, such as basketball and volleyball, she has always had an interest in movement and health. Once she graduated from High School, April moved to Houston to attend the University of Houston. It was here that she started training in Mixed Martial Arts. She now competes as a professional fighter and incorporates boxing, kickboxing and wrestling. In looking for a position that would supplement April as a student and a fighter, April is very excited about her opportunity to teach at DEFINE. Since beginning her training and teaching at DEFINE, she has not only increased her strength significantly, she has made a dramatic improvement in her flexibility. Working out has always been a very important part of April’s life but it is DEFINE that has finally given her the ability to achieve the balance in her body that she has been looking for.
Ashley Eldringhoff – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Ashley moved to Houston in January of 2009 to pursue a career in bellydancing and group fitness instruction. In early 2010 she was lucky enough to stumble upon DEFINE, and was immediately hooked on its efficient, fun, and holistic method. An ACE certified group fitness instructor, she also has training in western dance, middle-eastern dance, and yoga. She received a B.A. in Philosophy from Louisiana State University in 2008 where she completed an undergraduate thesis on the mind’s awareness of the body. Ashley very much believes in DEFINE’s approach to achieving body and mind balance and views promoting both physical and mental health as one of the most important aspects of her practice.
Lindsay Farkash – DEFINEbody
Lindsay Farkash, born and raised in Dallas, is a native Texan and proud of it. She attended the University of Texas in Austin and, after living in Dallas once again after graduation, made the move to Houston in 2008. She grew up playing soccer and basketball, but after college began developing an interest in other activities, such as triathlons, running and group exercise. Lindsay stumbled upon Define in the fall of 2008, and was originally interested in the DEFINE method for its potential to help with her lower back pain. Having tried just about everything else, she wasn’t so sure any “workout” would ever be the solution. Attending on a regular basis, she quickly noticed not only a positive change in her lower back, but also began to see the total-body transformation and rewards of this unique workout. To say that Lindsay is excited to be a part of the DEFINE team is a real understatement, and she looks forward to sharing the DEFINE experience with you.
Lori Hudson – DEFINEbody
Lori Hudson D.C. is a doctor of chiropractic. She is a University of Kentucky alumni, and a native Houstonian. Growing up as a competitive gymnast, aches and pains were a daily occurance. Through chiropractic care she was able to recover faster and perform at an even higher level. Not only is optimal range of motion in the joints important, but also proper strength and flexibility of the surrounding muscles. She experienced first hand how the combination of joint mobility, strength and flexibility of the spine and surrounding muscles improves the health of the body. Her goal now is to share her own experiences with those around her, helping others achieve optimal health through her teaching of DEFINEbody.
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Jane McCullough – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Jane McCullough is a mother of one and a housewife. She has always been involved one way or another with fitness. She has done everything from yoga and Pilates to spinning and teaching aerobics. The DEFINE method really gives her a feeling of strength, flexibility, and balance. She immediately wanted to learn to teach others to feel good about themselves and improve their bodies, with this complete body workout.
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Gelena Scally – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Gelena (G) moved here from NY after spending 6 years in Investment Banking, to attend school and to be closer to family. G grew up in Aurora, CO, rescuing homeless animals, playing sports and taking pictures of anything that would pose for her…she hasn’t changed much. Over the years, she fell in love with dance, specifically ballroom, ballet and hip-hop, eventually becoming a professional ballroom dancer. Unfortunately, due to multiple knee and foot injuries and the surgeries that followed, she had to stop dancing. To fill the void, she tried yoga, pilates, fitness classes, a personal trainer…but nothing made her feel whole again until she came across DEFINE. DEFINE was the first method that actually helped her regain strength, flexibility and the confidence that she had lost over the years. So now, as a DEFINE instructor, she hopes to help her clients build confidence and achieve their fitness goals.
Lindsay Scott – DEFINEbody
Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Lindsay grew up playing a variety of sports. Volleyball ended up becoming her main focus and passion and she was able play nationally throughout high school. She then decided to switch gears and focus on her business degree at Texas A&M University. After years of wear and tear on her shoulders and ankles, Lindsay began exploring other ways of staying in shape and strengthening the body and mind, but with less impact and stress on the joints. She began practicing yoga and spinning regularly to continue her pursuit staying active and in shape. After graduating, she moved to Houston to begin her career in finance. She had always been athletic and involved in fitness, but her first encounter with DEFINE captivated her in a whole new way. She witnessed her own body begin to transform into a longer, leaner shape as she began to strengthen and tone more than just the major muscle groups she had been working her whole life. Also, being a huge music lover, she fell in love with the way DEFINE keeps you moving to great music and adds such a fun, rhythmic element to the classes. She instantly knew that the DEFINE method of strength, flexibility, and balance was what she had been looking for and she looks forward to sharing with others this practice which is so conducive to living a happy, healthy lifestyle.
Erin O’Leary Stewart – DEFINEbody
A recent Houston transplant from New York City, Erin grew up in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She took an interest in the performing arts at an early age, studying dance at the Miami City Ballet, the Rock School at Pennsylvania Ballet and Jacob’s Pillow. Erin earned a BFA in Dance Performance at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX where she also studied kinesiology and spent the subsequent eight years dancing professionally throughout the greater New York area. A desire to stay in shape throughout audition seasons led Erin to a fitness class inspired by former accomplished ballet dancer Lotte Berk, called Physique 57. Erin immediately took to the blend between fitness and dance and spent several years there as an instructor. Beyond the ballet barre fitness classes, Erin has also studied Pilates under Polestar Education and indoor cycling through Spinning. Along with a clear passion for movement and health, Erin strongly believes that what you eat is of paramount importance to achieving a well-rounded healthy lifestyle. To further her education, she earned a culinary degree from New York City’s Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts, and has created and operated her own natural cookie and granola company called O’Cookies Wholesome Bites, which will eventually make its way into the Houston market. She continues to study the effects that food and movement has on both the mind and the body, doing research in her spare time and authoring the blog Juiceboks about all things food, fitness and health and hopes to inspire others to live life feeling good. Erin is extremely excited to join the team at DEFINE.
Anne Tropoli – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
After returning to her native hometown, Houston, after three post-collegiate years in Jackson Hole, WY, Anne found DEFINE to be the missing piece to her more traditional forms of exercise. After being a devotee for six months, she soon wanted to share the method with others. Anne firmly believes in DEFINE’s ability to transform and lengthen muscles through the use of low impact exercise.
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Mara Van Nostrand – DEFINEbody & DEFINEmind
Mara was born and raised just outside of New York City and grew up dancing. She came to Texas for college and has been here almost ever since. She has her BBA and MBA from the University of Texas in Austin and after spending many years in Marketing and Advertising in corporate America, she decided to leave it behind to spend more time with her three children and to pursue more creative endeavors. Since then she has started her own photography business and taught various group fitness classes. She tried DEFINEbody about a year ago to add more toning to her cardio routine and was hooked immediately. After so many years of working out, she loves the way DEFINE has reshaped her muscles so that they are long and lean!