Best of New York 2012 • Health & Self

• Flavia Bruni at Ethos Collective

  596 Broadway, nr. Houston St., Ste. 302; 212-920-5456

  It’s all Pilates instructors’ duty to leave you with burning thighs and aching abs. Flavia Bruni, however, goes beyond that call, empowering her clients with a new je ne sais quoi in the way they carry themselves (from $105 for a private session) and employing mat work and the Reformer. The Italy native and professional dancer, who recently began teaching at new Soho wellness center Ethos Collective, teaches muscle memory and focuses on the moves that prompt her mostly female clientele to walk with an upright, attractive posture, which is as effective at taming back pain as it is for scoring a date.

From the 2012 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine