Using Pilates to improve strength and rehab injuries, with Samantha Wood

When Samantha Wood began her career, she was interested in physical therapy and using methods to help individuals recover from injury. While working with a pro basketball team, she learned that Pilates was one of those methods that could help bring athletes and gen pop clients back to health in a safe and efficient way. She believed in it so much that she wrote a book about it. In this episode, she discusses how she brought the world of Pilates and rehab together, and how others can benefit from the methods that have helped her find success. You can learn more in her book, Pilates for Rehabilitation, Second Edition.

Pilates for Rehabilitation, Second Edition https://ecs.page.link/MyXLy

Samantha Wood, MPT, MBA, NCPT, RYT

Samantha Wood is a licensed physical therapist, and an associate faculty member for BASI Pilates. She is a Yoga Alliance-certified teacher and holds the Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher (NCPT) credential. She previously owned and operated The Cypress Center in Pacific Palisades, California, where for over 23 years she and her staff integrated Pilates with physical therapy for people of all ages and abilities. Her clinical expertise includes Pilates-based rehabilitation, yoga therapy, orthopedics, sports therapy, and functional rehabilitation.

Wood received her bachelor's degree in exercise science from the University of Southern California (USC), where she worked as a student athletic trainer with athletes from all sports but specialized in volleyball, football, and track. After graduation, she worked as a fitness instructor for The Golden Door Spa on board Cunard cruise ships. Two years later, she earned a Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) degree from Western University of Health Sciences. She also holds an MBA degree from USC. She has worked with many celebrities and professional athletes; while at HealthSouth in Arizona, she was a physical therapist for the Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Coyotes, Phoenix Mercury, and Arizona Rattlers. In 2010, she was selected as the physical therapist for the EAS Unstoppable Tour, where her responsibilities included keeping elite athlete Sam Tickle in top physical condition as he completed his 30-sport, 30-city, 30-day journey.

Wood began her Pilates studies in 2001 with Rael Isacowitz and has since attended many of Rael's advanced courses, including the prestigious Legacy program (Mentor, Master I, Master II, and Honors Course). She created and teaches three advanced education courses for BASI Pilates: two for Pilates teachers and one for rehabilitation professionals. She has been presenting these courses, as well as teaching other workshops and lecturing at Pilates conferences around the world, since 2010.

Wood writes for Pilates Style magazine and contributes a monthly article for The Pilates Journal based on the most current research in the Pilates industry. in 2024, she was the runner-up for The Pilates Journal Educator of the Year award. 

Wood can be found at @samanthawoodphysio on Instagram and YouTube. Her website is Samanthawoodphysio.com.