
Jason Priestley and his wife Naomi Lawd Priestley She credits her frequent Pilates classes for helping her both physically and mentally.
“All exercise should focus on form, but Pilates is very strict about that,” Naomi, 48, told us in an exclusive interview. Us Weekly “And it starts with your core, right? For me, I have a ton of competing injuries,” she said while promoting her new Nashville studio, Pilates International, on Tuesday, July 2.
Naomi said she has “displaced vertebrae” in her back that prevent her from performing certain extension movements. During her struggle with the injury, Naomi realized she needed to strengthen and train her core to heal her injury.
“I never really understood what it meant to have a strong core until I discovered Pilates and took a Pilates training. And through that, I learned how to strengthen my core, maintain good posture, and corrected muscle imbalances that were causing me constant injuries,” she explained. “I was no longer in pain, so I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
She said that after changing her workout, her body “started to heal itself” as the “protrusion” in her back “went back down” and eventually “the sciatica went away.” As well as curing her ailment, Naomi, who now leads workout courses, feels that Pilates has improved her self-esteem and mental health as she has “greater range of motion”.
Like his wife, Jason, 54, had struggled with back problems and was in an accident in 2002 that left him with a broken spine and required two titanium rods to be inserted in his back.

“My doctor said I should consider taking a Pilates class to strengthen my core and support my spine.” Beverly Hills, 90210 “So I picked up Pilates a long time ago,” the graduate recalls, “and I’ve been doing it ever since, and it’s had great benefits for me.”
Jason joked that his Pilates classes are a lot harder than some of the jobs he’s had in the entertainment industry.
Jason and Naomi love Pilates and their regular routines, and the couple, who married in 2005, train together at a new Pilates studio in Nashville, opening this fall. (The couple, who moved to Nashville in 2021, have two children together: daughter Ava, 17, and son Dashiell, 14.)

“When we started looking at opportunities to do something together to build community in Nashville, of course Naomi came up with the idea of a Pilates franchise so we could bring more people into the tent,” he said. we“And we found it. She found it. I didn’t find it, but she found Studio Pilates International. It’s a great workout.”
While this is Jason’s first foray into the wellness industry, Naomi is well known in the fitness world: she’s a NASM CPT certified, a Pilates Sports Center instructor, and a Mad Dog trainer, and in 2014 she was named Los Angeles’ Hottest Trainer by Racked LA.
Their courses employ visual and audio technology to give participants a hands-on experience. The studio features 16 custom reformers, pristine hardwood floors, and Studio Pilates’ signature chandelier. During class, while the group learns the movements on a TV screen, trained experts provide corrections to ensure the workout is performed correctly and effectively. Workout classes are 40 minutes long, and each session is customized with adjustable resistance and modifications to fit every age, fitness level, and even a client’s busy schedule.
“It’s safe and inclusive – from an 80-year-old woman to the most athletic athlete – that’s what makes it unique,” Naomi explains. “It’s designed by a physiotherapist, so it’s scientifically proven and it really does feel like a burn.”
Jason and Naomi’s Pilates studio will be opening in Nashville this fall.
Reporting by Amanda Williams


