Be clear in all boundaries for your health and sanity and say no to things that don’t align.
Today, more than ever, wellness is at the forefront of societal discussions. From mental health to physical well-being, women are making significant strides in bringing about change, introducing innovative solutions, and setting new standards. Despite facing unique challenges, they break barriers, inspire communities, and are reshaping the very definition of health and wellness. In this series called women in wellness we are talking to women doctors, nurses, nutritionists, therapists, fitness trainers, researchers, health experts, coaches, and other wellness professionals to share their stories and insights. As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Shannon Bynum Adams.
Shannon Bynum Adams, NCPT® is a nationally acclaimed trainer and wellness consultant. After learning the healing and corrective benefits of the work post orthopedic surgeries — including two hip replacements, she founded Urban Body San Jose in 2016 as the only boutique studio featuring both Classical Pilates and The GYROTONIC® Method in Northern California’s largest city. Mrs. Adams is a fully comprehensive Nationally Certified Pilates Teacher, licensed in both The and GYROKINESIS® Methods, certified in the specialized equipment and many specialized application courses in the Method and holds a Pre-Trainer license under the mentorship of Authorized Master Trainer Kathy Van Patten. As a teacher trainer, she deeply enjoys mentoring new teachers in both modalities. Originally certified by Power Pilates under the mentorship of Master Teacher Allison Gonzalez, she later completed Benjamin Degenhardt’s 360® Pilates which was a course Benjamin hosted prior to launching his online launch of 360pilates.com. Prior to the wellness industry, she enjoyed a decade-long professional ballet career with the former Ballet San Jose.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Our readers would love to “get to know you” better. Can you share your “backstory” with us?
Ibegan my movement journey as a young dancer and athlete that led to a very fulfilling professional classical ballet career with the former Ballet San Jose. Wellness has always been a part of my lifestyle because if I didn’t take good care of myself I knew I wouldn’t be able to perform at the elite level that was expected of me. During the end of my professional ballet career I had some unfortunate injuries that led to five orthopedic surgeries on my right hip, including two total hip replacements at 29 years old, hence my retirement from the ballet stage. Through my healing and rehabilitative journey, my studio and movement sanctuary, Urban Body San Jose was born. Between the birth of my studio and now, I have successfully grown a phenomenal team of teachers, become a teacher trainer, finished my Master’s degree with research and application in Somatics and grown and expanded my business, to become so much more than just a place to do Gyrotonic and Pilates. UB is truly a place to heal and come back to oneself.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? What were the main lessons or takeaways from that story?
I think the biggest lesson since beginning my career in the world of movement and wellness has been to follow my intuition. Your gut feeling is always correct and for me, I learned a hard lesson that eventually taught me that the people I choose to work alongside at UBSJ need to be good for my nervous system. If they flag me in any way, I say no to the working relationship. This also includes clients, not just potential trainers at my studio. There is power in the partnership.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about a mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
The biggest mistake I made was hiring people for their talent and not their character. There is so much ego in my field (which I find totally contradictory to the work we teach) and I have learned that even the most talented of teachers may not be the right fit. I’ve learned to look at the human being first, and everything else second. A toxic employee can make you want to quit and close shop. They will burn you out. I have experienced this and learned the hard way in allowing them to have power over my intuition for too long and now that I have matured and realized that won’t get me anywhere, I made changes in who I hire (and fire). There is so much peace and harmony in the studio now that I have made these conscious changes. I trust every trainer and employee I currently have on my team and they all have full autonomy to communicate and represent the business, brand, and most importantly the work we teach. Having a team who are all good humans and have impeccable character is hard to come by, and after 10 years, I finally am at a place where everything aligns and it feels SO good.
Let’s jump to our main focus. When it comes to health and wellness, how is the work you are doing helping to make a bigger impact in the world?
The work we do heals, strengthens and cares for people from the inside out. People don’t often know how to articulate in words that they are dysregulated in some way, they just show us to UB because they need to try something different because nothing has worked for them and end up feeling so good because the methods we teach repair the nervous system, repattern poor movement and alignment/posture habits and get you moving and breathing. We are different compared to any other movement studio. When you step on to our patio you can take a deep exhale. You are home, and it is your hour to reset, find clarity and peace, all within the walls of a beautiful space that also stimulates the senses and nervous system. It’s beautiful and quirky, just like all of us. It is what we know in the UB community as our movement sanctuary. Our highly educated team and the brilliant and genius movement disciplines (Pilates and Gyrotonic) are taught through a lens that focuses on wellbeing and vitality, and whatever else the client in front of us for that hour needs. There is emotional support and amazing hands on cues that are part of your session here. Every session is individual and our clients feel seen, heard and empowered. When they leave they are equipped with the ability to take on whatever challenges life throws at them with resilience, confidence and strength from within. Sure, you get a workout at UB, but you get SO much more than that.
Can you share your top five “lifestyle tweaks” that you believe will help support people’s journey towards better wellbeing?
1 . Breathwork
2 . Early bedtime
3 . Move your body every single day
4 . What and when you eat matters, more than you will ever know
5 . Look at wellbeing as a pie chart: equal parts active movement (Gyrotonic and Pilates), passive therapy (massage, acupuncture, chiropractic, manual Osteopathy, etc.) and nutritional/lifestyle support (this also involves community)
If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of wellness to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I already have established this at Urban Body San Jose!! It would be a practice in The Gyrotonic Expansion System. You have to experience it. Pure magic for body, mind and soul.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?
- Zero tolerance for toxic people (both clients and employees).
- Do not lead out of fear.
- You cannot pour from an empty cup.
- Take the vacation and time off for family and loved ones — the business will be okay.
- Be clear in all boundaries for your health and sanity and say no to things that don’t align.
Sustainability, mental health, and environmental changes are big topics at the moment. Which one of these causes is dearest to you, and why?
Mental health for sure. Our nervous systems are a wreck and if we can find ways to make small changes to our lifestyle through movement, food and self care before trying to treat the symptoms of everything, our lives would improve. Root cause treatment over treatment symptoms first. Always.
What is the best way for our readers to further follow your studio online?
We’re online at UrbanBodySanJose.com. Make sure to check out the bios and profiles of our impressive trainers and team! @urbanbodysanjose on Instagram
Thank you for these fantastic insights! We wish you continued success and good health.
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com
