Meet Monica Bumatay | GYROTONIC® Master Trainer/ Owner GYROTONIC® South Bay

We had the good fortune of connecting with Monica Bumatay and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Monica, we’d love for you to start things off by telling us something about your industry that we and others not in the industry might be unaware of?
Most people are unaware of what The GYROTONIC® Method is at all, let alone what it can do for them. People see these giant machines and are either scared away or are intrigued. What not many people know is how diverse this system really is. The GYROTONIC® Method uses a range of machines that incorporate weights and pulleys to form complex spiral motions moving on multiple planes. It’s no surprise that it has become the workout “du jour” of top dancers and athletes around the world. The emphasis of fluid continuous motion against consistent tension, combined with various breath patterns can be done at any speed and on many levels; seated, standing, and lying down. This makes it easy to apply to dance, golf, tennis, etc.

The clients we serve are from all walks of life. We have professional and pre-professional dancers and athletes, people with chronic pain or disease, and lots that have found their way to us after trying other modalities and haven’t been satisfied until now. As a Master Trainer I hold several teacher trainings throughout the year and we often have guest Master Trainers visiting from all over the world. As a result I am so grateful to have highly diverse and experienced trainers teaching a range of options to our clients. While the main Manhattan Beach studio has been open for almost 8 years and the Redondo Beach studio has been open for 4 years, some of these clients have been with us in the area for 20+ years. The sense of community has really flourished which I attribute to the amazing people that continue to walk through our doors.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I grew up dancing in Orange County and attended high school at the Orange County School of the Arts. I took a detour into technical theater in my teens, but I eventually found my way back to dance and enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) as a dance major. It was while I was there that I was diagnosed with a heart condition and advised by my doctors to stop dancing. A big blow, but a giant step toward my true passion. After graduating in 2000 I completed my Pilates Certification with Marie José Blom, thinking that if I couldn’t be a dancer I would find a way to incorporate movement into my daily life in some way and still take a few “easy dance classes” here and there. The first day of my Pilates teacher training was the first day I saw people on the GYROTONIC® equipment. I immediately fell for it. They were standing and dancing on the machines, using the straps as they went through their barre routine. I had been training in Pilates for 6 years at that point because a teacher had recommended I use it for dance conditioning, but it wasn’t translating into my dance classes as fluidly. After my first GYROTONIC® session I went to a ballet class and it suddenly clicked! I was breathing differently, I was accentuating things differently, there was an ease of movement rather than a forced control of every motion. I knew I had found something special, and I knew I wanted ALL of it.

I find my story is not all that unique when it comes to The GYROTONIC® Method. I’ve witnessed many clients over my 20 some years of teaching have similar responses. Whether it’s a new golf swing that could finally be achieved or just being able to work in the garden for a few hours without being in pain the next day. It’s rewarding to be able to inspire people to keep moving and to help them find an ease in their body. It’s not an easy workout per se, but it informs all the movements you do, making it essential to whatever specific needs you have and giving people the information to develop into more efficient movers.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
While my studios are in Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach I live in Long Beach with my husband and three kids, so I’m usually driving all over the place. If someone was visiting and really wanted the LA experience then I would definitely take them to all the major spots;

-The Getty Center on a clear day.
-The Hollywood Bowl, but definitely take the shuttle.
-The Magic Castle, because where else will they ever have that experience?
-Canter’s Deli, and especially the Kibitz Room.
-The Palladium, but I’d probably opt for the balcony at this point. I think my 90’s mosh pit era is finally at an end.
-The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for a contemporary dance performance.

-Outside of LA Metro one of my favorite spots since I was a kid has always been The Huntington Library. I have lots of fun memories of high tea with my family there.
-Palmilla Cocina y Tequila in Hermosa Beach for their homemade tortillas and honey butter. (Salivating!)
-Hiking in Palos Verdes or in the Malibu hills. So many great views to choose from.
-King’s Hawaiian Restaurant and Bakery in Torrance has the most amazing cakes and pastries.
-The Queen Mary for brunch and of course, GHOSTS!
-The Ordinarie Tavern in Long Beach for the “Christmas Miracle” with it’s themed drinks and funky decor.
-And last but not least, my old haunt, Alex’s Bar In Long Beach, especially on Goodfoot night with DJ Dennis Owens.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There’s a couple people that have influenced me along my career path, the first being Juliu Horvath, the creator of The GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® Methods. He developed these two movement systems to train himself and has transformed thousands more like him along the way. I am very fortunate to have been chosen to be a Master Trainer and to train with him for so many years. Even now, in his 80’s he is still finding new ways to move and to motivate all of us to strive for more. I hope his method will continue to grow and challenge new audiences everywhere.

The second person is my first GYROTONIC® Master Trainer, Donna Place. There aren’t many movement teachers like her. She has taught anatomy and kinesiology at a few different colleges and her hands-on cueing is unrivaled. Her gentle persuasion has encouraged me to take the plunge into a deeper understanding of what movement can create, and her guidance has helped me become the studio owner I am today. There are so many gifted trainers out there and I have taken Pilates and GYROTONIC® classes from many known names, but none that have compared with these two. I am always eager to learn from them and others. My drive for more knowledge of movement will never be satiated.

Website: https://www.gyrotonicsouthbay.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gyrotonicsouthbay/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gyrotonicsouthbay

Image Credits
Photos by Tim Denin