Lyra Butler-Denman (she/her) is a certified Contemporary Alexander Technique teacher (www.alexandertechniqueportland.com), expert Pilates instructor and GYROTONIC trainer, modern dancer, choreographer, actor, and visual artist. She is a faculty member at the Contemporary Alexander School (Alexander Alliance International). She is deeply interested in and passionate about movement and believes it is important for both our physical and emotional lives. She cares deeply for the well-being of her students, her primary aim is to help her clients engage in the activities they love with strength, efficiency, safety, and ease. Lyra enjoys teaching clients of diverse ages, abilities, identities, and lived experiences and has extensive experience working with rehabilitation, spinal injuries, athletes, joint replacements, physical and emotional trauma, pre- and post-partum clients, cyclists, runners, and dancers. Lyra is dedicated to helping others find ease, recover from injury and trauma, and re-discover the quality of life they desire. Lyra is brings her expert hands-on skills, deep understanding of the body, and ability to meet her clients exactly where they are, to all her sessions. Lyra is a heterosexual, white-identified, cis-gender woman and uses the pronouns she/her/hers.

Lyra began her study of Pilates and Contemporary Alexander Technique over a decade ago. As a young dancer she used Pilates to rehabilitate a knee injury and used the Alexander work to help find efficiency, strength, flexibility, and presence. After a spine injury years later that left her severely incapacitated, she went back to Pilates, re-discovered the Alexander work, and began to study the GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM. Since then she has continued to use all three modalities as effective healing and strengthening tools for herself and her clients. In addition to completely rehabilitating her injuries, Pilates, GYROTONIC, and the Alexander work allowed Lyra to awaken to a stronger and smarter body and a deeper understanding of herself.

Lyra is certified in classical Pilates with Michelle Larson through the Core Dynamics Pilates teacher training program in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Lyra is certified as an Alexander Technique teacher with the Contemporary Alexander School and Alexander Alliance International, is certified as a Matrix Energetics practitioner by Dr. Richard Bartlett DC, ND, and is a certified Gyrotonic instructor. She also works as a dancer and artist (www.lyrabd.com).