flex Instructor team
Kristen Townsend, M.S., is the founder of Flex - Yoga Inspired Fitness.
She was first introduced to yoga as a competitive figure skater and college freshman in 2002. From the beginning, the practice of yoga became an incomparable source of restoration, balancing and strengthening for healing various injuries accrued from the demands of training. For the past 18 years, Kristen’s time in the yoga community brought a vast array of experiences including, teaching and tailoring classes to all skill levels, abilities, ages, and walks of life; opening and managing new yoga studios; assisting other yoga
teachers locally and globally in their workshops and teacher trainings; and traveling internationally for yoga teacher trainings and retreats. Her experience includes a 500-hour yoga certification and innumerable hours teaching, studying, researching, and assisting yoga teacher trainings.
Kristen has immersed in studies of the history and roots of yoga and its evolution in the West, biomechanics and energetic anatomy of the body, somatic healing practices, Ayurveda, philosophy, psychology, meditation, and more. Kristen has also been coaching figure skating since 2002 to recreational and competitive skaters alike, including guiding students through their gold medal skating tests with US Figure Skating.
With the development of Flex™, Kristen hopes to bring a fun, accessible, and approachable entryway to the practice of yoga for all.
Crystal Hildreth was born and raised in beautiful Shenandoah County in western Virginia. She married her high school love in 1999 and had two adorable boys with him. She loves being a mom, and thinks it's quite possibly the best thing she's done with her life. Crystal enjoys spending her time outdoors, working out, or hanging out with her family. She loves bringing fun and entertainment to everything she does. Crystal has been teaching group fitness for over ten years. She enjoys the feelings of power, flexibility, and confidence that she gets from taking and teaching Flex classes. Additionally, Crystal teaches BodyPump, BodyCombat, Les Mills Core, and BodyJam.
Carla Roque-Cruz was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She moved to the United States after graduating from the University of Puerto Rico. Carla loves to dance. She is a mom, an engineer by the day, dancer at all other times, and a certifiable nerd. She also loves to read and go camping. Carla is a certified instructor on various fitness formats and completed her 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification in July 2020.
Deb Chass Kram is a teacher at heart. After she retired from the classroom in 2012, she took a chance and turned to the world of fitness where she discovered that sometimes by stepping out of your comfort zone, you find you’re actually stepping into your comfort zone. Over the years, she has continued to challenge herself; training with and joining the FLEX Yoga Fitness team has proven that anything is possible!
Deb recently returned to her roots and started a Social-Emotional/Social Skills playgroup for younger children. She loves her kids, her fur babies, and sunflowers. In her free time, you can find her with family and friends, reading, or relaxing in the sun.
Deb is a nationally certified group fitness instructor and has individual certifications in various formats including FLEX - Yoga Inspired Fitness, Body Pump, R.I.P.P.E.D., and Golden Hearts - Senior Fitness Training.
"Never say never, don’t stop trying, and don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone...yes, you can!"
Silvia Baage is a cat loving polyglot who started teaching group fitness classes in 2007. She holds a variety of certifications but mind & body formats didn't come to her easily. She took the plunge in 2020 with Barre and recently added Flex to her fitness routine to create a much needed balance in her training for competitive road races.
Joyce Merilos is a program analyst by day; at other times, she is a foodie and group fitness enthusiast. She initially became a group fitness instructor when she misinterpreted a fitness dance workshop for instructor training. Stepping out of her comfort zone and understanding the benefits of group fitness exercise, Joyce expanded her credentials to help others in their wellness journey.
Joyce is a nationally certified group fitness instructor with a certification in Les Mills BodyCombat. She added FLEX Yoga-Inspired Fitness to her group fitness credentials to balance out her other fitness activities. In her free time, she likes to travel and spend time with family and friends.
Toby Schermerhorn was born and raised on the island of Aruba. When she was 12, her family moved to Western Massachusetts. At the age of 55 she decided to focus on her health, became a vegan and started practicing yoga. In 2017, she became a Kripalu trained 200-hour Yoga instructor. She found FLEX at her local gym and fell in love with the sequencing (but mostly the one-minute incorporation-savasanas). When she is not teaching, she is a Master Gardener, a potter, sits on the board of her local food coop, and is in culinary school. During the week, she can be found in her renovated home/studio barn with her husband/partner designing luxury hotels. On the weekends, she chills out in her camper on the Chesapeake Bay throwing pots listening to the waves.