All of Sanctuary's Personal Trainers and Fitness Instructors are degreed or certified.

Kara Thomas

Kara Thomas, Sanctuary's fitness & wellness manager, is a former TV fitness personality and writer for "First Stretch" for Fox and CBS in the Midwest. Among her creations are the Pilates for Life Core Fitness program, the Happy Heart Recipes for Wellness program, and several new Satori programs including Wellness, Romance and Executive retreats.

Kara is a nationally certified Pilates instructor, certified fitness nutrition coach, certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor. She has specialty training in injury prevention, post rehab fitness, exercise for osteoporosis and arthritis, Hatha Yoga for back pain, and Pilates for Athletes. Her training also includes dance choreography and certification from NETA, ACE, NESTA, STOTT, Balance Body and more.

Melissa (Mel) Branta

Mel has competed as a bodybuilder and fitness competitor while also pursuing her passion for hiking and mountain biking, which led her into mountain bike racing. She credits her active lifestyle and year-round training schedule to her love of the Arizona sun and Bikram Yoga practice.

A certified AFAA group exercise instructor, ACE personal trainer and graduate of UW-Milwaukee with a degree in kinesiology, Melissa also has her EMT basic license and Spin Certification with Mad Dogg Athletics. She specializes in one-on-one assisted stretch sessions, where she focuses on the client's body alignment and overall strengths and weaknesses.

Mike Masood

A personal trainer since 1994, Mike Masood is a certified flexibility specialist and ACE certified trainer who has also taught physical education, coached women's high school lacrosse, and coached his sons in NYS football. He enjoys hiking, running and weight training, as well as spending time with his four boys.

From professional athletes to people with specific medical conditions, Mike has trained the spectrum and developed a philosophy of postural re-education. Feeling that muscular imbalances may lead to poor posture and injury, Mike works to make exercise meaningful to each client, believing that "you're only as good as your last session."

Misty Hyman

Misty Hyman, a Phoenix native and Stanford graduate, is best known for her victory at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, where she emerged as the underdog to win the 200-meter butterfly. Known as a pioneer in the sport for her innovative underwater dolphin kick, Misty earned 13 US national titles and five NCAA national titles along with numerous other honors.

She's also earned a reputation in the swimming community as a superb instructor and motivational speaker. Her vast knowledge comes from two decades of competitive swimming for two of America's top swim coaches, and her friendly and encouraging personality has made Misty one of the premier swim instructors in the country.