About Aspiral
Aspiral, by Lorna Pickford, is the first GYROTONIC® studio in Stirlingshire offering an amazing opportunity for people in rural communities to have access to this unique, specialised and increasingly popular movement system.
Meet Lorna,
GYROTONIC® instructor
As well as regularly attending GYROKINESIS® and GYROTONIC® classes I also go to yoga and pilates classes. I feel so lucky to live in this area as I’m surrounded by beautiful scenery and amazing places to walk. I have a crazy adorable cocker spaniel who accompanies me on our daily walks and when time allows, I regularly climb hills...
Aspiral is located in the picturesque village of Killearn in rural Stirlingshire. It lies at the north west slopes of the Campsie fells and is situated 18 miles north of Glasgow and 20 miles west of Stirling.
The West Highland Way passes close to the village and there are many accessible walks in the local area.
Lorna Pickford has been working with movement and dance for over 27 years. Her experience includes Head of Education for Scottish Ballet for 10 years. During her tenure she developed and managed a comprehensive and successful ‘Dance for All’ policy. She was also directly involved in teaching many of the classes including a children’s, youth and 60+ dance companies. Her highlights include staging large-scale productions at the Theatre Royal and Tramway Theatres and touring alongside the company on small scale tours where she choreographed dances with members of the community.
Since leaving Scottish Ballet Lorna has created her own Dance Education Company. She provided workshops and classes to nursery, primary and secondary schools and SEN centres. She also ran her own dance school at Mugdock Country Park for 7 years teaching nursery and primary aged children and over 60's classes as well as choreographing community projects and pantomimes.
Lorna’s love of GYROTONIC® started when she worked at Scottish Ballet. She’s been doing it as a client for nearly 20 years. Since developing osteoarthritis in her toe joints, dancing and teaching became increasingly more difficult and painful so the decision to train as a GYROTONIC® Instructor seemed like a natural transition with her love of teaching and movement. The process and training involved in becoming an instructor is extensive and took a couple of years with many trips to London and the final certification exam in Germany. Lorna is thoroughly enjoying this new and exciting career path and loves working with and helping her clients.
The Story behind Aspiral
Professional Development
"As part of my continual development, I take regular Gyrokinesis classes with Master Trainers in London and Germany. As part of the professional affiliation to the GYROTONIC® governing body we have to complete an update course every 2 years to allow the instructors to continue teaching. This is so important as it refreshes our knowledge of the system, you learn new exercises and sequences, and you get to meet other practitioners to share expertise and knowledge. Most of all it maintains and develops our own technique and love of this wonderful movement system."