Villas, FL Health and Fitness

Before earning his dental degree, Dr. Mauricio Martinez completed a master's degree in nutritional science. His studies, which emphasized the interconnectedness of bodily systems, help him to illuminate the link between oral health and ailments such as diabetes and heart disease.

Dr. Martinez and the team at Gulf Coast Smiles perform a range of cutting-edge services, such as designing, fabricating, and installing crowns in one day using the E4D tooth-scanning system. He has completed hundreds of hours of postgraduate training on implants, root-canal therapy, and orthodontics. He's currently enrolled in the renowned Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies to study neuromuscular dentistry, which addresses conditions such as chronic headaches and TMJ caused by excessive ventriloquism practice.

Skilled cosmetic dentist Dr. Ron Drachenberg has presided over The Smile Studio for more than 20 years, where he transforms teeth with the help of a talented team and the philosophy that everyone’s smile is a work of art. Dr. Drachenberg works his magic by employing technology such as custom teeth whitening and instant orthodontics, changing the color, shape, size, and proportion of chompers until they’re elegant enough to chew through cement. When he's not tackling teeth, Dr. Drachenberg can be found at the Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies, brushing up on the latest advances in cosmetic dentistry with advanced continuing-education classes.

Before finding her calling as a yoga instructor, Sylvia taught biology, Earth science, and general science for more than 25 years. Throughout her years in the classroom, she practiced yoga as a way to calm her mind and balance her body. In 2005, she switched gears—she trained for more than 1,000 hours and earned her E-RYT 500 certification. She specializes in Kripalu-style mindfulness yoga, which emphasizes self-acceptance and consciousness of the interplay between life and yoga. Although she primarily teaches multi-level classes, some sessions, such as chair or adaptive yoga, are intentionally geared toward those with limited mobility. At the beginning of class, she occasionally reads inspirational passages or practices levitation.

Living Well Chiropractic's spine-savvy staff is helmed by Dr. Vivian Ebert, whose 30 years of chiropractic experience and continuing education, including advanced courses in extreme adjusting and rehabilitation, help her to mend and massage backs. The team treats a variety of conditions, including headaches, lower- and mid-back pain, and injuries stemming from automobile accidents, work, or sports. Their motto, "Eat well, think well, move well," applies directly to their method of care—they first assuage immediate pain, then work to maintain spine stability through physical therapy and rehab so that the patient can resume his or her favorite activities. The office prides itself on catering to its patient's needs—the team strictly enforces a "no-wait" policy and recites Shakespearean monologues upon request.

Along with adjusting vertebrae, Living Well's staff focuses on patients' overall health. The center's six-week weight-loss program helps to restore metabolism through better nutrition and one-on-one counseling, telephone, and email support. On Saturdays at 9 a.m., Dr. Ebert can be found heading up her newly formed walking club, “Walk for Health", a free 1–5 mile jaunt or slow-motion hopscotch through town.

AFAA-certified fitness instructor Kari Fundingsland did three decades' worth of research before opening Kari Kardio. Beginning with her first Jazzercise center in 1983, she amassed group- and personal-training knowledge at gyms stationed from the United States to Australia. She took note of club fads and their effects, and experimented with different exercise styles to create the Kardio Flex System—a malleable workout template that allows instructors to pair her proven exercises with their own music playing over speakers or inside their heads. Today, more than 30 group classes per week at Kari Kardio attest to the breadth of her industry savvy.

With backgrounds in competitive athletics, personal training, and other high-level fitness activities, Kari Kardio’s teachers pair time-tested training methods with the latest workout trends. Their classes—which run the gamut from spin to kickboxing to strength training—accommodate all experience levels with safe exercise modifications. Treadmills and stationary bikes line the 9,000-square-foot studio, helping students chase their fitness goals and complete stationary paper routes when not attending classes.

When searching for a name that encompassed the principles of her studio, founder Erika Cooper turned to the five elements—earth, air, fire, water, and ether—and their relation to the five senses for inspiration. She settled on Elements Yoga, which was perfect, as the bedrock of her philosophy is to continuously learn, grow, and remain aware of the world around us. Hence, she ensures each session at Elements is a communal and multisensory experience—in addition to traditional yoga postures, she has students chant, sing, and dance in a friendly and engaging environment that encourages laughter and very slow, purposeful high-fives. Cooper also believes in the power of education, which is why many of her classes include readings and lessons on the history of yoga and Sanskrit. She extends those teachings to regular workshops, as well as to the studio’s certification program.

In an effort to give back to the community through the practice of yoga, Elements hosts weeklong donation-only classes five times a year with 80% of the proceeds passed on to local charities.