New fitness, dance studio formally opens in Clinton

CLINTON — After years of studying dance and teaching dance, Julia Shove’s personal expansion into other areas of movement and fitness was a natural lead-in to opening her own studio. Making Moves Fitness & Dance, located at 3 Kirkland Ave. in Clinton, celebrated its grand opening on Dec. 12, 2024. “My roots began in classical ballet,” Shove tells CNYBJ. That included years of classical training as a ballet dancer, as well as teaching dance at various studios across the region. She also served as a lecturer in dance and movement studies at Hamilton College. Shove is a certified teacher under the American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum. Working to improve her own performance, Shove branched into the fitness industry in 2018. Since then, she has become a National Academy of Sports Medicine-certified personal trainer, an American Council on Exercise-certified group fitness instructor, and a Real Pilates-certified classical Pilates instructor. “For so long, the idea was that if were a ballet dancer, you should just train in that regime,” Shove says, but she found that broadening her fitness interests only benefited her. Now she hopes to share those benefits with others looking to improve their own fitness and wellness. “Everything kind of melted together,” Shove says of the various fitness types. “This is like my whole practice now.” She compares the varied practices to insulating a home, finding and filling all the little cracks and crevices between the insulation. Everyone has imbalances in their fitness, and Shove works with her clients to find and fix them. “I work with dancers. I work with athletes.” She also works with everyone in between. “Really what I try to encourage is that movement is for everyone.” Making Moves offers an array of services including personal training, Pilates classes, group-fitness classes, and dance instruction. Shove had been training a roster of clients from her home before deciding the time was right to open a studio. She began looking for space last August and focused quickly on the Clinton area, which she felt connected to after her years of teaching at Hamilton College and where a number of her clients are from. “That space that I found felt right,” she says of the approximately 800 square feet she leases on Kirkland Avenue. Shove believes her holistic approach to fitness sets her apart from other facilities, which may just focus on one thing. She also strives to make her studio accessible — both financially and from a fitness standpoint. Shove tailors her beginner classes so that new clients can join in and not feel overwhelmed or out of place. She offers more advanced classes for those ready for a challenge. Shove also provides a variety of workout formats including Pilates, step, TRX, PiYo, dance conditioning, strength fusion, and barre. “I like to call it the one-stop shop for wellness,” she says. “You’re not getting box gym right here. You’re getting cozy and warm and inviting and a kick-ass workout.” Shove, who holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Utica University, is also National Association of Sports Medicine certified as a nutrition coach, as well as a stretching and flexibility coach.