ABOUT US

You have a team working for you, and we work together to bring you the very best.

Our combined 50+ years of experience includes working with a wide range of clients of all ages, fitness levels, and health histories, including individuals with various medical conditions. No matter where you are on your fitness journey, you will feel safe, informed, empowered, educated, and optimistic.

The technical aspects are essential components of PFS, but at the heart of it all is the PFS value system where kindness and gratitude matter. So do compassion, empathy, and understanding. Our desire is to meet clients where they are and to support them in living the life they envision for themselves.

We love what we do and look forward to meeting you and welcoming you into the PFS community.


Amy Headshot

Amy GiaQuinto

Owner + Founder

  • BS in Recreation Management
  • ACE Certified Personal Trainer
  • ACE Orthopedic Exercise Specialist
  • BioMechanics Method Corrective Exercise Specialist
  • Function First Pain-Free Movement Specialist
  • ACE Running Injury Prevention Specialist
  • ACE Sports Performance + Conditioning Specialist
  • AOS Kettlebell Certified
  • AAAI/ISMA Boxing Certified
  • TRX Suspension Training Certified
  • Pilates Institute of America Certified
  • Yoga Teacher Training
  • eCornell Plant-Based Nutrition Certified
  • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Training

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Amy’s passion for her work is obvious from the moment you meet her. Her contagious optimism motivates and inspires – whether you have been training for years, have just started your fitness journey, or are anywhere in between.

Growing up on Cape Cod, Amy graduated from Nauset Regional High School where she captained both the varsity tennis and soccer teams and was a member of the swim team. After high school, Amy attended the University of Vermont (UVM) where she played on the NCAA Women’s Division I Varsity Tennis Team. She graduated from UVM as a National Collegiate Scholar with a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation Management.

Amy’s diverse studies, experiences, and passions have helped to create what PFS is today. From her time in several fitness and health facilities, while living in Burlington, VT, New Zealand, and Boulder, CO, Amy recognized a need for more personalized care on Cape Cod for individuals interested in improving their overall health. She understood the importance of a more intimate, comfortable, encouraging, private, and supportive environment. She began to realize that more and more people wanted better health, but not everyone felt comfortable in a large gym or health club. Some people had been active for so long that they were either bored with what they were doing or not sure how to progress. For others, the thought of entering a health club caused anxiety. Amy wanted to create an atmosphere where not only the fit could benefit, but also where even the most intimidated individuals would feel supported and encouraged. Amy envisioned a place where everyone could thrive, and PFS was born.

Amy’s certifications and training are many, including a personal training certification through the American Council on Exercise (ACE), Pilates training and certifications through Balanced Body University (BBU) and the Pilates Institute of America (PIA). Amy was first introduced to Ashtanga Yoga while living in Burlington, VT, and was fortunate to practice with Kathy McNames of Yoga Vermont and David Swenson. In 2004, Amy had the opportunity to train with Lolita San Miguel, one of only two Pilates Elders certified by Joseph Pilates himself. In 2007, Amy was the first woman to pass the Art of Strength (AOS) Kettlebell Essentials test.

Dr. Stuart McGill, Professor Emeritus, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, is one of the most sought-after clinical researchers in the world with regard to “rehabilitating back-pained people and enhancing both injury resilience and performance.” Amy feels incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to train with Dr. McGill. Because of her understanding of Dr. McGill’s research, Amy was drawn to the MECA Back Wedge. While working with the MECA Back Institute (MBI), now Empower Wedge, she helped launch and run the teacher training program, writing the teacher training manual.

Knowing that one’s health is not just about physical health, but mental and emotional health as well, Amy has developed a deep interest in cognitive studies and brain health as related to dementia and Alzheimer’s prevention and reversal.

Amy has presented for Cape Cod Healthcare’s Wellness Trail Series on the topic of Plant-Based Nutrition and its unparalleled benefits for training, recovery, and performance for the weekend warrior to the endurance athlete. Amy has experienced the first-hand benefits of transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle, having competed several times in the Spartan Beast endurance race encompassing 16-18 miles of mountain terrain, as well as in the Cape Cod Bay Challenge, a Stand-Up Paddle Board event, covering the 30-34 miles across Cape Cod Bay and taking 10-12 hours depending on the tide, wind, and current. Amy participated in these events both before and after becoming plant-based and can attest to the significant positive impacts of plant-based nutrition. Amy is certified in Plant-Based Nutrition through the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies at Cornell University.

Taking the most vital elements and lessons from all of her studies and experiences along her journey, Amy has brought together her passion and education in functional training, biomechanically sound movement, evidence-based nutrition, brain health, as well as the key and most sound components from her background in Pilates and yoga to form a cohesive whole, the principals and protocols that PFS utilizes today.

Amy’s commitment and desire to help her clients is unwavering. She continues to be excited, happy, and humbled to share her knowledge, experience, and passion with you. 



Ellen

Ellen Powell

  • ACE Certified Personal Trainer
  • BA in Psychology
  • BioMechanics Method Corrective Exercise Specialist
  • The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential (IAHP) Brain Health Certified
  • Boxing Certified through Tony Jeffries (former professional boxer and bronze medal Olympian) and the Boxing Fitness Academy
  • Culinary Training through Forks Over Knives (FOK)
  • Culinary Training through Cape Cod Community College
  • Currently pursuing eCornell University’s Plant-Based Nutrition Certification
  • Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Training

Pronouns: she/her/hers

Ellen is the sweet, southern soul, ready to greet everyone who enters the doors of PFS with the biggest smile.

Born and raised in South Carolina, Ellen is the fourteenth member of her family to attend Coker College (now Coker University) where she was a pre-med major.  After the death of her beloved father, and in the months following the earth-shattering events of 9/11, Ellen reevaluated her plans for the future.

Ellen needed a change, a fresh perspective and a new environment where she could be further challenged to learn and grow. Seeing how fragile and short life can be, Ellen knew she needed to spread her wings and do what she could to live life to the fullest.  Graduating a semester early, Ellen ventured north to Cape Cod and began working at The May Institute in Harwich as a Behavior Program Specialist.  There, she trained and supervised the residential staff, while working closely with autistic children, creating Individual Education Plans (IEP) for each child, along with teaching them important life skills.  Ellen had a gift for creating personalized, custom programs to fit the specific needs of her clients; and this made her stand out. Through the May Institute and Ellen’s exemplary performance, compassion and dedication, she was recruited to work for a family, performing all duties as they related to their child’s medical, nutritional, social and overall health and well-being needs.  Working with this incredible non-verbal, brain-injured child with many special needs would also bring Ellen to New Jersey, where she and the family relocated so that Ellen could continue providing their child with her unparalleled care.

Ellen dedicated herself to this child and helped him in ways that his parents could never have dreamed.  Ellen’s commitment was unwavering. She also learned of the benefits of stem cell therapy, which was becoming an experimental treatment in the United States at the time.

Being devoted and constantly seeking the highest level of understanding around her client’s medical needs and care, Ellen was introduced to “The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential” (IAHP) where she successfully completed their course on brain health.  Impressed by the course and learning even more about the significant impact nutrition and the development of sound body movement and exercise play in overall health, Ellen committed to also changing her own lifestyle.

It was at this time that Ellen and the parents of her client came across “The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-term Health” by T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II. Impressed by the evidence-based research and knowledge she and the parents gained, Ellen and her client’s entire family began to transition to a Whole Food Plant-Based (WFPB) way of eating.

In addition to changing her diet, Ellen began walking daily, participating in spin classes and working with a personal trainer.  Realizing her love of movement, fitness became her passion.

Ellen’s time caring for this child was extremely rewarding and greatly improved the quality of his life until his passing.  Sadly, the emotional toll was unmanageable for Ellen, and she lost sight of the healthy habits she had been incorporating and she began to gain weight.

Ellen returned to Cape Cod where she missed the healthy habits she had enjoyed while living in New Jersey.  Ellen tried different avenues to find her “happy place” with health and fitness here on the Cape, and while preparing for an obstacle course race, Ellen was encouraged to take a class at Personalized Fitness Solutions (PFS), and here she found her “happy place.”

It was at PFS that Ellen was able to find a healthy and supportive community.  After recommitting to her own health, with the support of PFS and learning how to maintain her healthy lifestyle, no matter what emotional stress was placed on her, Ellen lost 50 lb., and cured her non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).  Ellen continues on her own fitness journey with endless enthusiasm, excited to help others. 

Since 2014 Ellen has participated in every aspect of PFS from private training to group classes to nutrition workshops and plant-based cooking classes.  Ellen has been a diehard night class participant.  As a dedicated assistant bank manager, dental office manager and town administrative assistant, Ellen has shined in all fields.  However, what Ellen really missed was her dedication to working with others.

Ellen longed for a career where she felt she had a purpose and could once again use her problem-solving skills, compassion and innate ability to recognize the needs of others both physically, mentally and emotionally to once again put customized plans together to help others find their potential and the healthiest version of themselves.  Ellen longed for a career where she could help others learn from her experiences, where she could utilize her incredible ability to read people, creating customized care plans in order for them to excel.   To educate and lift others while leading by example, as she continues on her own health and fitness journey, she realized what she had really been searching for was to be in the field of health and wellness helping others find a healthy relationship with movement and nutrition.

Starting out as a pre-med student, then along her journey taking courses in nursing and culinary arts and then acquiring her certification in personal training through the American Council on Exercise, has made her extremely well-versed in health, fitness and sound biomechanics.  Ellen has done incredibly well in further learning the detailed importance behind the principles and protocols of PFS, and how best to utilize these skills to serve those she works with.  

In her free time, Ellen is a voracious reader of many subjects, continuing her desire to learn as much as she can about optimal health, wellness, fitness and nutrition while making certain to stay on top of the latest research.  Ellen also enjoys music and recently is learning how to knit.

We are so happy to have Ellen on board, and we are very excited for you to meet this beautiful (inside and out) being with a brilliant mind, a vast amount of knowledge, a keen eye, and a heart of gold!