In 2021, Ms. Thais Denmark started teaching a water exercise class, Pilates, and strength and stretching classes, as well as personal training classes, at Mt. Scott Community Center. These classes held over forty students each.
Last year, when the Mt. Scott Center closed in November for months of extensive renovation, the fitness class moved to Woodstock, and into the basement of Trinity United Methodist Church on Chavez Blvd. (the former 39th Avenue) and Steele Street. It has been reported by the students that “this class is very challenging, but worth it”.
The class has now grown even more – with fifty students filling the basement floor with their exercise mats every Tuesday and Thursday, 9:15-10:15 a.m. Sometimes the class – which has a $5 suggested donation for each session – comprises 60 to 70 adults, and overflows up onto the stage. Students are provided with stretch bands, foam balls and straps – and now dumbbells as well, to improve strength.
“Thais is very knowledgeable about anatomy and physiology,” commented Dr. Mary Frazel, a Woodstock resident who has been attending the class for several months. “Her philosophy is that everyone can participate, no matter how old – there are people of all ages, from 30 to 80++. I’ve been amazed to see how she motivates and encourages the participants to try, no matter what their fitness level is.”
Ms. Denmark began acquiring her fitness teaching skills in her native Brazil. She got her Masters degree in physical education and health there in 2012. She says she loved working with adults and seniors, focusing on exercise science, aging, quality of life and longevity.
After earning her PhD in Exercise and Science at Sao Paulo State University, Denmark took an internship in 2016-2017 at Oregon Health and Sciences University, and the University in Portland. Upon returning to Brazil, she worked at the Federal University.
While living in Portland during 2016 and 2017 for her PhD study, Thais met her husband. They kept the relationship alive while she went back to Brazil; but the distance proved difficult, and she decided to leave her career in Brazil and move to Portland in December of 2019. Then, when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, and classes were on hold, Thais had a baby – now four years old.
In addition to teaching fitness classes at the Mt. Scott Center in 2023, Denmark also began as a Senior Clinical Research Assistant at OHSU where she is supervising exercise clinical trials for breast and prostate cancer survivors. She is helping develop and deliver exercise programs, instructor training, and overseeing the overall progress and conduct of the exercise classes.
In late April of this year Denmark sent a message to her class. She shared that since starting the longevity group at the church and seeing it “grow and grow”, she began to think about choosing the right path for her career in the U.S. “Last week I had a dream. It was so beautiful: I dreamed of having a ‘Fitness for Life Exercise Studio’, and I saw us there, happy and healthy.”
Her vision is for a fitness center specializing in exercise for adults and seniors that would include many kinds of exercise classes: Strength, resistance, yoga, chair exercise classes, stretching, flexibility, balance, mobility, dance classes – all planned, and all supervised.
So, she has begun searching for a substantial space somewhere in Southeast Portland to rent for a fitness center, which she envisions as needing 2,000 to 4,000 square feet. Those with access to “Silver Sneakers” fitness class discounts would be accepted; and for others, exercise would be offered at “a decent price, where all … can afford and enjoy exercising for longevity and quality of life.” Eventually the center would include a weight room with machines, and a personal trainer to guide and help students with their exercise plans.
That’s her long-term plan. But, as for the immediate future, this month Thais is opening more classes at Trinity United Methodist Church to accommodate more students, and to offer more class options. Those classes will be:
Tuesdays and Thursdays:
9 and 10 a.m. – Longevity exercise -- resistance, balance, mobility, stretching
Saturdays:
9-9:45 a.m. – Resistance/strength exercise class
10-10:45 a.m. – Balance, mobility, and stretching/flexibility
11-11:45 a.m. – Gentle exercise, using chair – strength, balance, mobility, flexibility
And if you happen to think of any possible spaces that would be good for a future exercise studio, she would gratefully welcome suggestions. For more information about her current classes, call Thais Denmark at 503/735-5716 – or, email her: drthaisdenmark@gmail.com
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