FRESH INPUT – It can do so much for us. For the better.

I recently got myself a new pair of pointe shoes for ballet.

It’s a different brand than I am used to (Merlet, used to be Grishko) with a totally different feel.

And I notice 2 things:

1 . Different sensations, even very subtle ones, will make you more aware of ALL your movements.

It all feels slightly different with these shoes: balance, texture, resistance, placement of the weight.. it’s a bit tricky, like a LOT of input to be processed all at once, and it slows me down.

I like it.

It is slowing down in a very good way.

Remapping the basics.

We play with this in various ways in my online BOOST classes, and still it catches me by surprise when I encounter it in other areas ☺️

2. Learning something new, using a different prop, or changing your (inner or outer) input will make you practice MORE.

A hack, but it’s true. It WORKS.

And not just for dance. For life, too!

It’s the same in Korean Sword Art (Haidong Gumdo) training.

When we were first allowed to practice with an aluminum sword (kagum), after using a wooden sword (mokgum) for years, it was just the strangest experience.

Nothing worked. Everything felt ‘wrong’.

Uncomfortable.

Interesting.

A very strange (but necessary) experience.

I had to adapt/tweak/improve/change everything I glossed over as a beginner: my grip, my weight placement, my timing, my foot work..

In short: The time had come to start re-learning all the basics.

I’m still at it.

And I love it.

When we practice with new-to-us input (say, for instance, a different prop, a new costume, a new challenge, a new environment, a different teacher, or music/styles/movement forms that is not what we’re used to) we can learn things that makes us re-think all we previously thought we knew..

We recalibrate.

And it helps us level up our skills.

Big time.

How about you? Have you ever noticed this as well?

Tell me about your experiences in the comments below! 👇👇👇