This is what happens when 3 martial artists, who happen to also be dancers, meet at a bellydance/martial arts fusion festival – and a free photoshoot is offered. It was an honour to ‘duke it out’ virtually with my amazing dance colleagues Daniela (Aikido Master) and Senta (Karate Master) from the Netherlands. Representing here (as… Read More All is One
This weekend we had a slightly different workout day than our ‘regular’ jump-rope-and-kettlebell routine. We took part in a yearly local TaeKwondo forms tournament, preceded by a group warmup and a deeply educative self-defense workshop. The warmup contained some very interesting (and entertaining!) partner exercises, for instance situp-high-fives/tens followed by a backward roll, then getting… Read More Korean Cardio
Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives. The Body keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk.
This morning, after a week with a LOT of training (3 hours taekwondo, 2 hours of korean sword art, 4 hours of ballet, 2 hours of pointe class and half an hour of pointe rehearsals, plus 3 hours of martial arts charity workshops last Sunday) and not much time for recovery – I was feeling,… Read More Morning Flexibility
Do you know that feeling.. a physical sense that you might be on to something.. something important, even.. when something energises and inspires you, but you‘re not sure yet where it will lead you? Follow it. Follow your gut, tune in to your ‘body mind’, be sure to add some heart to whatever you do,… Read More On the right Track
I came across this quote today from Hermann Hesse‘s ’Siddharta’: … the river is everywhere at once, at the source and at the mouth, at the waterfall, at the ferry, at the rapids, in the sea, in the mountains, everywhere at once, and that there is only the present time for it, not the shadow of… Read More Poetry in Motion
This week I found myself in a pointe-shoe related conundrum. I had procrastinated on saying goodbye to my old (aka very comfortable, but sadly also overly worn) pointe shoes for just a smidge too long, leaving me with very little time for breaking in my new shoes properly before having to wear them in class.… Read More Avoiding the Void
One of the most interesting (and unexpectedly fun!) things we got to practice during this weekend’s MartialArts4Children workshop day was ‘ground work’ techniques for MMA. In other words, I survived my very first jujitsu-esque experience. I found it incredibly intriguing. Playing with gravity, using the flow of movement (or at least trying to!) and awareness… Read More Gravity and Flow
How you breathe – it changes everything. This was one of the most profound lessons we learned from our coaches at today‘s MartialArts4Children charity workshops. How you move, what (and how much!) you feel, your speed and accuracy of reaction, your mood, your flexibility, your (inner and outer) strength, all is connected to your breath. We… Read More The Power of Breath
In keeping with this week‘s theme of breath: Check out Anatomy of Breathing by Blandine Calais-Germain. A wonderfully detailed and illustrated work on the body mechanics of breathing. Goodreads Link Note: I haven‘t read it‘s follow-up book yet, but it looks equally intriguing: Anatomy of Movement Exercises Tell me your thoughts if you happen to know it!
