Archive for the ‘movement’ Category

Athletes: Speed recovery at a cellular level

A recent study conducted by researchers at Ohio State University found that Swedish massage helped speed muscle recovery at the cellular level for rabbits who got mechanically intense exercise. This comes as no suprise to Olympic swimmers Michael Phelps & Dara Torres who both used massage as a part of their daily routines. Phelps, 23, made history by winning eight gold medals. Torres, 41, became the oldest swimmer to compete in an Olympic event and win a silver medal

Read more at the Miami Herald

Classes at Legacy

BREAKING NEWS: I’ve finally found a home for my classes. In January, I’ll offer Beginner Partnered Charleston and Solo Vernacular Jazz & Charleston at Legacy Studios in Durham, NC. See my website at MustDanceSwing.com for more information. Hurray!

What makes a good teacher?

Most people would agree, no amount of education or training guarantees a teacher will do a “good” job or impact their students. On the first day of Anusara yoga teacher training, we were all asked to ponder qualities that we saw in our favorite yoga teachers. We then looked at our list to identify which qualities we already possessed and which we would like to cultivate. As a group, we shared our findings. The most overwhelming trend was leaning towards qualities like patience, encouraging, presence, challenging, and playfulness. Everyone agreed that knowledge and experience were necessary qualities, but that they were not the most important and certainly were not synonyms with expertise or quantitative experience. It is most important to embody authenticity and a genuine compassion for students rather than having all the answers, accolades, or certification. To teach for the love of the practice; now that makes a good teacher.

KMI - Sessions 2 & 3

Before & AfterAfter this third session, all I can say is: WOW, this is truly fascinating work. In a mere three sessions, I feel a dramatic transformation. I am attuned to the fact that my body is re-learning how to do habitual activities as it is moving and shifting. It is truly hard to find words to describe my experience, so I offer a photo from anatomytrains.com to illustrate.

Learning Movement

Why do some people learn to dance more quickly than others?

A question I’ve been exploring for ages. I am referring to innate characteristics most likely determined by genetics and movement patterns learned in childhood. The question has personal roots and professional implications.

Through school I’ve learned many new tidbits about how our bodies learn and store the information that, when recalled and put together, produces movement recognizable as “dance.” In truth, however, all movement is generated in the same fashion, more or less beautifully and efficiently depending on the individual.

(more…)