Dancing?

So, I’m a professional dancer - modern-based, but alot of my performance work is improvisational, ie. kind of like a jazz musician who knows certain things about the song he/she’s about to play (tempo, melody, etc..), but improvises on the theme and each performance is different - I do that with movement. So, I’m not exactly an athelete - never has been much of one, and am only mildly competetive. I’m curious about the difference between the two approaches to the body. I train my body to be in good to excellent shape like many atheletes - flexibility, strenght, and cardio, but my main training is in coordination. Dance classes are all about being able to do very complex series of movements with a certain timing and percision. And, then added to that is the level of expressiveness that is necessary for performance - I am constantly working to be more vulnerable/honest in those momements of performance, more available to connect with the audience. Clearly that isn’t on the mind of most atheletes, but there is something about the pushing ourselves to the limit. I just did a 24-hour performance - the dance was 35 minutes long and we performed it on the hour, every hour, for 24 hours. It was incredibly intense - pushing beyond what seems possible. There were so many times - at hour 7 & 15 & 20 - that I couldn’t believe I was about to perform again. Couldn’t believe I was having to put myself out there again in front of people. So, the extreme is something I’m interested in… but I want an audience! Ha! : )

(check out my blog on Zaadz for posting about the work - and a journal we kept during the performance)

Re: Dancing?

freestyle improvised dancing is my favorite form of exercise.  it gives me the variety of muscle movement that my body craves. 

i can go as hard or soft into cardio as i feel body wants.  it includes stretching, twisting and isometrics.  it can also exercise emotional, intellectual, and spiritual expression. 

it exercises from both masculine and feminine perspectives, so i can go into a forceful workout or a graceful one.  it works on balance as i often dance on one foot or the other.  i can balance the slow and fast-twitching muscle movements. 

i can focus on any one chakra or a blend of them and exercise the whole body. 

and i feel that it minimizes the repetitive hammering damage of running.

Re: Dancing?

I agree re: Freestyle. Also enjoy watching structured movement, and pick up by
watching, then doing.