Behold! The first photo of me in the air in..... many years. Teaching lyra drops, slides, and spirals in Seattle at @versatilearts this week. What a lovely gift to be able to travel and teach again- how I have missed connecting with students and colleagues in far-flung places!
Let's talk about safely training at home during shelter-in-place! These words are courtesy of the inimitable @lizdcooper :
"With studios closed down for the foreseeable future, there is a growing interest in home rigging to keep up with aerial training. DIY rigging without adequate knowledge or experience is NOT recommended! Here are some things to keep in mind:
1) Most homes are not built for point loads in the ceilings, so if you’re considering rigging directly to your home’s structure, you’ll need to consult not just with a qualified aerial rigger but also with a structural engineer to make sure your home is suitable. You’ll also need to check with your landlord or insurance broker before making any modifications to your home’s structure.
2) Freestanding portable rigs are usually the best and most economical option, but a lot of manufacturers are sold out right now or it may take several weeks to receive your order. Make sure you’re buying any equipment from a reputable manufacturer, do NOT buy from third-party sellers like Amazon unless you know EXACTLY what you need AND that the seller is reputable. There’s a lot of cheap crap on the market that looks like a good deal - until it fails and you end up injured, that is. Good equipment isn’t cheap, save up, your neck will thank you for it.
3) DO NOT RIG FROM TREES!!!!! We cannot emphasize this enough - trees are NOT engineered structures and there are many factors that affect their health. If a branch breaks, you not only fall (potentially on your head), the branch weighing a couple hundred pounds falls on you. People have been seriously injured or killed by falling branches - google Sudden Branch Drop Syndrome for more info.
4) DO NOT INVERT FROM DOORFRAME PULL-UP BARS!!! They can easily dislodge with your movements and any fall onto your head or neck can be catastrophic, even from low heights.
5) If you do go ahead with a home rigging set-up, make sure you have both a mat AND someone with you at all times when you’re training.
6) (continued in comments)
#circus #aerials #aerialsilks #aerialhoop #staysafe #aerialist
Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement lessons, recorded for you to do while we socially distance ourselves. Introduction and first lesson are out! Join the FB group (search FeldenCrisis), or DM me your email address to be added to the list.
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Feldenkrais is unique in its approach to addressing movement habits, neuromuscular organization, issues of pain, injury, or poor function. Through carefully developed movement lessons based on developmental stages. It accesses the brain's innate capacity for plasticity, learning, and adaptation. It uses the language of movement to speak directly to the nervous system, rather than solely to the musculoskeletal system.
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It has two applications: Awareness Through Movement (ATM); and Functional Integration (FI). FI is practiced one-on-one, and involves the practitioner moving the student's body with their hands: not the best thing for a pandemic. ATM involves the practitioner guiding the student through movement experiments aimed at illuminating some neurolomusculoskeletal relationship, state, or movement pattern, giving the student greater ease, availability, and versatility of movement- more options!
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#feldenkrais #movementtherapy #somatics #onlinemovement
I'm covering some classes last-minute today at @sfpoleanddance ! At 6, I'm getting folks into my favorite apparatus, #lyra. At 7:15, catch me teaching a VERY rare #handstand class! I don't often coach ground stuff, but it's a nice change of pace once in a blue moon.
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(#waybackwednesday to Threshold with the @bostoncircusguild !)
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#circus #circuscoach #circusclass #sfcircus #aerials #aerialhoop #aerialacrobatics #aerialistsofig #handstands #aerialist #disabledaerialist #chronicallyillaerialist #circusforeverybody #circusthreetofivedaysaweek
I'm posting an old performance photo of mine (shoutout to the NECCA Spectacular 2012!) because I want to talk about trying to market oneself while being a chronically ill, semi-disabled aerial coach.
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I got a scant few years of full ability before things began to disintegrate. I don't have thrilling videos of my recent performances, or training shots of an impressive trick I'm mastering, or the movement experimentation I'm undertaking. I can't gain followers by being the strongest, the bendiest, the flashiest, or even the most expressive mover.
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But I know- and those of you who know me and my crippling self-doubt well will know what it means for me to say this- I *know* I am a good coach. There is very little about myself that I am capable of being confident about, but this is one. I know that I have spent ten years honing my ability to be of service to my students. I know that I have something to offer the person stepping onto the mat for the first time, and the professional looking to expand their repertoire, and other seasoned coaches looking to add tools to their teaching toolkit (whom I am almost always sure have tools I could use too!).
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But it is difficult to communicate that remotely, when I myself cannot now execute most of the technical and creative skills that I teach to others. The teachers most able to gather large followings are also, by and large, highly skilled active acrobats who are either curently making work or have such a long performance career behind them that they have a lot of old material to draw on.
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But, extremely talented coaches as I know all of those people to be, there are also a lot of teachers whom I count among some of the best coaches I know who are not, now, creating a ton of work. Who are teaching more than they are doing. Who maybe never reached such impressively athletic heights, but who possess incredible depth of knowledge and skill at guiding students through this often-precarious process of self-discovery that is learning aerial arts.
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And that is harder to document.
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I'm not sure where or how to conclude this, but I'll attempt a wrap-up in the comments.
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#aerialistsofig #aerialist #circus #aerialhoop #eds
First star drop for @alexandriiiia today in Sunday Silks class at @oaklandpoleanddance !
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There's so much going on in rolling drops- the direction of gravity changing, the wrap pulling on one hip, the adrenaline that can come up with new drops- and it takes a lot of prep exercises (not pictured: all the progressions that came before!) and a lot of repetitions to get it all to work at the same time. This was a really great first go of it!
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#silks #fabric #aerialfabric #aerialsilks #firstdrop #tissu #stardrop #aerials #aerialacrobatics #aerialclass #aerialcoach #circuscoach #circus
If you've worked on meathooks with me, you've heard me say this: meathooks are deceptively easy to do poorly- you can get yourself to a vaguely meathook-like shape that you can hold, and a lot of folks stop there. This technique- the shoulder placement, hip height, and sidebend- will help your meathook be stronger and better for your joints!
#Repost @thecircusdoc
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Always falling out of your meathook?
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Don’t let gravity get you down.
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It all starts with your shoulder engagement. Opening your chest and anchoring your shoulder blade on your back gives you a stable base to work from and allows you to keep your hanging arm in a strong position.
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That hanging arm should stay right at your hip crease to help keep your hips high. From there your bottom hip can flex around your arm (almost towards a straddle position).
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Notice how much higher @leahvjonesuphigh has her hips in the blue image than the red image. Notice the difference in her leg angle AND how much more of her hanging shoulder you can see.
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To learn more about meathooks, and other skills in the air click on the link in my bio for access to my blog, my book and other informational resources!
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Pc: @wittypixel
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#thecircusdoc #aerialist #trainsmart #anatomy #physicaltherapy #injuryprevention #stronger #acrobat #aerialartist #circuslife #meathook #healthytraining #trainhealthy #circusartsmedicine #aerialanatomy #physiotherapy #kinesiology #pt #aerialarts #movement #bodymechanics #trapeze #aerialsilks #straps #aerialstraps #strength #aerialnation #circusstrong
Bell beats for days in Lyra Level 2 at @sfpoleanddance
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Side beats are so much fun, and move along an axis that is frequently neglected on horizontal apparatuses!
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#hoop #aerialhoop #dynamichoop #aerialhooptricks #aerialhoopbeats #lyra #aeriallyra #circus #sfpoleanddance #bayareacircus #sfcircus #circusclass #aerialsclass #aerials #aerialacrobatics #circuscoach #aerialcoach #cerceau
We're working on various progressions into and out of this shape in Mixed Level Lyra on Tuesdays at 1:00 at @kineticartscenter
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#circus #aerial #hoop #lyra #aerialhoop #singlepoint #singlepointhoop #singlepointlyra #circusclass #ahropehiphang #ahhiphang #ahropesplit #ahsplit #split #lyraclass
Look at all the good #lines @hannahthez found in her very first aerial class in Aerial Foundations yesterday! .
Ground-based dancers, all of that work you've done to get your lines to look good- strengthening, stabilizing, practicing perpetual awareness all the way out to the tips of your fingers and toes- has *huge* payoff in aerial work, even on the first day. .
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#aerial #aerials #aerialhoop #ahsplit #split #lines #dance #aerialdance #lyra #hoop #circus #circuscoach #circusinstructor #technique
@kleinelilalibelle finding some good shapes in their first ever layback to splits up (<3!) in
Silks Level 1 @oaklandpoleanddance ! . .
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#aerialfabric #aerialsilks #tissu #aerialcoach #aerialteacher #aerialist #aerialclass #bayareacircus #oaklandcircus #circusthreetofivedaysaweek #circuscoach #spotting #technique #beginnersilks
