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MOVEMENT BLOG

In terms 1 and 2 we have been focusing on developing our awareness and use of dynamic alignment and stamina.  We have been using several practitioners exercises and methods to further our physical understanding, whilst exploring the space creatively.  Through this exploration I have discovered my body’s natural limits as well as what comes more simply. Becoming more self analytical is helping me to objectively evaluate my body and look at how I can improve it for performance.  

One of the exercises that helped me with grounding was the ‘giant’ exercise.  This was particularly helpful as moving through the space I was consciously thinking about how each swing of my arm as a giant would slice through the air and each footstep would create a crater in the earth, this mindset gave me a sense of stability and added weight giving myself the feeling of power and strength helping me to access a heavier body in the space.  

In neutral mask I was told that I should allow for more messiness and take more ownership of the space, as in the previous exercise ‘the forest’ I walked toe to heel making the mask look timid rather than curious.  The next time I made a conscious effort to stamp around a lot, pick up sticks and aggressively chop down plants.  However, intention was missing from my exploration and the mask ended up looking childlike.  I definitely underestimated how difficult neutral mask was at the beginning of the term, as I found by trying to correct one thing you can enlist even more complications that can take away from the mask itself.  

Creative movement has improved the detail of my movements and my overall stamina.  In one exercise we were created a journey through a jungle in all weathers, at first I didn’t stick to the precise route, curving my pathways rather than following the footpaths. I now realise this lack of detail punctures the believability of the world we’re creating.  Moving through the space with the sense of all weathers forced me to listen to my senses and think instinctively in the sense of how burning hot sun would affect my pace compared to a monsoon. E.g In a burning sun my body would slow down from heat exhaustion, whereas in the monsoon I would run quickly to not get wet but be heavier as the water pressure means my clothes would cling to my body.

In term 2 we focused on animal studies, this was definitely challenging as the small details in your movement are so important in replicating the animal. I focused on the way the animal walked and after watching warthogs in the zoo and documentaries I noticed that despite being a big lump of muscle they actually walk in a dainty manner, flicking their feet out. To try and emulate this I walked on my hands and legs, however Gareth told me that by focusing on this I looked more feline than warthoggy. He suggested that although it may not be as anatomically truthful, I should walk on my knuckles and knees, to get the sense of the animal’s weight. Straight away after doing this I felt more like the animal as I was able to feel the solid foundation of the warthog, which made it easier to get into the mindset of one.  

In our second term we explored Laban’s efforts, working on the economy of movement and technique over power. When exploring the effort ‘flick’ made up of indirect, sudden and light I found it really comfortable as I reside naturally in those three categories however, the effort I struggled with the most was ‘punch’: direct, heavy, sudden.  I found this challenging as I realised that I associate ‘direct’ with straight lines, so I found it incredibly hard to move suddenly whilst in direct. However, Gareth explained that direct could also be a mindset, so when working in my kinesphere I tried to explore punch focusing on trying to be direct in my mind; hoping that that focus would translate into my movements.

In our second term of pure movement we have been focusing on strength, flexibility and release.  I think I started off with pretty good core strength but the classes especially helped me with my form, allowing me to ease myself of any tension I was putting into my body.  I often found before starting ALRA that doing sit ups and crunches sometime caused strain in my neck - Lucia advised me, to always keep my chin parallel to my neck.  Over the weeks I’ve been trying to keep my neck as released as possible and as a result have definitely noticed a difference as I barely feel any pain in my neck anymore. Flexibility is an issue I have always struggled with but one exercise I found particularly useful is where you bend one leg whilst straightening the other and then place your opposite arm on the straightened ankle and open out to that side.  Although I am definitely not flexible enough to hold my ankle, by doing that move regularly I’ve found that gradually I can move my hand down my shin slightly each week - although it is definitely something I still need to work on.  

Overall doing movement classes at ALRA has definitely helped me by highlighting my body’s comfortable way of existing and highlighting the weaknesses within that. However, it has also proved to me that it is possible to change those habits.  In term 3 I will continue to explore and connect to the exercises that have helped me thus far, whilst also being open minded about what I’ll discover about my body next.  I will focus on improving my flexibility in order to create more possibilities for my body to move in the space.  Primarily I’d like to use the new strength I’ve found this term to explore new exercises from a point of being grounded and being more open to the space.

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Sophia photographed by Alfred Eisenstaedt.

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“You must be prepared to work always without applause.”

— Ernest Hemingway (via hudlion)

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i never run voluntarily so if u ever see me running you should start running too bc something is coming

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Clearly she wears those short skirts and skimpy tank tops because she wants the d. and by d I mean vitamin d. she wants to soak up as much sun as she can. because revealing clothes are not an invitation for sex u prick

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you are not a queen if your throne is made out of all the girls you stepped on just to make yourself look superior

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“At 23, JK Rowling was broke. Tina Fey was working at the Y.M.C.A. Oprah had just gotten fired from her first job as a TV reporter and Walt Disney had declared bankruptcy.”

— Read This If You’re 23 And Lost by Heidi Priebe (via psych-facts)

Good Vibes HERE

(via kushandwizdom)

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London girls protesting for mini-skirts, c. 1966.

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