My Favorite Way to Exercise is…

You’d never know it by current lifestyle, but my favorite way to exercise is to dance. Albert Einstein said “dancers are the athletes of god” and I wholeheartedly agree. Dance is a full-body workout that requires skill, technique, strength, flexibility, agility, grace, imagination, and vulnerability. And while it requires extreme athleticism, it somehow doesn’t feel like a “workout” because it’s also creative self-expression. 

I feel nostalgic for the times I’d forget to censor myself because the music and the movement would whisk me through an out of body experience before being interrupted by conscious thought. Dance felt like a sweaty exorcism; a massive purge of my soul. I needed that – especially when I was younger – because I didn’t always feel free or safe to use my words. Instead my thoughts and emotions seeped through my movement and, like Martha Graham said, “the body says what words cannot”. 

Dance taught me discipline and how to consistently train my body through repetition to build my skill level. I love that process, which is probably why I also love Classical Pilates – my current fave.  Both disciplines have taught me that training has a beginning and a middle; but the growth process is never ending. You can never master Pilates just like you can never master dance. You can only embody them more fully over time. And thus, I am never bored. 

S.I.T. With Yourself in April

This month’s #soakedinthought journaling prompts are dedicated to body confidence and fitness as a lifestyle. As we move into Spring and the fitness industry ramps up its messaging about getting “in shape” for Summer, I hope you’ll sit with yourself to figure out what your body, mind, and spirit need to feel healthy, fit, and happy – without all the external voices.