Lessons from being a dancer

I had the privilege of being a trained dancer. Which is to say YEARS of intense training. Almost every day. Sometimes twice a day. Lots of technique and few performances. Literally years of just learning how to point my foot, which muscles to use, and what "doing it correctly" feels like. Years of staring in the mirror, years of getting corrections from master teachers.

There are things I learned along the way. Like, it takes years to get okay at doing something. Some of us will train for a decade and never become a prima ballerina. I think this helps me in my running. Like I will never qualify for Boston, I am not on a masters track team. It doesn't mean I don't enjoy running for the sheer feeling of being in this body and doing the damn thing.

I learned, through dance, that you must listen to your body. There will be days when you feel strong, some days you feel extra flexible, some days you're in your feelings and you can dance with more emotion. Some days you need to sit down and rest. You can't be in top form all the time. You sometimes have to perform at less than 100%. The show must go on.

I learned that stretching is life. You must stretch. For hours. Per day. Small movements can add up to a stronger body. Especially if you do them regularly, like every day. Multiple times throughout the day.

From dance, I learned about breathing through a movement. I learned how to sit with discomfort. I learned how to find the calm even while your body is doing amazing things. I learned how to remain centered. I learned how to remain grounded. I learned about how a lot of your power comes from your foot. Yes, the thighs are amazing, and so is the booty. 

Dance taught me to cultivate a strong core. The basic dance warm up emphasizes fluidity of the spine. You're going to stretch your back, you're going to stretch and warm up your hips. Dance taught me to never skip your warm up exercises.

There is a dark side to dance. Constant pressure to shrink your body. I know it exists in sports like gymnastics and cycling, too. I don't miss that part of it. I appreciate that running allows me to fuel my body with less shame and judgement. I wonder how the GLP-1 craze has impacted the dance world. I imagine it's rampant.

I'm tapping back into my dance roots this session of RunClub+. I decided to post a video after each run instead of a static photo. It's going well and I am starting to remember how dance brings me a lot of joy. It's not important to me how it looks to anyone else, just like my running. I'm not trying to be the poster child for dance or running. But I do enjoy both.