A chance for me to make a blog post in the midst of baby-brain (and an excuse to show off some proud-mama pics of my gorgeous girl Noemi!). Here are some lessons I'm learning, perhaps you can learn from them too?
Ballet
Food – friend or foe? Part 2
So, here it is, Part 2 on Food – friend or foe? (The friendly part) For those who missed it, Part 1 is over here!
Now, I’m not a nutritionist, so you won’t be hearing me say to go out and eat bucket loads of kale (although I do hear its good for you!). I am a counsellor, so instead I’ll be talking about the mindsets & attitudes toward food & eating that can help it remain (or become!) a relaxed, healthy part of life.
Food as friend = Freedom
To start with, a healthy relationship with food needs to be based on freedom not control… so how do you define freedom with food?
Food – friend or foe? Part 1
Sorry it’s been awhile between posts – I’ve been busy growing a baby and surviving the silly season! I’ve also found myself with gestational diabetes… :-( Fortunately for me, it’s very mild and only lasts during pregnancy, but it has meant having a diet plan and monitoring my carb & sugar intake, which takes me back to that familiar place of focusing on food that I remember only too well from my dancing days. Hence the subject of today’s post (and my next one): Food – Friend or Foe? Enjoy!
I’ve always said that every dancer has a unique relationship with food.
As dancers, your body is your instrument and so how your body looks can easily affect how you feel about yourself (your self-confidence) and how others perceive you – including your teachers & directors.
6 Steps to Pre-Performance Calm
Dance studios all over the place are currently preparing for their Christmas performances and showcase displays… it can be a stressful time, and especially on performance day itself, the jittery nerves can easily get the better of you.
Ever happen to you?
- You are doing really fine until you suddenly think about your mum or your boyfriend or your director sitting in the audience watching you, and suddenly you fall to pieces…
- While the dance before yours in going on, you stand side of stage, with legs that have turned to jelly, hands that are cold and sweaty and you feel more like running to the bathroom than on stage…
- You make it on stage but then you go completely blank, you’re in the front line looking like a deer in headlights…
- You have to hold a pose on stage for awhile and you get that nervous twitch in your smile and you can’t make it stop …
All of these things are common in stage-fright. Nerves and adrenalin are part of performing but you don’t want to let them get the better of you. Here are some things you can do to help you keep cool, calm and collected.
Goals that Actually Get You Somewhere! Part 2
In my last post, I talked about the value of breaking your big, overwhelming goals into bite-sized steps so that you can gradually work towards them and feel a sense of achievement when you reach each milestone along the way.
But what happens when instead of happily making progress toward your goal, you find yourself getting stuck on one step, unable to move forward, doubting yourself, and wanting to quit?
Goals That Actually Get You Somewhere! Part 1
Have you ever tried goal-setting and it just didn’t work?
You made these big fancy goals to be able to do 32 fouette turns by Christmas, or to get a job at your favourite company… You set the goal, you believed in yourself, you waited…. but it never happened! Grrrr! Or worse, you worked hard-core at your goal for a week or 2, only to get so frustrated with yourself that you stopped trying.
So, you give up on goal-setting, because it all seems like a giant waste of time!
I know because I’ve been there.
I used to be an expert goal-setter, but a distastrous goal-achiever! That was until I learnt about the missing link between goal-setting and goal-achieving, which makes all the difference.
You don’t know you’re beautiful!
I know it’s been a few weeks since the London 2012 Olympics closed, but it still feels very fresh in my head. Even as I waited to board my flight to Brisbane to see the Hamburg Ballet, the incoming flight was filled with Green & Gold tracksuit clad Aussie Olympians returning home. A medal was also proudly displayed right before my eyes!
I think of the dedication, discipline and precision of the athletes striving for the highest goals…
I think of the post-event interviews and the number of times I heard athletes say, “I stuck to my race plan and did the best I could on the day”. Even in the face of defeat, they had their self-talk in the right place and didn’t let the shadow-voice of perfectionism talk themselves into the ground… Much for dancers to learn from…
But, the main thing that has stuck in my head and that I wanted to write about is actually