1. First, notice your posture—is your head crunching forward? Is your back hunched or overly-arched?  Take a moment to lengthen your spine and neck toward the ceiling (a tip is to imagine someone is lightly pulling a string that is attached to the top of your head up, like a marionette). Remember, there is naturally a slight arch to your lower back, keep that natural curve, but don’t accentuate it.  Imagine your tailbone is heavy and dropping towards the floor – you may feel your deep abdominal muscles engage to accomplish this. Maintaining this posture throughout the entire exercise is important to getting the most out of your plié.

2. Stand with your legs hip-distance apart, with each leg beneath a hip joint.  Do not lock your knees!

3. Position your feet so that they are parallel, and check that all ten toes are facing forward (this may feel strange—true parallel is an unnatural position for many people).

4. Now, for the bending!  Maintaining your posture, initiate a slight bend of your knees from the pelvis.  This means that instead of just bending your knees, that you start the downward movement from your hips (if you’re still keeping your alignment nice and strong, you should be able to feel a central feeling in your pelvis). As you bend your knees slightly, let your knees track over your feet—a good way to check that you are staying in parallel. Your knees will come out in front of you, while your pelvis moves down (this is different than a squat where the knees stay over the ankles and the pelvis reaches back).

5. Straighten your legs to return to the starting position and posture with the marionette string pulling up and unlocked knees.  Then repeat!

Pliés are usually slow, steady, and rhythmic.  It’s best to take the same amount of time to bend as it does to rise each time.  A relaxing and fun way to start is to put on one of your favorite songs that has a slower beat, and bend and straighten to the beat of it.

Yes, there are a lot of elements to think about when doing a plié – who thought that just bending your legs had so many hidden details? And with so many variations of it, which use different foot and leg positions and can add arm positions and movements, mastering the plié takes a lot of effort (many professional dancers still struggle with perfecting it).  But even a basic plié, which we just went through, can contribute to toning legs, abs, and even improving your every day posture.

So turn on your iPod and plié away, and you’ll be dancing!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/16/technology/16brain.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1

Always wanted to learn how to dance? Feel like you have rhythm and inspiration yet lack skill? Learn modern dance technique, dance concepts, and choreography that help shape your talent and make you look and feel beautiful. Inspiring music, laughter, play, and, fun!

Intermediate Modern Dance Classes
Thursdays June 10-July 1 (4 class series)
5-6:30pm
$15/class, $13/students
$55/series, $50/series for students

Experienced dancers in jazz, ballet, or modern will excel in this class.  Refine your technique, challenge your body with exercises in strengthening and rhythm, move big across the floor, and learn new choreography.
Pre-registration is now open and encouraged.

To register:

• mail a check to Moving Joy Studios, 213 N Aurora St., Ithaca NY 14850. Indicate which class(es) you are registering for
• Pay online “Custom Payment Amount”

"Let's Dance!" photo by Andrea Reyolds & Alison Waldman

All classes at Studio 213, 213 N Aurora St, Ithaca, NY 14850

1st Floor

See you on the dance floor!

Maren Waldman
Moving Joy Studios
www.movingjoystudios.com
maren@movingjoystudios.com

• Flexible (no pun intended!): Can be done in a variety of time intervals from 2 min – 90 minutes
• Simple: No fancy equipment needed
• Mostly Free: Once you learn how to stretch effectively, you can do this on your own, as it fits into your schedule, for years.

What will I gain from learning how to stretch?
Streching increases flexibility and range of motion, reduces pain, prevents injury, and is relaxing. There are many ways to stretch.  Learning the most effective technique(s) for your goals will make your stretching efficient.

There are also a vast number of stretching positions that target different muscle groups and suit varying levels of flexibility.  Identifying which muscle groups to stretch, using which position, can serve to increase your progress and success.

Why do I need one-on-one help? Can’t I just use a video?
Videos are fine once you know what you are doing and are comfortable in your body.  Proper alignment is ESSENTIAL for safe and successful stretching.  An outside eye can help correct your alignment and make sure you are actually stretching the muscle groups you think you are stretching.

What does stretching with you involve?
Streching with me involves an initial one-hour consultation where we asses your goals. If you already have a stretching routine I will observe what you practice and make alignment corrections if necessary. Based on your goals we will then create a personalized, fluid stretching sequence that fits your body and your schedule. You will leave with written directions to assist you. Half-hour follow-up sessions are scheduled according to your preference and needs.

Gardening season always excites us to get outside, get down on our hands and knees, and dig in! Common aches and pains from over exhuberent gardening:

• Low back ache
• Arm and hand pain
• Shoulder or neck stiffness
• Knee pain

While you’re out rescuing the earth, REMEMBER:

1. Stretch before, during, and after your work, especially if you anticipate working for more than 1 hour.
2. Work with awareness of your body position.  Instead of constantly twisting, turn your body to face your work.
3. Breathe. While doing small, repetetive tasks such as weeding, we tend to take small, shallow breaths or barely breathe at all.  While this seems to help us balance and focus, it limits our movement and ease. Please, Breathe.

TRY THIS: 3-PART BREATH

1. Get comfortable. Sitting in chair, place both feet on the ground; place your hands in your lap.

2. Center. Close your eyes. Lengthen your spine. Imagine your head is gently floating. Notice your breath.

3. Belly Breath. Allow your breath to deepen into your belly. Inhale through your nose; exhale through your mouth. Count 3 cycles of inhale-exhale.

4. Ribs Breath. Let the breath fill your ribs: front, sides, and back. If you like, place your hands on the sides of your ribs to feel them expand. 3 slow breaths.

5. Chest Breath. Expand breath into your upper chest, shoulders, & neck. 3 slow breaths.

6. Full Breath. Breath first into the belly, then ribs, then chest. Exhale in the opposite direction, chest, ribs, then belly. Repeat 2 more times.

7. Finish. Notice how you feel. Slowly open your eyes.

Now that you’ve read this, go back and try it! It takes 3 minutes start to finish. Surely you have time for that…

Visit my teaching schedule, link in the column to the right, for information on my upcoming dance classes.

Maren