Take Time to Set Intentions
I have been working on setting intentions this year before I engage in many different tasks, whether they are daily tasks or random things that come up. Setting intentions allows me to enter something and be mindful of the purpose of each activity. Not only can you set intentions before various tasks, but you can set intentions before each day or each week. Setting intentions has many benefits including giving you more clarity and focus, it motivates you and gives you purpose, allows you to be mindful and reflect and provide a positive mindset. When you set intentions it helps you clarify what you want to achieve and how you want to feel. It allows you to direct your focus and energy where you want it to be. It also can boost your motivation because when you understand why you’re pursuing something, it is easier to stay committed and be excited about what you are doing. Setting intentions gives you space and time to be mindful. It allows you to have time to be in the present. It also guides you to consider what you truly want and how you want to engage with the world. It provides you with opportunities for personal growth and self awareness. When you focus on positive intentions it can shift your mindset. If you can move away from negativity it can open up a world of possibilities. It can really improve your overall outlook on many things. Take some time this week to set your intentions. Maybe you want to set your intentions for the week or for the day. Maybe you want to set your intentions for the class you are about to take. Before each class take a few minutes to think about what matters most to you and what you want to achieve. Make sure to be specific and to be positive in the intentions you set. If you are not sure where to start, here are some positive intentions to consider and build off… Today I am committed to practicing patience and embracing every challenge as an opportunity for growth. My intention is to listen to my body and respect its limits, while also pushing myself to try something new. I will stay present and focused and stay connected with my body.
Cleaning House or Soul?
To start I want to clarify, I am using the word “soul” however, for some that might simply be them as a being, for some it may not resonate at all, it’s the word I use to describe my core being and life form-the me. Being a working mom, I am often asked how I find time to go to the studio, and the answer is sometimes I choose to clean my soul instead of my house. And by sometimes, I mean, every single time I go to the studio, I am prioritizing my soul over anything, including folding my laundry or doing a different household task. Sometimes, well probably most of the time, our souls need more care than they get. While no one can argue Aerial is good for the body, for me it is just as good for my soul. Aerial is a soul work out, a soul cleanse, a soul uplift and so much more. The physical changes. The tone-ness. Our clothes fitting differently. Those are all the things I hoped for, maybe even expected. I feelings that are what the average person would hope to get from any type of fitness membership or routine. I never knew or expected my soul to be touched by Aerial the way it has been and continues to be. I also never knew how much work, support, care, and love my soul needed until I joined Aerial. Aerial quickly filled a void in my soul while also actively being the fuel and source for all soul cleansing and self work/love I am doing. I strongly believe there is a connection to our body and a heightened level of body awareness necessary to safely do Aerial. With those comes a unique connection within my body and self I had not previously had. And I have heard many other ladies at the studio share similar experiences. While the return value on dedicating time to go to classes at the studio seems to be ever compounding, the time allotment for a day seems to never be enough. So I guess, really what I am trying to say, is Aerial is as much if not more valuable to my soul as it is to my body, and I do not know how that is possible, but it is so I will continue to cleanse my soul over cleaning my house. I encourage all of you to also prioritize your soul over really anything else in the world, at least from time to time.
All the Class Options!
Taking advantage of the unlimited package was one of the best decisions I could have made. Being new to the world of Aerial was exciting but concerning at the same time. I was a little nervous learning something totally out of my comfort zone. I instantly wanted to just spend all my time learning tricks on the pole, but I knew I needed to explore more – I needed to get out of my comfort zone. I began to view the fitness classes as a blessing in disguise. I’ve been a hip hop dancer since I was a little girl, so dancing has just been a true talent for me. Throughout my teen years I was always pretty active in sports, but fitness classes were never my favorite. Becoming an adult I always wanted to have a weekly routine with working out to keep a healthy lifestyle, but I could never stay consistent. So fast forward to finding fitness I ENJOY and here I am! Taking fitness classes at Aerial Dance has help me prioritize my health. From Vertical Barre to Fitness Fundamentals I love them all. Bendy Babe is one of my favorites because I’m learning how to use my body in more flexible ways, and it helps me take care of my muscles as well. Pole Strong has helped me tremendously with my strength, although we do “conditioning” in the beginning of each apparatus class, I feel that taking Pole Strong Classes help me build my muscle strength even quicker. I enjoy taking these classes because they’re smaller and more intimate, and that’s important to me because I learn quicker that way and plus I get to know the sisters a little better. The instructors are amazing and you can tell they love what they do. They are always so encouraging and that’s a beautiful thing because you never know what someone is going through. The positivity at Aerial Dance helps you carry that great energy out to the world.
Your Skin
Our skin. When we really think about it, how much credit do we give our skin? Especially for us aerialists, when sometimes a small piece of skin means the difference in our safety. Our skin literally holds us together. It protects us. It stretches to hold the ever changing amounts of muscle, fat, other human(s), milk and all other bodily fluids and things; and then it sometimes un-stretches. It grips. It loses grip. And I’m sure it does a whole slew of other things. And sadly, at least for me, I do not give it credit or praise or thanks. If I think of it, I typically do not like it or feel comfortable in it most days. I also, likely, do not take care of it nearly as well as I should. And it does not end there. I admittedly, often think very negatively of my skin. (The irony of not feeling comfortable in my own skin, the thing I was born in and literally has held me together my entire life hits hard and is a heavy topic the studio has actively helped me challenge.) There are days I look in the mirror and only see the sag. Days I feel the pulling while I’m getting into a position or transitioning on the pole. There are days my legs have no grip. And the sad reality is during all of those moments, I think of what it is not. I think of how it is not tight enough. Or moist/grippy enough. Or how it didn’t unstreach and is now in excess all over my body. While all of that is true, there are also days when I am at the studio and I can look at myself and see strength (back to the actively challenging the negativity). I can look in the mirror and see beauty. In fact, the other day, while I was stretching with shorts on, I looked at the sag of my thighs and I didn’t feel instant negativity. I looked at it and I felt a sense of wonder. Wonder of what my skin is all capable of. Wonder of what my skin will continue to protect me from and support me through. Wonder of what my skin needs to be taken care of and supported the way it supports me. Wonder of what would happen if I acknowledged what my skin does for me and the beautiful way it shows up, every day. For today, I’m trying to choose to see the amazingness of my skin and offer it grace and gratefulness for the ways in which it simply is AND I invite you all to join me. Also, I’m choose in my first ever, to moisturize after a shower and its a grip game changer that I highly recommend.
No Judgement Space
When I started aerial back in March 2022, I instantly felt comfort. I could tell it was a NO JUDGEMENT ZONE! At that time in my life that was a very major priority for me. I know that has to be something the studio takes pride in because we now live in a world where people are so opinionated and judgmental; and it’s so hard to find genuine people nowadays. So coming across a dance/fitness studio that promotes love and positivity instantly put a smile on my face. Once you walk through those doors you can feel it. I believe that’s what makes the bond of sisterhood so strong here. Most of the time I’m going through day to day challenges because I hit a transitional faze in my life. Where I’m trying new things, getting to know myself better and overcoming my insecurities just to name a few. Every time I get overwhelmed, coming to class takes that negativity away. In fact, I get a little upset when I have to miss a class. When I first moved to Green Bay I felt so alone and out of place, but making new friends at the studio gave me safe zone. Just a simple “how you doing?” or a short conversation from one of the sisters helps me tremendously. I enjoy learning from each and every instructor because everyone has their own style of teaching. Each instructor shows how knowledgeable they are and I appreciate their advice outside of dance talk. It upsets me sometimes that I don’t stay in the middle of both studios, because I like to take classes from both studios. In fact if I could do one thing over from the beginning of moving to Wisconsin in 2022, I would have found the studio first before making a decision on my new place of residency. But I must admit, sometimes I take that 40 min drive from my house to get to Appleton. It’s so exciting for me because I’ve never been this committed to anything in my life. I’ve always took the easy route as I got older. I was used to staying in my comfort zone. Aerial Dance has broken me out of that and I’ll forever be grateful for this. I can’t really put my finger on it right now how learning pole and hoop at the studio has taken me another direction in life, but I’m excited to find out. Maybe it was the “Learn Pole Professionally” that I wrote in my journal 3 years ago. Whatever it is, I’m just grateful I found Aerial Dance.
