Building up stamina

One of my aims is to build up my stamina or fitness so that eventually I can dance all night if I want to.  Each day I have been trying to do at least 45 mins of movement and stretching.  These sessions have had a belly dance focus.  I am finding it hard to incorporate some of the arm movements because of my dodgy arm so I'm taking it slow and working on not falling over my feet. 

I purchased an ipad app called Belly Dance Fitness Workouts.  I can't remember the cost but it wasn't much.  It is produced by Musicbank Ltd and has a woman in an orange costume on the front.  I'm not sure but I think some lessons are missing, I may find them as I progress through.  I am enjoying it so far and I am able to go at my own pace and modify it for my fitness level.  I also find the voice over soothing.  The downside of this app so far is that some moves are not broken down in more detail however there are over 80 lessons so I may find that this is addressed elsewhere, I'll let you know.

Positives from today - I worked up a sweat and I touched my toes for the first time in a long time so the stretching must be helping.

Thats all for now
Liz     

Growing Pains

Last weekend I was in a lot of pain and it wasn't from exercising.  I've had a head cold that ended in a full body ache that had me take to my bed for a couple of days.  I'm over the cold now and it has taken until today for my body to really stop hurting - my weekly massage with the wonderful Dip helped.  Hurting so much gave me plenty of time to reflect on the state of my body and how I have not really been taking care of myself for a very long time.  This journey will help me to change that. 

 

This is one of my "before" photos and I think it highlights my less than perfect posture.  For years I have been living with a shoulder and arm injury that I deal with but has never healed properly.  I don't remember what it feels like to have a pain/ache free right arm and shoulder.  I get treatment for it when it is really bad and when I can afford it but do nothing to fix it consistently and regularly do things I know will aggravate it.  I'm a little self destructive.  This results in the rest of my body compensating and I get tired and sore and disheartened.  All that stops today!

 

I have decided that I will never be able to learn and master belly dance arm movements if I don't fix my right arm and shoulder.  So I am committed to finding out all I can and working towards being pain free. 

 

I have borrowed a fantastic book from the library that has clear illustrations of the muscles, etc.  I need to know the underlying structure of my arm so I can work out what is happening and how to fix it.  The book is called:

Ashwell, K.  (2010).  The human body identification manual: your body and how it works.  South Yarra: Palgrave Macmillan.  ISBN: 9781420256444 

 

Please don't think I am doing this without consulting medical advice - over the years I have seen a myriad of professionals so I do know what is wrong and ways that help to fix it.  I have always wanted someone else to fix it - this time I am going to do the hard yards to fix it myself with the assistance of professionals as needed.

 

I have a range of stretches I am meant to at least 3 times everyday and you can guess how many times I have done them.  I have to be vigilant and actually do them.  I am focusing on my posture to elongate my spine and hunch my shoulders less.  I am also using a gym ball to sit on so that I have to engage my core rather than just slumping in a chair.

 

I'll let you know how I get on.

Thanks for reading

 



Suppleness - Back Bends #1

Suppleness is one of my goals

Dave took my "before" photos today .... I'm not yet comfortable with them but they will help me to track my progress towards a flexible and supple body.
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I can currently do this ...

  

 

 

 



 

I want to be able to do this!  Rachel Brice is amazing.

I'm off to search for excercises and stretches to improve my flexibility - I'll let you know what I find and whether any of it helps.

About Me

Hello,

My name is Liz and I live in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia.

I share my life and home with

• my wonderful husband Dave
• my delightful daughter Ruby
• a stinky dog called Milo
• five hilarious chickens

I am in my Goddess Years and finally focusing on my mental and physical health.

Overall, life is beautiful!

​Why belly dance?I have a vivid memory of being in high school and mentioning to a teacher and other students that I wanted to learn to belly dance, their reaction was one of shock and disapproval. I never understood why. I see belly dance as being beautiful, sensual and powerful. It moves me. I love the way belly dance embraces women of all sizes and shapes and gives them confidence and control.
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​​Why have I created this site?
I have participated in a variety of exercise programs in my life but I never stick at them for very long and I never feel that they fulfill me.
Over the past 25 years I have attended belly dance classes irregularly and with limited success. I didn't practice ... I didn't feel confident in my ability ... I lacked co-ordination ... I did feel sexy.
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So what is different this time? I'm going to embark on a belly dance journey that moves at my pace, that focuses on technique before trying to co-ordinate the different parts of my body into a dance. I'm going to do what feels right for me and I'm going to do it in the comfort of my own home ... oh the joys of modern technology. I'm going to search the internet for the people who will inspire me and teach me in a way that makes sense to me. Further along in my journey I may rejoin group classes but I'm not making that a priority.
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This site is a way for me to record my journey, my successes and frustrations. I will share photos, video, links and information. I'm hoping that this site will keep me focussed and ensure that I don't give up. This is the place where I will dance as though no one is watching.
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S4 equation - What is it?The S4 equation. Success = (stamina+strength+suppleness+sensuality).
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