Life is Easy. Dance is Hard.

Updates

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 19:22:40 -0500

Yesterday the dance department at the performing arts school I go to had it’s winter showcase. The first act of the show were songs from The Nightmare Before Christmas and the second act had songs from Elf the Musical. It was mostly contemporary dance for the first act, and a lot of tap and musical theatre in the second.
If I can be honest, I wish we had just chosen one. So many great songs were cut from Nightmare which is one of my favorite movies, and I think the show would have gone a lot better if it wasn’t cut short.
That being said, people came up to me after the show saying what a great job I did and how great the show was. I guess I’m always my own worst critic. In case anyone was wondering, I danced the role of Jovie (Buddy’s love interest in Elf) which was fun but involved a lot more acting and mugging than dancing. What I really wanted to be was Sally, but I don’t want to sound ungrateful. I’m only a junior and there will be bigger parts.
Also, my tiny little dance studio is putting on a production of the Nutcracker tomorrow and I will be Arabian which is awesome because that’s my favorite song from the Nutcracker.
Are any of you in winter shows? What parts are you playing and what shows are you doing?

Oh my god, I'm so glad you're back on tumblr! I've been checking your blog almost every week since april, just waiting for you to post something again... & you finally did! (: Thanks so much for coming back and I hope your dance practices are going great (:

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 19:12:51 -0500

Wow, really? That’s amazing, thank you!

I hate myself when I dance. And it’s weird, because dancing is...

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 18:21:18 -0500

I hate myself when I dance. And it’s weird, because dancing is my favorite thing to do. I love it so much. It made me realize that I don’t hate myself, I hate other people (not you guys, I love you all!). I hate not knowing their reaction and fearing the worst. And that fear and lack of confidence makes me a bad dancer. These are some tips you can follow to make you feel better about yourself when you dance.

The picture in the background is an actual picture of my dance class.

I've just read through your blog and have to say, I admire you, I love how you are so determined and nothing will get in your way. The improbability of success keeps stopping me giving dance my all :/ But I feel that in some ways you might need to tell yourself you're doing well more often. That you are good enough, constant striving can bring you down and you sound like a wonderful person and dancer. Maybe I'm wrong, but praise is also key to success :)

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 18:12:37 -0500

Thank you so much. This means the world to me.

It sucks feeling overweight when you’re a dancer. When...

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 17:29:09 -0500

It sucks feeling overweight when you’re a dancer. When you’re onstage, your appearance is everything. These are just some tips that work for me when I want to feel thinner a week or two before a performance. Hopefully they work for you!

I'm back!

Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:04:11 -0500

My dance life has been so hectic, but I’m back and ready to be active again. Thanks for sticking with me. Love you all
xoxo

Hey! Your blog has so many great tips I love it! So I was wondering if you have any tips on being more confident and being a good performer? My teachers always say that I have the technique down, but I need to perform more. This is probably kind of a hard question to answer haha but thank you :)!

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 22:55:38 -0400

I haven’t written a post in a couple days because I’ve had performances and practices, but I think this is a topic that ties in very well with what I have been dealing with and I will try very hard to get to it tomorrow.

do you have any tips on improving turn out? I've tried many different positions (ie sitting in frog, butterfly) and I find that it doesn't help :(

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 19:59:41 -0400

Do you have someone push down on your knees when sitting in frogs or butterfly? The improvement will be gradual, but you will see it if you work at it everyday, I promise : )

Photo

Sun, 01 Apr 2012 21:38:00 -0400

I'm so glad you have this blog because I had to take a break from dance to do mandatory sports and I hate that I had to, so this blog helps me keep stretching and keep up with my flexibility. Thank you!

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:19:12 -0400

Things like this make me happy! I’m so glad that I was able to help you out. Be sure to let me know if you want to see anything else from me?

Vote for living-life-withasmile please??

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:17:47 -0400

vote for living-life-withasmile here, then message her here for this published rate to all her followers!

or…

tell your followers, message her, and she’ll screenshot you!

Submitted by living-life-withasmile. I try to help out my followers when I can!

Your blog is wonderful! Definitely one of the best ballet blogs I've seen :) Do you have any tips on how to get deeper plies and a more flexible achilles? :)

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 23:41:19 -0400

I aim to be more than a ballet blog. I want to be helpful in all areas of dance. And tomorrow I am writing a post on getting ready for pointe work so I will include that in there : ) Thanks for the feedback!

Hey, I just wanted to drop by and say I just found your blog and I really love it - I've already found some useful tips that I didn't know, as well as lots that I did but I always find it useful to be reminded of these things by someone different :) xx

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 22:40:17 -0400

Thank you so much!! I’m glad this is helpful to you : ) Feel free to let me know what you would like to see from me next.

can you do like a daily excersize routine to get your splits (right, left, and middle) as quickly as possible? (:

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:28:57 -0400

Just finished it! Send me your feedback and let me know what you think. I hope it was helpful : )

Getting Your Splits 1. Lie down and battement your leg. Do this...

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:27:44 -0400

Getting Your Splits
1. Lie down and battement your leg. Do this for 8 counts and then after the last one, hold your leg close to you, pulling it towards yourself.
2. Prop your leg up on the barre. Do some plies and releves while keeping your face as close to your knee as possible.
3. Sit down with your legs straight in front of you. Try to touch your toes. Instead of thinking of getting your hands to reach your feet (creates a curve in the spine) I think of getting my chest to touch my knees. Now try this with your legs spread in straddle.
4. Lunges
5. Sit in each of your splits, no matter how far down you are, every day for 30 seconds at least.
Make sure to stretch both sides! I hope this was helpful. Message me with any other questions you have : )

Do you know any dance stores that sell leotards and therabands for cheap/reasonable prices, and have a website to order off of?

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 23:18:29 -0400

Discount dance supply (discountdancesupply.com) is a great resource but you’ll need to know what size you are for everything already as you cannot try anything on.

If You’re a Beginning Dancer Most of us that aspire to be...

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 17:00:03 -0400

If You’re a Beginning Dancer
Most of us that aspire to be professionals have been working at this dream since we were 3. That doesn’t mean that if you begin later, you cannot be a good dancer. There have been many professional dancers, Misty Copeland for example, who started later on in life. However, if you want this you will have to
1.) Practice everyday - I mean literally everyday for at least 3 hours. And with the help of an actual dance teacher, not alone in your room. You are making up for lost time here.
2.) Concentrate on yourself - It’s easy to become disenfranchised when everyone is ahead of you, or you are in a class with girls/boys years younger. Focus on the end goal. You will be a lovely dancer if you work hard
3.) Stretch on your own - In addition to your 3+ hours, you should be working at home on what you had difficulty on in class.
4.) Strengthen your ankles - This is purely for those who want to be on pointe as quickly as possible. Weak ankles will prevent you from wearing pointe shoes. Do releves everyday and also releves in coupe.
Remember, it isn’t about who has been dancing the longest. It is who works the hardest and has the most potential. Best of luck to all of you!
I hope this was helpful : ) Feel free to send me a message letting me know what you would like to see from me.

Posting a Few Dance Things Today

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 15:51:00 -0400

I am off to New York City this weekend to take a class at Steps and do some shopping, but I don’t want to neglect my followers, so please let me know what you want to see from me today and I will get done as much as I can. Send me a message or leave comments. Of you have any of your own advice to offer, I’d be glad to hear it.
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Thigh Gap workout

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:05:06 -0400

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lqiderUwa71qca9py.jpg

Thank you for submitting this!

Building Lean Muscle 1. Eat fruits & veggies - There’s...

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:30:30 -0400

Building Lean Muscle
1. Eat fruits & veggies - There’s a reason a lot of bodybuilders drink protein shakes and eat protein bars. Protein helps bulk you up, and while protein is good for you, you should try getting as much of it as you can through fruits and vegetables. Chicken and fish are also good.
2. Pilates - Pilates is the best thing you can do for your body. It strengthens you while the exercises are designed to keep you long and lean. If you cannot take a Pilates class, look up Blogilates. She has a YouTube channel, a website and a tumblr. For the person who asked about inner thighs, she has a video just for that.
3. Water - You should be drinking half your body weight in ounces of water everyday.
4. Don’t worry about it! - At the end of the day, dance class won’t be building bulky muscle. Dance was not designed for that. Unless you are lifting weights (in which case, stop!) or doing another sport that is inclined to build bigger athletes, you should be fine.