I have written here and here about my persistent ankle injury. I finally got to see a doctor specializing in sports medicine, and she says my issue isn’t just a tight Achilles tendon. It’s that my whole leg is weak.
She sent me to a new physiotherapist for shock wave therapy to address the thickened tendon and recommended more exercises to strengthen my leg and glute muscle. The physiotherapist added more.
I am also trying a sleep sock for plantar fasciitis and have gel heel lifts for my shoes.
It has all been a reminder that as the old children’s song goes, all my body parts are connected, from the soles of my feet through my ankle, Achilles tendon, calf, hamstring and up into my glute and lower back.
The exercises are not fun, but I’m doing them faithfully because they are working. This week I managed two swim practices without taping my ankle. I even had a successful ballet class; I’m starting to get back my range of motion and I am getting strong enough to crank out a few pirouettes.
Not me doing pirouettes obviously. I would be thrilled even to do even one double pirouette.
I have done adult ballet for 20 years now. I did belly dance for an extended period following an injury; and would still be taking classes if I could find one relatively local that fits my schedule. A couple of years ago, I took up jazz.
I only dance a few hours a week, so I don’t wear out my ballet slippers very quickly. My daughter said you weren’t a real dancer until you had bled into your shoes. That kind of misery and lost toenails are not for me. I never intend to dance en pointe, so I am perfectly content to call myself a dancer despite only wearing through the toes on my slippers.
I wore ballet shoes while doing belly dance as I wasn’t keen on bare feet at the local community centre. The same ballet shoes served me well for two years of jazz, but I confess to looking enviously at the jazz shoes others were wearing.
Dance classes are finally starting this week, so I indulged myself in a pair of jazz shoes. It doesn’t matter that I have only one one-hour jazz class each week. I now own two pairs of shoes for two different disciplines.
My new black jazz shoes alongside my pink ballet slippers. I’m secretly excited that my ballet slippers are showing enough wear that I may to replace them some time this year.
I know I’m a dancer even though I don’t fit the stereotype of skinny teenager with big dreams and a tutu. I usually wear leggings and a T-shirt instead of a leotard and tights. I sewed a character skirt more for my own amusement than for actual classes. But different shoes for different kinds of dance? That makes me feel like a “real” dancer.
Ok, so I have to be careful with my movements these days because I don’t want to aggravate my neck/shoulders/back but I’m still going to be low-key flailing around in celebration of International Dance Day today.
And I hope you’ll do the same because…
Image shows a quote from Lynda Barr that reads “ Any kind of dancing is better than no dancing at all.” and there is a person leaping in the air on the background.
I’m not a great dancer (choreography confounds me) but I thoroughly enjoy galumphing around whenever the mood strikes me. In fact, when I am feeling overwhelmed or that things have gotten too heavy, throwing on a danceable song is one of my go-to ways to release all that ickiness.
One of my favourite photos of all time, me and my Dad dancing at my Auntie Val’s wedding in the late 1970s. Image description: Me, at about age 6, dancing with my Dad on the dance floor at my Aunt’s wedding. I’m wearing a light-coloured sun dress and my blonde hair is in pigtails, my right arm is in front of me at chest height (obviously mid-dance-move) and I’m smiling up at my Daddy. My Dad, also mid-dance move with his right fingers mid-snap, is wearing a light grey suit and his brown hair is a floppy sort of length, is looking down towards me with a good Dad-energy. There are people sitting at tables in the background.
And, apparently my instinct to dance in those situations is a good one. Here are some links to articles and videos about why dancing is good for us – even if our techniques are ridiculous:
Still image shows the title of the video ‘The science of dancing’ next to a silhouette of a dancer who has jumped into the air with her head leaning back. There are chemical symbols in the background.
Still image shows the title of the video “The importance of dancing like an idiot” next to two silhouettes, one solid one in light pink and one white one in scribbled lines.
If you aren’t feeling up to reading or watching a lot today, maybe one of these quotes from Planet of Success will inspire you to dance?
Image description: a quote from Amelia Altwater-Rhodes in white text, the background image is of a person on a skirt dancing on the street. The quote reads: In a society that worships love, freedom, and beauty, dance is sacred. It is a prayer for the future, a remembrance of the past and a joyful exclamation of thanks for the present.”Image description: a quote from Agnes De Mille that reads “To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful…this is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking.” the background is blue (some shapes are visible but I can’t tell what they are.)
And, last but not least, here are a few of my favourite songs to dance to, feel free to borrow them for your own galumphing around:
Bif Naked’s “I love myself today” – Be sure to jump up and down during the jumpy parts. You’ll know ’em when you hear ’em. The still image is a photo of the singer, a woman with chin length black hair and bangs, sitting in the back seat of a car with her (tattooed) right arm on the window ledge and her hand upwards.
Great Big Sea’s “The Night Pat Murphy Died” – apparently this is a very old song but this was the first version I heard. It mentions drinking and wake, so judge yourself accordingly. This is the song my sisters and I dance to at weddings -we need a lot of room for this level of galumphing. The still image is a brightly coloured plastic doll of a guy playing the accordion. The background is yellow and the album name ‘play’ is on the right.
Charming Disaster’s “Baba Yaga” – the catchy tune, the folklore, and the clever lyrics makes this one of my favourite songs. Excellent for dancing in the kitchen or in the car. The still image is of three odd folk art dolls with the name of the band and the song superimposed on the image.
Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love” – This is a great song for goofing around with my friends. We have a dance for this one that is reminiscent of dancing on someone’s lawn in the summer when you’re 10 years old. Still image shows the singers face in a celestial setting.
Elle Kings “Ex’s & Oh’s” (the apostrophes are hers, not mine) – This is another song for goofing around and I like the snarky lyrics. Still image is of the album cover with the singer looking over her shoulder at the camera. She has blonde hair, defined eye makeup and she is wearing a multi-coloured shirt.
How will *you* be celebrating International Dance Day?
It’s why taking classes with different instructors can be so helpful. The good coaches all say basically the same thing, because the mechanics of our bodies don’t change much – leaving aside accommodations due, for example, to injury. However, they say the same thing in different ways.
My dance teachers have all talked about being nice and vertical, using my head to spot when spinning, engaging my core, and not flinging my arms around in a vain attempt to spin faster. More than 20 years of lessons; at least 10 different teachers, all of them very good at what they do. And yet I still struggle with pirouettes.
Doing a good pirouette is a trick I don’t really need in my skill set to enjoy dancing, but it is probably the equivalent of being able to lift a certain weight, or run a particular distance or do so in a goal time. It doesn’t matter that the teachers all say pirouettes are a life-long challenge for everyone: I want to be able to do them consistently.
My lightbulb moments over the past few weeks have come from short videos by a few on-line dance teachers.
Engage my lats (my newly-discovered muscles following months of physiotherapy to address shoulder issues, but also the muscles that teachers have talked about for years as part of my smooth strong back)
Hold my turning arm in front of my body, not behind it (aka don’t fling my arms around in a vain attempt to spin faster)
Think “up up up” (I have written about this before)
Pausing for a moment before landing (one teacher has his kids snap their fingers to get them to hold that beautiful moment of completed spin an instant longer)
Once shoulders are wide and the lats engaged, squeeze the front of your chest in and up (what my very first teacher called my elevator muscles – close the door and send it to the top floor).
None of this is new to me, exactly. What is new is my enthusiasm for trying to do five pirouettes on each side every day, to consolidate the muscle memory I am trying to develop thanks to this new way of understanding what my teachers have been asking me to do for literally decades.
I told my current teacher about this goal and her response was YES! Because consistent practice is what will make your work better. Add that to my list of things I knew but needed to hear in a different way.
Are you feeling it? Judging by the social media comments I find as I doomscroll, I’m pretty sure it’s not just me.
Other things are contributing too: trying to organize a big event at the other end of the province in a few weeks; navigating insurance after my car was hit while sitting in my driveway; insomnia brought on by all of the above…
I’m trying to use all my tricks: lists, reminders on my phone, the Pomodoro app. Aiming to do five things (or even one), no matter how small to break myself out of the frozen feeling. I even took my laptop to the pool so I could do paperwork while on my break.
Eventually I was able to do a thing, which led to a few more things, so hopefully I’m getting myself back on track. But I think this will be a long process because so much of what I am dealing with requires what some people call executive decision-making. My brain is too tired to brain right now.
Yesterday I had a profound revelation about keeping going. There was a drop-in student at my dance class. She didn’t know the work, but she clearly knew how to dance. She was an honest-to-goodness ballerina, or had been at some point in the not-too-distant past. The rest of us watched in awe.
After class, our teacher said something about her being there just to move her body and be part of the group. She wasn’t performing before a critical audience. She wasn’t setting a class and training students. She was just “there”.
Just being “there”. How lovely. I need to remember to move my body in ways that give me joy, and let go of all those things I’m trying to manage – if only for a few minutes.
A child in purple ballet gear and pink slippers relaxes (or sleeps?) on the floor. Photo is from Brilliant Dance.
Wow. January flew by and it’s time to check in on all those fancy words & promises I made to myself in December and January.
My word of the year is “steady” and I’ve maintained a consistent workout schedule which is feeling good and maintaining my steps per day at 10,000 a day.
I aim to cycle 30 km a week. At my current pace that’s 90 minutes of spinning. I’m in the ball park each week and trending towards hitting that consistently. I’m not stressing about it, I’ve already done more km this January than any previous ones. Yay!
The first few weeks I needed a day or two between spinning sessions as my legs were quite sore. After 4 weeks a recovery rides feel good even on consecutive days.
I continue to go to physiotherapy for my balance. Most recently Emily gave me some core exercises to further support my stability.
To compliment my targeted training I’m also trying exercise “snacks”. 5 minute yoga moment focused on wrists? I’m there.
10 minute standing core workout? Perfect!
15 minute dance cardio? Heck ya, let’s grapevine like it’s 1999!
I’m finding a bit of play and joy by not taking things too seriously. I am highly unskilled at dancing, lateral movement and core workouts. I find a sense of humor helps as I ineffectually flop about trying to cajole my brain and body into doing something new. I’m coming for you neuroplasticity!
I had recommitted to a daily yoga practice. I’ve taken a big tent approach to that by including stretching and meditation as “daily yoga”.
It’s feeling good. I’m more stable on my feet walking to work on icy sidewalks.
So far, so good with my 2025 plans. Hope yours are going well too!
Nat smiles at you wearing a green plaid shirt. Her hair is longer than it’s been for many years.
In case you were wondering, there is zero overlap between Dancing with Christine and Dancing with the Stars.
I mean, unless you count all the gold stars that I have hanging up in different places in my house. Technically, dancing in my kitchen is dancing with stars…or near stars.
ANYWAY!
I like dancing in my kitchen when I am cooking, baking, or just hanging out and here are a few of the songs that I have been flailing around to lately.
I’m offering them to you in case you feel like flailing around in your kitchen right now, too. Flailing in other rooms of the house is also highly recommended, I just tend to flail in the kitchen most often,
A few years ago, we came across JD McPherson’s Christmas album ‘Socks’ and I have been dancing around to it ever since.
The song All the Gifts I Need is linked below but consider also giving Socks and Ugly Sweater Blues a try. Or just dance to the whole album – you won’t regret it.
Brenda Lee’s Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree is an obvious choice but still a VERY fun one.
And again, I am not breaking any new ground here but All I Want for Christmas Is You gives me a ‘put bells on my sneakers because I’m a cheerleader in the Santa Claus parade’ feeling (even though the didn’t come out until I was several years past my cheerleading days.)
If you can’t stand Christmas music or if you don’t celebrate Christmas, don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!
Here are some totally non-holiday songs that I also like flailing around the kitchen to.
The second song in this list refers to a funeral and alcohol consumption, and the third one also refers to alcohol consumption. If these things are sensitive topics for you please take good care of yourself and avoid clicking the links.
Charming Disaster’s Baba Yaga is not only a fun song, it has all kinds of great folklore in it.
Great Big Sea’s The Night Pat Murphy Died may not sound like a good dance topic but my sisters and I have baffled many other dancers at weddings while flailing around to it.
And finally, Spirit of the West’s Home for a Rest will always get me into full-flail.
Do you already flail around to these songs? If not, give them a try and let me know what you think!
Also, please feel free to put your songs to flail along to in the comments.
Actually, do whatever sport appeals to you in whatever space makes you happy: open skies, chlorine-scented pools, a yoga space with gongs and music, even a gym filled with grunts and equipment clangs.
For me, this space is one of the best. It’s a light-filled dance studio with ivy growing across the windows. When they change colour in the fall, it becomes magical, reminding me of stained glass windows.
A dance studio with ballet barres near tall windows covered in red leaves, and two older women dancers chatting.
It has been four long years since I entered you. Four years of ballet classes via Zoom, while holding onto a chair and then a portable ballet barre in my living room.
I missed having a live musician to accompany us. Sometimes the technology was pretty dodgy. It was harder to get feedback when you were just a little square on the teacher’s computer, or make your own corrections without the big studio mirrors.
But overall it has been a good run. I could take lessons from my teacher when she was in Japan, or while I was travelling in Africa. I even did a few special classes with schools in Toronto or Washington.
Tonight I was a sweaty mess by the time we finished the barre. I must have been working harder because there were others to compare myself to. No more slacking off and sneaking the occasional chocolate between exercises!
Then we moved to the centre and did turns, jumps, and moves across the length of the studio – things I have barely done since 2020 because everyone’s space was different so classes shrank to fit.
A photo of some of the barres and mirrors in my studio, with a reflection of me in a red t-shirt and black tights.
I talked to people I haven’t seen in years, except on a screen. I put faces to names. It was joyful.
My ballet barre was the best investment of the pandemic. It has served me well, but it’s time to put it away and move back to the studio. Dancing like no-one is watching can be fun, but I have missed dancing with others far more than I realized.
My dance teacher, wearing black, is facing away from the camera, standing next to an upright piano. Beside her is an electric keyboard and chairs. Our accompanist had to rush away to catch his bus.
Last weekend I went to an event sponsored by a local medieval club and found myself sucked into the rabbit hole of dancing. I’m usually too busy in the kitchen or working on crafts to think about dancing, but this time it was a small event, I had plenty of time, and someone was teaching the dances – so I joined in.
I danced a lot! Don’t believe anyone who claims that very old dances are staid and stately. While some were slower-paced, many were very lively. I got sweaty and breathless. We needed to take water breaks.
I danced in pairs, in groups of threes or fours, in lines, in circles. I danced with men and women of all shapes and sizes. There was even an adorable six-year-old. I really loved how people paid minimal attention to traditional gender roles in the dances. Some male-female couples preferred to dance together, but most of us had no life partners to dance with, so we paired up with whoever was available. The people dancing “male” parts tried to remember to hold hands from below, while the “ladies” put their hands on top. It helped us keep track of whether we were a “man” or a “woman” for that dance.
Three photos of people in Renaissance and medieval clothing dancing in a modern hall. Top left is a circle dance, top right is a group of three dancers, bottom is a line of couples dancing. Photos courtesy of Todd Fischer.
It was an unusual contribution to my 223 workouts in 2023, but a lot of fun.
