Gym:
On the gym front, everything is going well. Jeff is good at pushing me to go when I need to be pushed... like yesterday. So far, we've been going to the gym for like 4 weeks and the results are great: 4.4 lbs less (I use scale weight as only one measure), 3 inches less around my hips (that includes really hips, butt, and lower belly), 3/4 of an inch less on my waist, and way more energy!
Belly dancing:
Last Friday was the Badriya benefit where I did 3 performances: one dancing to Stray Cat Strut with Il Troubadore (I love the way that they do it!; this dance was totally improv), one solo to Snake by Diva Destruction (that was the second time that I danced this choreography), and one troupe number (the end piece from our RenFaire set; Sheydaii by Turku). Thanks to the gym, I was definitely not tired after each number and I was not even sweating. Sweet!
This weekend, I did a little introspection stuff regarding almost everything... But when it comes to belly dancing, first of all, I was amazed at all the progress that I've made in the past year: I've done 4 solo performances and many group performances, I've choreographed quite a bit, I've started teaching, and I'm improving my facial expressions/stage presence skills (actually, they were almost absent last year). That's cool! And then I remembered that I've started dancing again for ONLY 2 years! Whoa! What progress!
I am so glad of the way that belly dancing has progressed in me. I had A LOT of technique with my teacher in Quebec. My only regret is that I stopped dancing completely for so many years. Nevermind. I'm dancing again now. I probably somehow needed the break. So I learned the technique way back when and now, since I've started dancing again, I've learned how to perform. And, thankfully, I still feel like I've got lots of things to learn! That makes belly dancing VERY interesting and entertaining for me and that's one of the most important thing!
I've had a bit of an epiphany over "what's my personal style?", "where should I go from there?", "what should I do next?", etc.
So I've got 3 projects that I'm thinking about... and, interestingly, when I thought about that over the weekend, instead of saying that I had 3 choreographies or 3 dances that I was thinking about, my exact thought was 3 projects. The reason why I find this wording so interesting is the fact that it is not just the choreography that I'm thinking about but the whole performance... i.e., the whole project. I want to do like Tempest and have EVERYTHING in mind: choice of music, choice of costume, choice of choreography/moves, choice of mood, choice of setting... that's what constitutes a "project", right? ;o)
And now, when it comes to costuming, I am thinking more in terms of "sets" or "kits." I want the whole costume to match together. I saw how efficient that is on Tempest. (Yeah, I (heart) Tempest quite a bit... she has changed my performance mindset quite a bit.)
Now, of course, the challenge is: when should I sew those kits? The thing is that my weight is changing... well, mainly my measurements are changing, the weight being the residual of the equation of "muscle mass gained - fat loss = weight on scale". So do I wait or do I start now? Some of the items that I have in mind are like panel skirts or at least skirts with an elastic so that's easy to modify. But when it comes to the bra or top, who knows what measurement I will have in 3 months, let's say?
Anyway, I can still think about it as I don't have any performances scheduled for some time. ;o) And Jeff had a brilliant idea (he has tons of brilliant ideas): I will create project cards/sheets for me to write down my ideas so that, should I need to speed things up, I won't be scrambling my brain as to what I had in mind.
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